3 days in Kyushu

I will will be in Kyushu for only three days and I am flexible about which part I go to.
Where would you recommend I go?
I would like a mix of city and scenery or hiking.

Also I have heard about the Kyushu rail pass. Is this also available to residents of Japan or tourists only?

I like hanging out in Fukuoka. I think I spent only 3 hours at my hotel last time through. Besides the sites in the city itself, there are day trips of interest to Yanagawa, Daizaifu, and other places depending on your interests.

If you haven't been to Hiroshima, you might want to go to Nagasaki instead of spending time in Fukuoka.

As for the outdoors, the Aso area is probably the easiest to get to. You would take a relay-tsubame train to Kumamoto, and then a train/bus combination to the crater area. You could hike around the crater or to the top of Takadake, or down to the caldera floor.

Kirishima NP on the Kagoshima/Miyazaki border is a better hiking area but would take a bit longer to get to. It would be another train/bus combo to get there. A lot of hikes start or end out of the Ebino Kogen area.

Kyushu Rail Pass is only available to foreign tourists.
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2361_05.html

Thanks for that. I have been to Hiroshima. Do you think it would still be worth going to Nagasaki. I was thinking of going to Nagasaki, Aso and Beppu with an overnight in Fukuoka.
Thoughts?

We spent 9 days driving in Kyushu last summer and we only visited half the island, there's just so much to see. If you've been to Hiroshima, then I suggest Nagasaki would take up too much of your limited time. Aso is very spread out and you really need a car. Beppu is nice but very hot in summer. One thing we enjoyed a lot (at least my son and I although my wife said it was something completely different) was to watch a baseball game in Fukuoka. The ballpark there is the only one in Japan with an open/close roof. If you've not been to a game in Japan before, then you should go just for the uniquely Japanese atmosphere. It's quite different from say a Man United soccer game !! It's usually very difficult for a non-Japanese resident to book tickets but we found a way so if you're really interested in doing this, I could try and dig up the info for you--send email to cfihk@hotmail.com