Kumamoto: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Kumamoto is a city of 738,907 people in Japan, 9 m (30 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Kumamoto Airport (KMJ), 16 km (10 mi) from the centre. It has a dozen or more railway stations on record, including Suizenji Station. It is a port city: Port of Kumamoto. Our booking partner lists 160 places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Kumamoto runs from about 10 h 2 min a day in late December to 14 h 22 min in late June (computed for 32.81° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Kumamoto is served by 5 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Kumamoto Airport (KMJ), 16 km (10 mi) from the centre, with a longest runway of 9,840 ft, which limits it to short and medium-haul aircraft. The alternatives are Kyushu Saga International Airport (HSG, 53 km), Nagasaki Airport (NGS, 74 km), Fukuoka Airport (FUK, 90 km), Amakusa Airport (AXJ, 61 km).
Flights to Kumamoto: every airport, routes and times
By rail: stations on record include Suizenji Station, Hikarinomori Station, Musashizuka Station, Tōkai-Gakuen-mae Station, Kawashiri Station, Kami-Kumamoto Station. Trains to Kumamoto
Buses to Kumamoto · Driving and car hire · Ferries
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 160 places to stay in Kumamoto. Of the 127 with a star rating, the largest group is 3-star (81), and 1 are five-star. Across 77 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.3 out of 10. Guests have left 79,614 reviews in total.
Hotels in Kumamoto: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- Busan, 298 km (South Korea)
- Daegu, 392 km (South Korea)
- Fukuoka, 92 km — trains · buses · car rental · ferries · tours
- Hiroshima, 241 km — tours
- Ulsan, 329 km (South Korea)
- Changwon, 327 km (South Korea)
- Kitakyushu, 117 km — trains · ferries · tours
- Okayama, 363 km
- Kagoshima, 138 km — trains · buses · car rental · ferries · tours
- Kotō, 6 km
Twin towns and sister cities: Heidelberg, San Antonio, Guilin, Bristol, Ulsan.
Common questions
Which airport serves Kumamoto?
Kumamoto Airport (KMJ), 16 km (10 mi) from the centre, plus 4 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Kumamoto?
About 738,907 people live in Kumamoto, across 390 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Kumamoto in?
Asia/Tokyo, currently UTC+9.
What currency is used in Kumamoto?
The Yen (JPY). Traffic drives on the left.
How many hotels are there in Kumamoto?
Our booking partner lists 160 places to stay in Kumamoto, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Kumamoto?
Busan (298 km), Daegu (392 km), Fukuoka (92 km), Hiroshima (241 km), Ulsan (329 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.