No opening hours or admission are shown: the sources we checked on 2026-09-15 were used for the route only. Check the official site
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Our guide
Sakurajima is the most active volcano in Japan, and it is still at work: it continues to drop ash on the area around it. Once an island, it is now joined to the mainland as a peninsula, and a few thousand people live on it, with schools, shrines and shops of their own.
The usual way over is the short ferry from Kagoshima Port to Sakurajima Port, about 15 minutes (a little longer in rough weather). One thing to know: the ferry no longer runs round the clock — it stopped in October 2025 and now runs from early morning to late evening — so older guides that say it runs 24 hours are out of date. Fares are paid at Sakurajima Port. From Kagoshima-Chūō Station, a bus to Kagoshima Suizokukan-mae leaves you a minute's walk from the ferry terminal. As with any active volcano, check the local information before you go.
Written by japan-spots.com (2026-09-22) from the sources credited on this page. Distances are straight lines between map positions.
Photos
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, each under its own licence — see credits
- Sakurajima55 — TANAKA Juuyoh ( talk ) · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
- 1974 Japan Sakurajima — Roger McLassus 1951 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
- Hiroshige Ōsumi Sakurashima — Utagawa Hiroshige · Public domain · source · resized
- Kagoshima volcanic-ashes kb — Bakkai · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source · resized
- Kokuhaibukuro at Higashisakurajima — Sakoppi · CC BY 3.0 · source · resized
What this place is
Sakurajima (桜島, 'Cherry Blossom Island') is an active stratovolcano, formerly an island and now a peninsula, in Kagoshima Prefecture in Kyushu, Japan. It is the most active volcano in Japan. As of November 2025, the volcanic activity continues, dropping volcanic ash on the surroundings. Earlier eruptions built the white sand highlands in the region. On 13 September 2016, a team of experts from Bristol University and the Sakurajima Volcano Research Centre in Japan suggested that the volcano could have a major eruption within 30 years; since then many eruptions have occurred. Sakurajima has a population of a few thousand residents, formerly incorporated as Sakurajima town, with a number of schools, shrines, and shops on the island. It is serviced by the Sakurajima Ferry which runs 24/7.
Visitor information checked: 2026-09-15 · Sakurajima Ferry (Kagoshima City): first-time passengers · Sakurajima tourism portal: getting there
Background text adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
What to expect at this type of place: Island
Getting there by public transport
- The Sakurajima Ferry crosses from Kagoshima Port to Sakurajima Port in about 15 minutes (about 20 in rough weather), every day from 4:00 to 23:30 (it stopped running round the clock in October 2025).
- Fares are paid at Sakurajima Port.
- To the Kagoshima Port ferry terminal from Kagoshima-Chūō Station: bus from stop East 5 or 6 to Kagoshima Suizokukan-mae (about 14 minutes), then a 1-minute walk.
Route checked: 2026-09-15 · Sakurajima Ferry (Kagoshima City): first-time passengers · Sakurajima tourism portal: getting there · Timetables change — check the operator before you travel.
Where to stay nearby
Hotels near Sakurajima on Agoda
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