Kyushu, 12 days / 11 nights sanity check

Ok,

So I've tried to take all the recommendations and form the following plan:

1/11/16 London - Tokyo flight
2/11/16 Arrive to Henada 7:30, 10:30 - 12:10 Fukoka (sleep in Fukoka)
3/11/16 Fukoka (sleep in Fukoka)
4/11/16 Fukoka - Nagasaki (sleep in Nagasaki)
5/11/16 Nagasaki (sleep in Nagasaki)
6/11/16 Nagasaki - Kagoshima (sleep in Kagoshima)
7/11/16 Kagoshima - Yakushima (sleep in Yakushima)
8/11/16 Yakushima (sleep in Yakushima)
9/11/16 Yakushima (sleep in Yakushima)
10/11/16 Yakushima - Kagoshima (sleep in Kagoshima)
11/11/16 Kagoshima - Kumamoto (sleep in Kumamoto)
12/11/16 Kumamoto - Fukoka - Onomichi (sleep in Onomichi)
13/11/16 Shimanami Kaido cycling
14/11/16 Shimanami Kaido - Matsuyama (sleep in Matsuyama)

My main concern is that it feels a little tight + I'm missing a lot of things in Kyushu (but it seems like I can't get to many of them without a car :/)

1. Is this sensible?
2. Should I just focus at the north of Kyushu for now?
3. I can't seem to find flights from Yakushima to Fukouka, what am I missing?

Takachiho is about that hardest place to get to. Because you only have bus services and not trains. Most of Kyushu's main highlights are accessible by train.

Rushed??? It really depends on what you want from your trip. Looks like cycling and walking take up half of your itinerary. So I guess you are not into the normal Japanese touristy things.

I think you itinerary is fine. But it is rushed when not walking or cycling. I like Yakushima. But my opoinion is I wouldn't put it at the expense of Kyushu's main highlights.

Nagasaki to Kagoshima is a bit of a long journey, with one change of train. The first part of the journey is lovely, and it runs along the coast for long stretches, but the train is a little slow (compared to shinkansen).

I'd maybe just travel Nagasaki to Kumamoto on one day, and swap this with your Kumamoto day later in the plan. You will then stay in Kagoshima later on in the trip (after Yakushima), and can go straight from Kagoshima to Fukuoka (a quick journey as it's all on shinkansen)

@hakata14
I'm not planning to go to Takachiho so I'm a little confused :)
Your right regarding the time I spend cycling / trekking - this isn't my first visit to Japan and I do enjoy those types of activities.

Having said that Yakushima is taking a big portion of the trip and I'm happy to replace it with better things in Kyushu - suggestions would be appreciated :)

@Winter Visitor
Good points, will update plan accordingly. Any other must sees I'm missing in Kyushu? Yakushima seems amazing and I really want to do it, but it also feels like I'm sacrificing a little too much of Kyushu

It's really difficult. We've spent significant time in Kyushu on each of our last two trips.

Both times we gave some serious thought to going to Yakushima. On each occasion, we decided against it. It looks great, but we realised that it was going to take a long time to get there and back, and that in that time we could have more variety by going elsewhere.

(If you want to read for the trip - David Mitchell's novel "number9dream" is partly set in Yakushima, and his excellent "100 Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" is a really good fictional account of life on the Dutch trading post at Dejima, Nagasaki).

@Winter Visitor I'll do that :)
Will give them a read - I'm basically trying to combine Kyushu and Shikuku (have 12 extra days) and I'm struggling to come up with a plan that I'm happy with :/

I think he's a great writer.
The Dejima one is more useful from a factual point of view, and is a more naturalistic book, the other one is more in the realm of "Cloud Atlas".
I really recommend visiting Dejima when you're in Nagasaki. It's a fascinating insight into Japan's "closed" period and there's a lot of info in English. It's also right by Chinatown, so it's perfect for lunch/dinner as well ;0)

It looks to me to be a pretty sensible itinerary. There are still a number of good places in Kyushu to see, but it takes a lot more time.
Doing the Shimanami Kaido can be a very rewarding experience, although a pretty good workout. You'd also have a chance to see Kosanji, which is one of the wildest ornate temples in Japan - some call it a "Buddhist Disneyland".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97Q5EjEOXI8
There is a daily flight from Fukuoka to Yakushima by JAL, but the fare is pretty high for the one hour flight (nearly 25,000 yen one way). As I recall, it is under JAC so it is not eligible for its Yokoso discount fare. The trouble you're having may be due to being unable to issue tickets for it outside of Japan - only an agency or JAL can do it in Japan. There are more flights to Yakushima out of Kagoshima.

It's good you schedule a little down time after your long flight from London - most likely you'll arrive half dead. Fukuoka has some good places to see though. There are several good parks to see, and good views over the city from the Fukuoka Tower, Minami Park tower, and Aburayama. Plus good food, a lively night district, and more.
http://www.thejapanfaq.com/fukpic.html
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-j4RLa6iC7ayvBAbOn8-0...
One of the best temples you'll ever see in Japan is just 25 minutes or so from Hakata Station - go see the Nanzoin Temple which is stunning. It is totally unknown to all the tourist guidebook "experts" and even many of the well traveled.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT4VQFmHFyM

If you want to see Gunkanjima (Battleship Island) in Nagasaki, it is an unforgettable place. But if the seas are rough, they cancel the boat tour, so try and get that done as soon as you arrive. If not running, you can try again the next day. There are of course many other good places.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-gbw2yXNLK92siHyNqSNx...
Try to go up to Mt Inasa at night for the spectacular view, and be sure to try the chanpon and saraudon while you're in the city.

Kagoshima has some great places, and of course Sakurajima is the elephant in the living room. There is a fast paced one hour bus tour you can take that covers several scenic places to see the volcano. Aside from that, there is the Sengan-en Garden and Shiroyama Park. Altogether, makes a pretty good day of sights.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LcPcmoSg-irtXXB8IJMdkB9mF0qjn...

Lastly, if you like, before going to Matsuyama, you could visit Imabari Castle.

Takachiko was just an example of hard to reach places. You referenced hard to reach places in your first question.

I second the recommendation for the garden in Kagoshima.

I also recommend the aquarium (although I take the point that it's a long way to go to see an aquarium - but it's a good place to go if the weather is a bit dodgy, and it's on the bus loop from the garden back to the main city centre).