Japan is rolling out a big travel discount for Kyushu. After the earthquake that hit Kumamoto on July 28, 2026, hotels across the region saw a wave of cancellations, and on August 28 the Japan Tourism Agency announced the "Kyushu Fukko Ouenwari" (九州ふっこう応援割) to bring travelers back.
What has been confirmed is substantial: 50% off your travel and lodging in Kyushu, or 60% in Kumamoto and Kagoshima, for stays from October 1, 2026.
The question most overseas visitors want answered is still unresolved. Whether short-term foreign visitors can use the discount, and exactly when booking opens, is still being decided prefecture by prefecture. Here is what is confirmed, what remains undecided, and where to look for updates.
Confirmed: seven Kyushu prefectures, up to 60% off, stays from October 1. Not yet decided: when booking opens in most prefectures, and whether overseas visitors qualify at all. Do not build a trip around it until your prefecture spells out the rules.
What the Kyushu Fukko Ouenwari is
It started with the earthquake that hit Kumamoto Prefecture at 4:27 p.m. on July 28, 2026, measuring magnitude 7.1 and reaching a maximum seismic intensity of 7, the top of Japan's scale. It was a serious disaster, and recovery in the hardest-hit areas is still ongoing. Cancellations spread well beyond Kumamoto, across the rest of Kyushu.
To counter that drop in demand, the Japan Tourism Agency announced the Kyushu Fukko Ouenwari on August 28. The thinking is simple: traveling to Kyushu is itself a way to support the region's recovery. If your trip takes you near the epicenter, it's worth confirming the places on your list are open before you go.
The national government sets the broad framework, while each prefecture decides and announces the booking details, including when reservations open. (This is a new program, not the similarly named "Kyushu Fukko-wari" from 2016.)
How much you save
The discount applies to trips and stays of at least one night in Kyushu's seven prefectures: Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima. The base rate is 50%, and only Kumamoto and Kagoshima go to 60%.
The Japan Tourism Agency has set a cap per person, per trip, and it depends on the type of booking.
Type of booking | Maximum discount |
|---|---|
Lodging only, or a 1-night package with transport | ¥20,000 |
Transport-and-lodging package, 2 nights or more | ¥30,000 |
Multi-prefecture tour (stays in two or more prefectures) | ¥35,000 |
So a two-night package to Kumamoto with transport could be 60% off, up to ¥30,000.
Start date vs. booking window
The discount applies to stays from October 1, 2026. That start date comes from the Japan Tourism Agency and is firm.
When you can actually book is a separate question, set by each prefecture. As of September 2, just one prefecture has signaled its plans: Oita. Local news reports say reservations there are expected to open in late September.
According to those reports, Oita will cover stays from October 1 to December 25 and end the discount once its budget runs out. End dates are set by each prefecture, so there is no single nationwide deadline. Oita's own official page is not live yet, though, and the other six prefectures have not announced booking dates at all. The national budget is reported at about ¥15.5 billion, and programs like this usually stop the moment the funds are gone.
How to book, and on which sites
You will not need to apply for anything yourself. Travel agencies, booking sites, and hotels are expected to sell rooms at the already-discounted price, though each prefecture will spell out the exact process. You most likely won't have to enter a coupon code at checkout.
Which booking sites will take part is still up in the air. Jalan, Rakuten Travel, and JTB are all expected to join, but as of September 2 none of their campaign pages are open.
Whether there will be local coupons for shops and restaurants has not been announced. It is also unclear whether the discount can be applied to an existing booking, or whether you would have to rebook.
Can overseas visitors use it?
This is the one that matters most for a trip from abroad, and there is no clear answer yet. Neither the Japan Tourism Agency's outline nor any prefecture has published a rule on nationality or residency as of September 2.
Past domestic-travel campaigns in Japan have mostly been designed for residents, so there is a real chance short-term overseas visitors will not be eligible this time. Booking a Kyushu trip on the assumption that you will get 60% off is a good way to end up disappointed.
If you are planning to travel to Kyushu, wait for each prefecture to publish its rules, and confirm who qualifies before you book.
Official sources to watch
The framework is set, but the details you need to book are still trickling out. These are the official sources to watch.
- Japan Tourism Agency's Kyushu Fukko Ouenwari page (the program outline)
- Each prefecture's official tourism site (booking dates, eligible products, who qualifies)
- The campaign pages at Jalan, Rakuten Travel, and JTB, once they open
Most prefecture pages are Japanese-only, and the booking sites' campaign pages may not be fully in English either. If you're following in English, watch the Jalan, Rakuten Travel, and JTB campaign pages.
This article was translated from the original Japanese with AI assistance and reviewed by our editorial team. The Japanese version is authoritative.
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