In this movie, a young man who was cursed by an animal attack and a girl who was raised by a wild dog in medieval Japan, represent the struggle between humanity and nature.
There is a magnificent ancient forest, and the place that became the model is an island in Japan.
I traveled by train from Hokkaido to Kyushu when I was 20 years old and the final destination was Yakushima island in Kagoshima.
So this time, I would like to introduce a trip to Yakushima of Kagoshima where become a model of the Japanese animation Mononoke Prince.
Kagoshima is the southernmost prefecture in the Kyushu region of Japan, and Yakushima is an island about 60km southwest of Kagoshima.
Approximately 28km east-west, 24km north-south, and an area of approximately 500 square kilometers, the Yakushima island is almost circular.
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Where is Kagoshima and Yakushima?
Kagoshima is the southernmost prefecture in the Kyushu region of Japan, and Yakushima is an island about 60km southwest of Kagoshima.
Approximately 28km east-west, 24km north-south, and an area of approximately 500 square kilometers, the Yakushima island is almost circular.
What is Jomonsugi?
The cedar trees on Yakushima that are over 1,000 years old are called "Yakusugi", and among them, "Jomonsugi", which is said to be the oldest in the world.
Among the Yakusugi cedar trees, the Jomonsugi cedar tree is estimated to be between 2,170 and 7,200 years old, and is famous as one of the oldest trees, and was registered as a World Heritage Site in 1966. The circumference of the trunk is as long as 16.4m for large ones.
If you come from overseas, you can go to Kagoshima via Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka Airport.
It takes about 2 hours from Tokyo Haneda to Kagoshima, 1 hour 15 minutes from Osaka, and 50 minutes from Fukuoka.
There are two ways to get to Yakushima from Kagoshima: by flying from Kagoshima to Yakushima Airport, and by boat to Yakushima Port.
If you use an airplane, it takes about 40 minutes from Kagoshima Airport to Yakushima, and the one-way fare is around 15,000 yen.
If you use a boat, it takes 2 hours and 30 minutes by high-speed boat and the fare is 11,000 yen.
Fare is 5200 yen in 4 hours by ferry.
Note: The above rates are as of January 2023.
Among the Yakusugi cedar trees, the Jomonsugi cedar tree is estimated to be between 2,170 and 7,200 years old, and is famous as one of the oldest trees, and was registered as a World Heritage Site in 1966. The circumference of the trunk is as long as 16.4m for large ones.
How to get to Yakushima, time and fees
If you come from overseas, you can go to Kagoshima via Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka Airport.
It takes about 2 hours from Tokyo Haneda to Kagoshima, 1 hour 15 minutes from Osaka, and 50 minutes from Fukuoka.
There are two ways to get to Yakushima from Kagoshima: by flying from Kagoshima to Yakushima Airport, and by boat to Yakushima Port.
If you use an airplane, it takes about 40 minutes from Kagoshima Airport to Yakushima, and the one-way fare is around 15,000 yen.
If you use a boat, it takes 2 hours and 30 minutes by high-speed boat and the fare is 11,000 yen.
Fare is 5200 yen in 4 hours by ferry.
Note: The above rates are as of January 2023.
Yakushima popular tourist attractions
I will introduce popular tourist attractions in Yakushima.Shiratani Unsui Gorge
Shiratani Unsuikyo is the model for the world of Studio Ghibli's "Princess Mononoke".
This place is a Yakushima natural recreation forest designated as a recreational forest as a place for people to interact with the forest, and it is popular as a spot where you can casually appreciate Yakushima's virgin forest, including Yakusugi trees that are over 1,000 years old.
Wilson strain
It is the stump of the Yakusugi cedar tree that got its name because it was introduced to Western culture in 1914 by Dr. Ernest Henry Wilson, a British botanist.
There is a space where people can enter inside the stock, there is a spring of fresh water, and there is a shrine inside. If you look up from the stock, it becomes a naturally made heart.
There is a space where people can enter inside the stock, there is a spring of fresh water, and there is a shrine inside. If you look up from the stock, it becomes a naturally made heart.
Isso Beach
Isso Beach has been selected as "the most beautiful beaches" in Kagoshima Prefecture. It is a beach located in Isso, the northernmost port town of Yakushima and the cove that is embraced by Yahazuzaki, a cape that is also the entrance to the sea of Isso. This cape has long been a sacred spot for fishermen to locate their ships, and the Cape Shrine is still enshrined there.
Diving Yukushima Sea
Diving is one of popular tourist attractions in Yakushima. The huge coral groups and dynamic topography are popular diving spots, and you can meet colorful fish.
It is a rare hot spring that wells up from the sea and can only be bathed twice a day, about two hours before and after low tide. Bathing while gazing at the ocean during the day and the sound of the waves and the sky full of stars at night is the best.
Summary
Yakushima island of Kagoshima located at the southernmost tip of Japan's Kyushu, is home to unspoiled nature, such as Jomon cedar trees over 1,000 years old and the forest that inspired popular animation movie Princess Mononoke.Im sure that you will have good time which cannot be experienced anywhere else in the world.
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