VARIOUS ACTIVITIES

Various activities you can do on Yakushima

There are plenty of Yakushima activities to occupy a week or more on the island. It’s an ‘outdoor person’s’ paradise. If you’re a nature lover then you’re spoilt for choice!

Mountain Hiking

For such a small island there are an abundance of trails running in all directions across the island. Some of them are well-trodden, but others require some very vigilant navigation. Winter conditions can also pose some difficult challenges for the serious trekker. Yakushima has a long tradition of pilgrimages up to the mountains to request good harvests and health from the gods. Many of the smaller mountains close to the coast have these old pilgrimage routes. Many hikers on Yakushima are unaware that many of the trails they walk upon have been used by pilgrims for centuries. When up on the mountains then please respect these places as areas of local spiritual value. Should you wish to gain a good insight into the area you are traversing then consider a YES Tour as being a way of getting the most out of your visit to the island as the YES guides explain not only botanical aspects of the island, but also historical and cultural.

Yakushima has some fantastic hikes that cater to all abilities. From relatively easy treks to overnight expedition treks. From deep forest treks to mountain hikes that take you to the vast expanses of open highland above the tree-line. It is a visually stunning island and makes for a wonderful location if you wish to only get out into fresh air and take some exercise.

Water Activities

Ocean Activities

Yakushima is famed for its forests and mountains, but of course, as an island there is also the sea to pre-occupy you – particularly during the summer months. Sea activities include scuba diving, snorkeling, sea kayaking, fishing (both shore and boat fishing), swimming and turtle-watching.

You can swim and snorkel comfortably from June to October, while the diving season is all year round. Due to the warm Kuroshio current that flows past the island then even in the winter the sea temperature around Yakushima rarely falls below 20C.

Between May to July you can take a YES tour to watch the sea turtles come ashore at night to nest. These turtles are now protected and there are certain rules that you must follow whilst on the beaches.

YES can arrange scuba diving and snorkelling activities. Use the booking form to send your request.

River Activities

Once on the island you will quickly realize that there is an abundance of water.
Due to the high mountain rainfall the rivers of Yakushima flow with some of the purest and cleanest water in the world, so there’s always a plentiful supply of fresh water to quench your thirst when hiking.

The rivers provide great leisure areas and the clarity of the water is quite amazing.

In the warmer months, the river activities you can enjoy on Yakushima include kayaking, swimming, shower climbing and canyoning, as well as just escaping the summer heat and enjoying the cooling river water. However, caution is required when in the rivers as accidents do occur.

YES can arrange a great day out on the river either kayaking, SUP or shower climbing.

Use the booking form to send your request.

Recommended Yakushima Tour Itinerary

A recommended Yakushima tour itinerary is a question YES are often asked to design for visitors to the island so that they can get the maximum experience from the limited time they have on Yakushima. The longer guests wish to stay on Yakushima then the more tour and activity options become available. Visitors that arrive to the island unprepared tend to waste their first and final day on the island. Booking tours and activities with YES guarantees that as soon as you step foot on Yakushima then the adventure begins and continues until the minute you leave the island.

Sample Plan

There are a number of permutations for recommended Yakushima tour itineraries and we have given details of only a few examples based upon guests arriving and departing to/from the Miyanoura Port. Please contact YES if you plan to arrive via the Anbo Port or the Yakushima Airport and we can send an itinerary that is specific to these ports of arrival / departure. Other factors that can influence a tour / activity itinerary is the weather during your stay, the fitness of the guests and the interests of the guests. Once again, YES have the experience, knowledge and network to make quick changes to an itinerary so that we can work around most forms of weather during your stay.

If guests plan to rent a vehicle then their accommodation options are unlimited as we can arrange to meet the guest at a specific location to commence a tour or activity.

For visitors who do not plan on renting a vehicle then we would generally recommend staying in the Miyanoura area for those staying only one night or either the Miyanoura area or the Anbo area for those staying longer.

For guests staying in the Anbo area then the marine guides operating at Isso Beach and Miyanoura River cannot take guests to / from Anbo. For guests staying in the Miyanoura area then the marine guides operating at Anbo River cannot take guests to / from Miyanoura. Guests could either take a bus / taxi or rent a vehicle.

Use the booking form to send your request.

2 days / 1 night

Approximate Times	Day 1
07:45	depart Kagoshima Port
09:45	arrive to Miyanoura Port (Yakushima) and meet the YES guide
10:30	Shiratani Unsuikyo forest tour
16:30	exit Shiratani Unsuikyo and check-in at accommodation
	Day 2
09:00	meet the YES guide and commence Island Tour
15:30	arrive to the Miyanoura Port in time for the 16:00 ferry departure to Kagoshima

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3 days / 2 nights

Approximate Times	Day 1 (option A)	Day 1 (option B)
07:45	depart Kagoshima Port	depart Kagoshima Port
09:45	arrive to Miyanoura Port (Yakushima) and meet the YES guide	arrive to Miyanoura Port (Yakushima) and meet the marine guide
10:30	Shiratani Unsuikyo forest tour	arrive Isso Beach for snorkeling
13:00		arrive to Miyanoura River for kayaking
16:30	exit Shiratani Unsuikyo and check-in at accommodation	finish water activities
	Day 2	Day 2
06:00 – 09:00	meet the YES guide a hiking tour (Tachudake Tour / Kuromidake Tour / Yamato Sugi & Yakusugi Land Tour)	meet the YES guide and commence Island Tour
16:30	return to accommodation	return to accommodation
	Day 3	Day 3
09:00	meet the YES guide and commence Island Tour	meet the YES guide and commence the Shiratani Unsuikyo Tour
15:30	arrive to the Miyanoura Port in time for the 16:00 ferry departure to Kagoshima	arrive to the Miyanoura Port in time for the 16:00 ferry departure to Kagoshima

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4 days / 3 nights

Approximate Times	Day 1
07:45	depart Kagoshima Port
09:45	arrive to Miyanoura Port (Yakushima) and meet the marine guide
10:30	arrive Isso Beach for snorkeling
13:00	arrive to Miyanoura River for kayaking
16:30	finish water activities
	Day 2
06:00 – 09:00	meet the YES guide a hiking tour (Tachudake Tour / Kuromidake Tour / Yamato Sugi & Yakusugi Land Tour)
16:30	return to accommodation
	Day 3
09:00	meet the YES guide and commence Island Tour
16:30	return to accommodation
	Day 4
09:00	meet the YES guide and commence the Shiratani Unsuikyo Tour
15:30	arrive to the Miyanoura Port in time for the 16:00 ferry departure to Kagoshima

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VARIOUS ACTIVITIES

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