Kyushu is the side of Japan people don't expect. Bubbling mud pools in Beppu, a smoking volcano right across the bay in Kagoshima, and a bowl of tonkotsu ramen that will ruin every other ramen for you. It is Japan's third-biggest island, and it packs volcanoes, beaches, castles and hot springs into a space small enough to cover in a week or two.

From Hakata's yatai stalls lit up after dark to a ryokan built around your own private onsen, there is a stay here for whatever kind of trip you are after.

Where to stay in Kyushu

• Fukuoka: Kyushu's biggest city and the easiest place to land. Hakata ramen shops serving that rich, milky tonkotsu broth, canal-side shopping, and around 100 yatai food stalls setting up along the river once the sun goes down.
• Kumamoto: home to one of Japan's most striking castles, all black timber and dramatically curved stone walls, and the jumping-off point for Mount Aso, one of the largest volcanic calderas on Earth.
• Beppu: Japan's hot spring capital. More onsen water comes out of the ground here than anywhere else in the country, and the "hells" (natural steam vents and mud pools around town) make for a genuinely strange afternoon out.
• Yufuin: Beppu's quieter, prettier cousin, all ryokan gardens with Mount Yufu doing its best mountain-backdrop impression. Good for a couple of slow nights and not much else on the agenda.
• Miyazaki: palm trees, surf breaks, and the Devil's Washboard, a run of jagged wave-cut rock along Aoshima Island. Kyushu's beach answer, and a long way from Tokyo's pace.
• Kagoshima: a city that lives with an active volcano on its doorstep. Sakurajima smokes away across the bay, ferries run every 15 to 20 minutes around the clock, and the 15-minute crossing is one of the best things you'll do in Kyushu.

How much is Kyushu accommodation?

Average nightly rates across Kyushu sit around AU$140. That is noticeably cheaper than Tokyo or Osaka, though the good onsen ryokan and beach resorts push well past it.

• Backpackers/Hostels: from AU$25 per night. Dorm beds and shared kitchens, mostly clustered around Hakata and Beppu stations.
• Budget hotels/Guesthouses: from AU$55 per night. Small, clean business hotel rooms, usually an easy walk from the station.
• Mid-range/Apartments: from AU$100 per night. More space, better bathrooms, and sometimes a shared onsen bath included.
• Boutique/Ryokan: from AU$180 per night. Tatami rooms, a kaiseki dinner, and a private outdoor bath looking out at a garden or a mountain.
• Luxury/Resorts: from AU$320 per night. Full-service hotels with volcano or ocean views, several restaurants, and a proper spa.

Top-rated hotels in Kyushu

• Grand Hyatt Fukuoka: sits inside the Canal City complex, so you can go from pool to ramen to shopping without stepping outside.
• ANA Crowne Plaza Kumamoto New Sky: a short drive from Kumamoto Castle, with a rooftop view over the city worth the extra floor.
• Yufuin Onsen Oyado Uraku: a proper ryokan stay, with private outdoor baths, a kaiseki dinner brought to your room, and Mount Yufu framed in the window.
• Phoenix Seagaia Ocean Tower: Miyazaki's big beach resort, with its own stretch of coast and enough restaurants that you never have to leave the grounds.
• Shiroyama Hotel Kagoshima: perched on a hilltop above the city, with an open-air onsen that looks straight across the bay at Sakurajima smoking away.

Tips for finding the perfect accommodation in Kyushu

• Book onsen ryokan in Yufuin and Beppu well ahead. The good ones with private baths sell out weeks out, especially around Japanese long weekends.
• Kyushu is bigger than it looks on a map. If you are splitting time between Fukuoka, Kumamoto, Beppu and Kagoshima, a rail pass or a rental car will save you more time than any single hotel upgrade.
• Pack a layer if you are heading up to Mount Aso or the Kusasenri grasslands. They sit over 1,000 metres up in the caldera and get cold even when the coast is warm.
• If you are chasing beach weather, base yourself around Miyazaki rather than the west coast. The surf at Aoshima works for beginners on calmer days, and the coastline stays warmer for longer than Kagoshima or Beppu.
• Check whether a ryokan room actually comes with its own private bath before booking. Plenty of the cheaper options only have the shared communal onsen.
• Shoulder season, spring or autumn, gets you good weather without the cherry blossom or autumn foliage crowd pricing.

Pair a few days in Kyushu with time in Tokyo or Osaka and you get two very different sides of Japan in the one trip, hot springs and volcanoes on one end, neon and shrines on the other.