Saga Hidden Gems
Berceau de la céramique japonaise : la porcelaine d'Arita et d'Imari était exportée vers les cours européennes dès le XVIIe siècle. Le sashimi de calmar ultra-frais du marché matinal de Yobuko, l'onsen « eau de beauté » d'Ureshino et les bains historiques de Takeo complètent une halte raffinée à Kyushu.
43 spots
Le berceau de la porcelaine japonaise : les fours d'Arita et d'Imari, un sanctuaire en bord de mer et l'un des plus anciens onsen du pays.
Climat et meilleure saison
Chaud et humide avec de fortes pluies en début d'été ; hivers doux. La foire de la céramique d'Arita fin avril attire les plus grandes foules.
Spécialités culinaires
- Bœuf de Saga
- Calmar de Yobuko
- Crabe de Takezaki
- Thé d'Ureshino
Lieux emblématiques
- Fours d'Arita et d'Imari
- Sanctuaire Yutoku Inari
- Ureshino Onsen
- Site archéologique de Yoshinogari
Higashimatsuura Peninsula Cycling Route
The Higashimatsuura Peninsula, north of Karatsu, is a 40km circuit of dramatic coastal scenery accessible by bicycle — r…
Saga International Balloon Fiesta
Every November, the flat alluvial plain of the Kase River outside Saga City transforms into the launch site for 100+ hot…
Arita Porcelain
Arita is the birthplace of Japanese porcelain — in 1616, the Korean potter Yi Sam-pyeong discovered white clay suitable…
Arita Porcelain Fair
The Arita Ceramic Fair, held every year from April 29 to May 5 (Golden Week), is the largest porcelain sale event in Jap…
Sefuri-san Mountain
Sefurisan (1,077m), on the border between Saga and Fukuoka prefectures, is the highest peak in northern Kyushu and carri…
Genkainada Sea Route
Iki Island, accessible by ferry from Karatsu or Hakata, is a 138-square-km island in the Genkai Sea with exceptional arc…
Nabeshima Domain Ceramics Research Center
Walk into the Saga Ceramics Research Center on a Thursday morning and you might find three white-haired men bent over a…
Yobuko Morning Market
Yobuko is a tiny fishing port at the northern tip of the Higashimatsuura Peninsula, accessible only by car from Karatsu,…
Niji-no-Matsubara
Niji-no-Matsubara is a 5km arc of coastline planted with approximately 1 million black pine trees — one of Japan's 'thre…
Hamanoura Rice Terraces
The Hamanoura rice terraces, on the western coast of Kyushu facing the Genkai Sea, are ranked among Japan's 100 most bea…
Nijinomatsubara Seaside Cycling
The Niji-no-Matsubara pine grove fronts a 5km bicycle lane alongside the beach, rated by Cycling magazine as one of Japa…
Ogi City Hirado-bashi
Ogi is a small castle town on the southern slopes of Mt. Tenzan, known primarily within Saga Prefecture for its cherry b…
Kyuragi Valley
The Kyuragi River valley, between Takeo and Saga City, is one of western Kyushu's most intact examples of the mixed broa…
Saga's Okuninushi Shrine Night Trail
The path connecting Saga City's five historic shrines along the old merchant route has been maintained as a walking trai…
Kase River Firefly Festival
The Kase River and its tributaries in the southern Saga mountains host one of Kyushu's most concentrated firefly populat…
Saga Riverine Plain
The Saga Plain, particularly the rice paddy areas south and west of Saga City, hosts one of the largest concentrations o…
Ogi-Juku Post Town
Ogi was a major rest stop on the Nagasaki Kaido highway — the road connecting Nagasaki to Edo used by Dutch traders maki…
Kiyomizu Shrine
Kiyomizu-jinja in Saga City hosts the Saga Lantern Festival (Saga-no-Nishi) in mid-August — a tradition where paper lant…
Okawachiyama
Okawachiyama is a narrow valley 10km from Imari City that was deliberately sealed from the outside world in the 17th cen…
Takeo City Library
Takeo City Library, redesigned by Tsutaya Books and architect Takato Tamagami in 2013, is consistently ranked among Japa…
Karatsu-Yaki Pottery
Karatsu-yaki is one of the five most prestigious Japanese ceramic traditions and the most closely associated with tea ce…
Hiratani Valley
Hiratani Valley, in the mountains between Ureshino and Nagasaki, follows the upper Hiratani River through a narrow gorge…
Ureshino Onsen Ryokan Night Walk
Ureshino's 30 ryokan are concentrated within 800 meters of riverside corridor — close enough that walking the onsen town…
Saga Beef Kappo Dining
Saga beef (佐賀牛) consistently ranks in Japan's top 5 wagyu evaluations — ahead of the nationally famous Kobe beef in fat…
Karatsu Sea Cave Kayaking
The Matsuura coastline west of Karatsu is a 20km arc of basalt sea cliffs, small fishing harbors, and sea caves accessib…
Yoshinogari Historical Park
Yoshinogari is the most significant archaeological site in Japan for understanding the Yayoi period (300 BC–300 AD) — th…
Saga Castle History Museum
The original Saga Castle (1608) was demolished in the 1870s; the current History Museum occupies the restored Great Hall…
Saga Prefecture Art Museum
The Saga Prefectural Art Museum focuses on the two defining artistic traditions of Saga: the Nabeshima clan's patronage…
Saga Hot Air Balloon Museum
The Saga Balloon Festival Museum documents the 45-year history of the international event and contains the most comprehe…
Ureshino Onsen
Ureshino Onsen is called 'bijin no yu' (beautiful woman's water) — the sodium bicarbonate-rich water has a slippery, sil…
Takeo Onsen Motoyu
Motoyu, the central public bath of Takeo Onsen, occupies a building constructed in 1915 in the style of a Noh stage — a…
Karatsu Castle
Karatsu Castle (1608) stands on a pine-covered promontory directly above the mouth of the Matsuura River, with three sid…
Ureshino Tea
Ureshino-cha is the collective name for teas grown in the mineral-rich hills around Ureshino Onsen — a tradition establi…
Mifuneyama Rakuen
Mifuneyama Rakuen, a 500,000-square-meter garden carved into the forested slopes of Mt. Mifuneyama (sheer granite cliffs…
Imari Port
Imari Port, on the western coast of Saga Prefecture, was the shipping point for all Arita porcelain exported to Europe t…
Saga Onsen Hizen Yumo
Located 20km south of Saga City in the Sefurisan mountain range, Hizen Yumo Onsen is a concentrated cluster of three ryo…
Arita Porcelain Park
Arita Porcelain Park recreates a Zwinger Palace-style baroque building (the model for Meissen porcelain's original home…
Karatsu Bay Sunset Fishing
From June to October, the fishing boats of Karatsu Bay go out at sunset using bright lights to attract squid to the surf…
Ureshino Shochu Distillery
Ureshino City and its surrounding hills have been producing imo-jochu (sweet potato shochu) since the Edo period, using…
Takeo Shrine 3,000-Year-Old Camphor Tree
Within the grounds of Takeo Jinja, a camphor tree estimated at 3,000 years old stands 30 meters tall with a circumferenc…
Karatsu Kunchi Festival
The Karatsu Kunchi (November 2–4) is listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. Fourteen enormous lacquered floats…
Mifuneyama Autumn Maple Forest Walk
The maple forest on the slopes below Mifuneyama's granite cliff face contains 4,000 Japanese maple trees (momiji) that t…
Hikiyama Exhibition Hall
The Hikiyama Exhibition Hall stores all 14 Karatsu Kunchi festival floats in climate-controlled cases when not in use du…