JR Sanyo Sanin Northern Kyushu Pass

May I know whether JR Sanyo Sanin Northern Kyushu Pass cover below places?
Day 1: osaka to Fukuoka
Day 3: Fukuoka to Kyoto
Day5: Kyoto to osaka
Day6: osaka to Nara/Kobe day

Or is there a better pass available? I read some mentioned the pass doesn�ft cover Kyoto to Osaka?

Thanks!

Yes.
As you see, all these areas are covered by the pass.

https://www.westjr.co.jp/global/en/ticket/ssnk/

Have you looked at the interactive map on this page?
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2357.html

If Fukuoka is the farthest you are going in Kyushu, then the Setouchi Pass or the Sanyo Sanin Pass will cover these places at a slightly lower cost. The JR West All Area Pass is also worth considering (it covers more of Honshu but less of Kyushu than the Sanyo Sanin Northern Kyushu pass.)

https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_west.html
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_setouchi.html
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_sanyo_sanin.html

The passes in question both cover Osaka to Kyoto but NOT by shinkansen. To travel between those two cities you need to take local trains or limited express trains. So to get from Fukuoka to Kyoto you would have to get off the shinkansen in Shin Osaka and get the rest of the way by other JR trains. It�fs a nuisance but I wouldn�ft call it a fatal flaw.

If your itinerary is fixed and you don�ft plan to go anywhere else, then you should pick the cheapest that will cover the places you are going. But the other passes add some interesting options. The Setouchi pass covers a number of ferries and a considerable part of Shikoku, for example. (Probably not practical given your existing plans.)

Hi. Trying to figure out what would be best for us of these 2 passes. We'd already be in Kyoto and would do day trips to Osaka, Nara and Himeji. We'd most likely start pass the day we do to Himeji since Nara and Osaka are cheap trips.

Then from Kyoto to Hiroshima for 2 nights with visit to Miyajima.

Then train to Hakata. Seems the only thing that would not be covered are the rental bikes at Ekirin Kun outlets. Are these easy to find at use?

Thanks again.

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Thanks.

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As mentioned, between Shin-Osaka and Kyoto Stations, the trains are covered, but not bullet trains. You can take the Haruka or Thunderbird ltd express trains, or a JR rapid train. The former is preferable, though they both take about the same length of time. But the rapid trains can get quite crowded during rush hours (standing room only). Plus a few rapid trains switch to become a local train from Takatsuki.

Thanks 🙏 everyone! This is my second time to japan and I am still very confused about the train system haha.
The reason I consider the Sanyo Sanin northern Kyushu pass is because I wish to go Fukuoka and yufuin ( heard that is beautiful)
My itin is as below not sure isit too rushed.

- land in Osaka and will stay overnight
- train to Fukuoka
- day trip to yufuin and if time permit , go to beppu
- at night will back to Fukuoka
- train to Kyoto and stay 3 nights
- maybe do day trip to Nara to see deer 🦌 haha
- take train to Osaka and explore for few days before flying back.
My trip is 11 days but I will only be buying the 7 days pass.
Separately do you all have any recommendation where to stay in Kyoto and Osaka ? Thinking to try ryokan but is too ex.

You have a sound reason for getting the pass that includes Northern Kyushu. Yufuin makes a nice day trip from Fukuoka, but adding Beppu is probably too much of a stretch if you want to do anything there such as visit some of the hells (they are a distance from the station and it is a little time-consuming to get there if you take public transit, added to the time it takes to visit the hells). Try to make your reservations for the Yufuin no Mori train as soon as you can after buying your pass. It is a swell ride, and quite popular.

Kyoto is notorious for expensive hotels, but in recent years I have actually found it to have considerably more options for moderate-price hotels than Osaka, because of a huge amount of building during the pre-pandemic years. However, Saturday nights (and sometimes Fridays) tend to come with a steep upcharge. If your itinerary requires you to stay there on a Saturday, look for hotels that don�ft double or triple their rates for that night (some are better than others) and you can save money. In fact, you might want to stay there more nights at the end, and fewer in Osaka. (Except if you are going during the fall foliage season (koyo), it�fs possible you can do better in Osaka. Prices in Kyoto during koyo can be astronomical�c) Either the Kyoto Station area or the �gdowntown�h area (near a subway station) is good, but for day trips Kyoto Station is maybe a little better. I like both, myself. Downtown is more intrinsically interesting to poke around.

Kyoto doesn�ft have all that many ryokans, and you are right that they tend to be pricey. If you want to stay at a ryokan, it�fs probably better to go to an onsen town anyway. Maybe on your next trip? Or could you possibly spend the night in Yufuin or Beppu? It won�ft be cheap (you should get a plan that includes dinner and breakfast) but you can likely get a better price and have a more representative experience (with onsen baths) than a ryokan in Kyoto. Staying at an onsen ryokan for a night will be a really nice addition to your trip. It can be hard to find a place that accepts singles, but there are some if you look hard enough. Avoid Saturday night (it tends to be much more expensive, and some places won�ft accept singles that night even though they do during the week).

Nara is well worth a trip, for more than just the deer.