Goto Islands

Hidden Christian churches scattered across the sea and white-sand beaches, including Takahama Beach, often called one of Japan’s most beautiful.

The Goto Islands lie in the East China Sea about 100 km west of Nagasaki Port and comprise more than 140 islands large and small, including Fukue, Hisaka, Naru, Wakamatsu and Nakadori; the south belongs to Goto City and the north to Shin-Kamigoto Town. During the Edo-period ban on Christianity, many Hidden Christians moved here, leaving more than 50 churches on the islands; the villages and churches of Hisaka Island, Egami on Naru Island and Kashiragashima are part of the World Heritage Site “Hidden Christian Sites in the Nagasaki Region”. Fukue, the largest island, is the base for lodging: in town are Ishida Castle and Buke Yashiki Street; nearby are the grassy slopes of Mount Onidake and the Abunze lava coast; Takahama Beach in the northwest is hailed as one of Japan’s most beautiful beaches; and the Osezaki Lighthouse at the western tip is the place for sunsets, with the Dozaki, Mizunoura and Imochiura churches along the way. Nakadori Island in the north has the Kashiragashima, Aosagaura and Nakanoura churches and Hamaguri-hama Beach, and usually calls for a separate overnight stay or a dedicated day. Getting there: ferries (about 3 hours) and high-speed boats (about 1.5 hours) run from Nagasaki Port to Fukue, and there are flights from Fukuoka and Nagasaki to Goto-Fukue Airport. Ferries and sea taxis link the islands, and island buses are infrequent, so renting a car is recommended. Allow 3–4 days. May–September is beach season; in winter, wind and waves are rough and sailings are often canceled. Visits to the World Heritage churches require advance registration; the churches are places of prayer for the faithful, visits are not allowed during Mass, and photography inside is mostly prohibited.

Top sights

• Takahama Beach – One of Japan's 100 Selected Beaches, with white sand and water shading from light blue to emerald green. It is often called one of Japan's…
• Osezaki Lighthouse – A white lighthouse on a sea cliff about 100 meters high at the westernmost tip of Fukue Island, and the classic sunset viewpoint of the Got…
• Kashiragashima Church – A sandstone church that the faithful built by carving and laying the stone themselves. Completed in 1919, it is one of the components of th…
• Imochiura Church – A red-brick church near Osezaki, with Japan's earliest Lourdes grotto, built in 1899, on its grounds.
• Mount Onidake – A domed volcano beside Fukue city, covered in grassland, with views over Fukue Port and the nearby small islands.
• Fukue Castle (Ishida Castle) – Completed in 1863, Japan's last castle, a sea castle with three sides facing the water, its stone walls and moat well preserved.
• Fukue Samurai Residence Street – A street preserving the stone walls of Edo-period samurai residences, with round stones called 'overflow stones' piled along the top, full…
• Dozaki Church – The earliest church in the Goto Islands rebuilt after the ban on Christianity was lifted, a red-brick building from 1908, its interior now…
• Mizunoura Church – A white wooden church completed in 1938, blending Gothic and Romanesque styles, one of the most photogenic churches in the Goto Islands.
• Uozugasaki Park – A headland park at the final anchorage of the Kentōshi envoy ships, with spring flower fields by the sea and a memorial stone to the envoys.
• Ayaze Lava Coast – A black lava coast formed by eruptions of Onidake, stretching about 7 km and contrasting sharply with the clear blue sea.
• Kentoshi Furusatokan (Miiraku) – A roadside station and Kentōshi museum in Miiraku, where you can eat Goto udon, with Man'yō Park nearby.
• Former Gorin Church – The oldest wooden church in the Goto Islands, on Kuga Island, at the heart of the World Heritage Kuga Island Settlement.
• Egami Church – A white wooden church in a valley on Naru Island, a 1918 work by Tetsukawa Yosuke and part of a World Heritage site.
• Aosagaura Church – A red-brick church in northern Nakadori Island, an 1910 work by Tetsukawa Yosuke and an Important Cultural Property.
• Nakanoura Church – A white wooden church reflected in the water of Irie bay, known as the 'Water Mirror Church,' its interior decorated with camellias.
• Hamagurihama Beach – A bay with white sand and clear shallows on Nakadori Island, the most popular swimming beach in the Upper Goto Islands.
• Yagatame Park – A headland with striking rock formations at the entrance to Naemo Bay, with superb sunsets and traditional sea salt production nearby.

Where to eat

• Nakamoto Seimen Oddontei – A direct-run shop of Nakamoto Seimen, a noodle maker that produces traditional hand-stretched Goto udon, famous for jig…
• Ikesu Kappo Shinsei – A popular live-seafood kappo near Fukue Port, where fish such as stone snapper are picked from tanks; dinner often requ…
• Umatei – A local everyday canteen a few minutes' walk from Fukue Port, known for Goto beef udon and champon, with quick service.
• Goto Ga Umai Farm Restaurant (Direct Farm Market) – A farmhouse restaurant inside a JA-run direct-sales farm market, offering affordable Goto beef lemon steak set meals, w…

Itineraries

• Goto Islands Church Pilgrimage – Travel from Nagasaki Port to Fukue, Naru, and Kamigoto to see Hidden Christian churches and white sand beaches