Last updated on September 1st, 2024
Enjoy the lovely walk through the Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi, Japan’s highest pedestrian suspension bridge span through the valley with an excellent view.
Opened in 2006, Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge or Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi (九重”夢”大吊橋) is the highest pedestrian-only suspension bridge in Japan. It has 390 meters long and 173 meters high. The construction of the bridge cost about 2 billion yen and purely comes from public fundraising without any government subsidy. So the completion of the bridge can be said to the realization of the dream of the residents. And that’s the name of “Dream of Kokonoe” came from.
The scenery of Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge is very breathtaking, especially during Autumn foliage. If you are visiting Oita prefecture, consider making a day trip to Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge. It presents panoramic scenes of Oita’s verdant countryside and magnificent valley view.
We visited this incredible Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi during my trip to Yufuin and highly recommended it. Walking across the Suspension Bridge was truly one of the memorable experience for us. In this travel blog, we will share on the useful information to help you to plan for your visit to Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge.
Quick Tips For Visit Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi
The Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge is open all year long with the best of seasonal scenery. The best time to visit is during November for the fantastic Autumn foliage. Added, the winter scenery also very beautiful when surrounded are in snowy white.
However, please take note that the bridge will be close in windy conditions. Added, no umbrella is allowed when crossing the bridge. So remember to bring a raincoat in raining day.
Free parking for self-driving visitors. Travelers only need to pay for the entrance at 500 yen per person. Both end of the bridge has restaurants, stalls which offering local dishes and snack. The Kokonoe Hamburger is one of the popular local food in fairy cheap price.
How To Get To Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi
Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi is located in the Kuju mountain range in Oita Prefecture. The best way to get to Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi is by self-driving. Kyushu is very convenient and suitable to plan for self-driving itinerary. From Yufuin, it is about 30 minutes of scenic route by car. Many people are coupled with their trip from Kumamoto, Mount Aso, Kurokawa Onsen, and Yufuin together. It is much cheaper and convenient especially for a group of families. You can check on a rental car from RentalCars.com for pick up location, price and other information.
Alternative, Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi can be easily reached by public transportation. You can take the JR train to Bungo-Nakamura Station (豊后中村駅). Next, change to a local bus to the bridge. The bus service costs 500 yen and takes about 30 minutes. However, make sure to give plenty of time because trains/buses do not overlap nicely. So you might take some time to wait for the transport arrangement. But, for sure your wait is well worth the amazing view.
From Beppu To Kokonoe Yume Otsuriash
There are a few popular routes with trains depart to BungoNakamura Station. But the most convenient is getting to Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi from Yufuin. The one-way train journey takes about 18 minutes at 380 yen. The Kyushu JR Pass and Whole Japan Rail Pass are included for this route.
- Depart from Yufuin: 6:45, 7:31, 9:20, 14:04, 16:19, 17:45
- Return to Yufuin: 8:11, 13:22, 15:04, 17:50, 19:03
There are a few popular routes with trains depart to BungoNakamura Station. But the most convenient is getting toThere are four to five bus running per day between Bungo-Nakamura Station to Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi Entrance. Please refer to the bus schedule as different for weekday, Saturday, Sunday and Public holiday. It cost 500 yen per ride per person. Please pay in cash when get off from the bus.
Friendly reminder, please get ready on the bus fare as there is no money changing available onsite and on the bus.
If you are planning to take the train to Yufuin/Oita/Beppu from Bungo-Nakamura Station, please take note of the different wait times by boarding on the local bus from Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi Entrance. Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi from Yufuin. The one-way train journey takes about 18 minutes at 380 yen.
The Journey to Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi
From Yufuin, we took the 9:20 morning train to Bungo-Nakamura Station. The train was a normal commuter train and plenty of seats available. Most of the passengers were also heading to Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi.
Along the railway journey, the mountain scenery was particularly beautiful.
Once we get off from the train, there were friendly staff from the Tourist Information Center to help distribute the arranging ticket to board the local bus. We got the arrangement ticket to board the coming bus follow the sequence. They also provide some useful information on transport arrangements between Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi and Bungo-Nakamura Station. Take this opportunity if you need help with transport arrangement.
The transport arrangement from Yufuin to Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi was very straightforward. But it took a long time to wait for the local bus to the bridge. There was about 20 minutes of wait time at the station. Feel free to take some rest at the station. There is also luggage storage available inside the station.
On-time, the local bus arrived. It was a normal community bus running in Kokonoe Machi to ease on transport for local residences. There were about 30 seats available to board the bus. Depend on how many passengers on the bus, you might not able to board the bus if there was full. Taxi service is available but it cost about 2000 yen to get you to the bridge.
We boarded the bus to follow the sequence. During our visit on a weekday, there were still plenty of seats available.
Visit To Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi
It was about 30 minutes bus ride to the entrance of Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi. There are a row of souvenir shops and restaurants beside the ticket counter. You can get the Kokonoe Burger if you are hungry. We bought one to try on after return from the bridge.
