Sengan-en Garden built by Shimazu Mitsuhisa, the 19th feudal lord in 1658, had been utilized as the second house of the Shimazu family for a long time. The 16.5 hectares in area garden composes a magnificent view with Kinko Bay and Sakurajima in the background. There are many interesting spots such as a shoin-zukuri (a prototype of the present day straw-mat room) style palace, Kyokusui garden, where the ancient residents played cultural games at the meandering stream leading to the pond, and Japanese original gas lighted stone lanterns, as well as others.
Adult 1000 yen, junior high school students and younger 500 yen (The ticket is also valid for Shoko Shuseikan Museum.)
32 min. train ride from Nishi-kagoshima station. Take "Kagoshima City View-go", get off at Iso Koen (Garden) Mae.
Sakurajima set in Kinko bay is an active volcano that has erupted more than 30 times in its history. Sakurajima Visitors Center is the regular spot for Sakurajima sightseeing, where they introduce the history and the mechanics of volcanoes. In addition, there is a lava field esplanade and the Sakurajima Shirahama Hot Spring Center. Maibotsu-Torii ( refer to the photograph), which was buried in the great 1914 explosion, demonstrates the phenomenal scale of the explosion.
Take a streetcar going to Kagoshima from Nishi-kagoshima station. Get off at Sakurajima Sanbashi-dori ( 20 min.) Then take a ferry from there to Port Sakurajima. 13 min. ride.
Shimazu Tadayoshi, the 29th feudal lord, built it as a residential complex for British engineers whom he invited over to Japan to assist in the spinning mill construction and management. The building is a wooden-made, two-story house with a verandah on all sides. It is a typical Colonial residence with a chocolate colored exterior, creating a warm impression. In the 1877 Satsuma Rebellion, the building was utilized as a temporary hospital for Satsuma wounded soldiers.
13 min. bus ride from Nishi-kagoshima station (Hayashida Bus). Get off at Ijinkan Mae / 099-227-1962
