Kagoshima faces one of the most dramatic urban backdrops in Japan: Sakurajima, an active volcano that regularly dusts the city in fine ash. The mountain looms across the bay, connected by a fifteen-minute ferry that runs around the clock. On clear days the views from the waterfront are extraordinary; on ash days, residents carry umbrellas and sweep their cars.
The city played an outsized role in Japanese history. The Satsuma domain based here produced many of the leaders of the Meiji Restoration, and Saigo Takamori — the so-called "last samurai" — made his final stand on Shiroyama hill above the city centre. The Sengan-en garden, a strolling garden built by the Shimadzu lords with Sakurajima as its borrowed scenery, is one of the finest in southern Japan.
Kagoshima's food is worth the trip alone. Kurobuta pork (Berkshire pigs raised locally) is exceptional, and the city's take on ramen uses a rich tonkotsu broth. The Tenmonkan covered arcade downtown is the place to eat and drink.