After buying the ticket and took a short walk passing through the entrance, Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi will be right before your eyes. It looks amazing! For those who are scared of heights, now might be a good time to turn back.
Please keep the ticket as you will need this when re-entering from the other end of the bridge.
Don’t forget to take the free photography at the entrance. This is taken before entering the bridge. The small one is free but you can opt to buy the large photo. The income will be used to subsidize the use of children’s medical care or education.
Enjoy the Magnificent View
We can’t wait to cross the bridge and took our time strolling to the other side of the bridge. This bridge is very impressive and picture opportunities are endless. The temperature was quite cold with strong wind, please remember to wear more clothes.
The view was so breathtaking and we can even hear the gushing of the waterfall in the middle of the suspension bridge.
From a distance, we can see the flow of the stream. There are three waterfalls: The Male waterfall (O-daki), The Female waterfall (Me-daki) and the Child waterfall (Ko-daki) offer excellent views along with the landscape. The male falls is the most dramatic falling over 88 m and renowned as one of Japan’s top 100 falls.
The suspension bridge is long, but it is quite stable even in strong winds. The walk across the Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge took us about 20 minutes.
You can have the perfect suspension bridge span through the valley at both ends of the entrance.
Observatory Deck
After exiting, there were a few shops at the other end of the bridge where you can enjoy a meal and relax. If you would like to walk further, consider going to the Shiratori Shrine Observation Deck with 5 minutes walk. It is the best place with a panoramic viewpoint on the Kokonoe Yume Otsuriashi.
Follow the well-marked sight and then take the short walk to your right. You will soon to the viewing platform. It was an uphill path but not too difficult to get there.
Shiratori Shrine is a very small rural shrine. There was an observatory deck where you can the full view on the Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge. But you need to pay for 100 yen to get in for the closer view on the bridge.
But we did not take this option and continue walked further to the shop beside. There was another Grand Viewing Point at front of the shop with a similar panoramic view on the Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge. Although not in the center, you still can see the bridge in the distance span through both end of the valley. Most importantly, no additional charges required.
Take some time and enjoyed the view. You may also get some snacks or ice cream at the shop.
Taste The Popular Local Dishes: Kokone Burger
After the walk, we had Kokonoe Burger at the restaurants nearby the parking lot. The Kokonoe Burger is one of the signature food in Kokonoe. The 650 yen Kokone burger is relatively cheap. But it was so big and juicy.
Although the Kokonoe burger looks inconspicuous, but the burger is super satisfying as the serving was quite huge. One of the recommended food to eat when visiting Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge.
Kokonoe Travel Vlog
At the end of the Kokonoe travel guide, feel free to take a 10-minutes video tour of how we spend 3-days in Oita prefecture to Oita, Beppu, Kokonoe and Yufuin. Hope this is helpful on how to plan your itinerary to Kokonoe.
If you like our video, don’t forget to give us a like and subscribe to us on youtube. Thanks!
Overview: Half Day Trip To Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi
All in all, we enjoyed our half-day trip to Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge. Although the transport arrangement is not well connected, it still worth to detour and spend some time to visit this highest pedestrian bridge in Japan.
- Official website: http://www.yumeooturihashi.com/
- Getting There: http://www.yumeooturihashi.com/access.html
- Opening Hours: 8:30 to 17:00 (November to June) and 8:30 to 18:00 (July to October).
- Last enter to bridge, 30 minutes before closing.
- Entrance Fee: ¥500 for adult and ¥200 for Children
Lastly, hopefully, our visit to Kokonoe Yume Grand Suspension Bridge is helpful and gives you some idea on planning on your itinerary. The spectacular view on Kokonoe Bridge was truly stunning. Highly recommended to plan for a half-day trip when you are visiting Oita Prefecture.
If you are interesting, continue to read on our Kyushu itinerary and travel guide below. Enjoy your trip to Kokonoe Yume Otsurihasi.
Northern Kyushu (Fukuoka, Kumamoto, Kurokawa Onsen, Beppu, Yufuin, Kitakyushu, and more):
- Fukuoka Itinerary: Ultimate Travel Guide
- Things To Do in Kumamoto: 1-Day Itinerary
- Things To Do in Aso For 1-Day Aso Itinerary
- Kurokawa Onsen: A Guide To Natural Hot Spring Town
- Beppu Itinerary: Ultimate Travel Guide Blog
- Yufuin Travel Guide: Must Eat Food And Things To Do
- Nagasaki Itinerary: A Travel Guide Blog
- [Nagasaki] Sasebo Itinerary: Kujukushima Sightseeing Cruise
- [Kitakyushu] 1-Day Kitakyushu Itinerary To Shimonoseki, Mojiko, Kokura
Southern Kyushu (Miyazaki, Takachiho Gorge):
