Saga · 佐賀市

On a cold November morning, hundreds of hot-air balloons rise into the sky above the Kase River at the same time – that's when Saga draws visitors from all over the world. But a trip to Saga is worthwhile even beyond the festival: the quiet prefectural capital in northwestern Kyūshū preserves the history of a reform-minded domain and sits right between porcelain towns and onsen.

The Nabeshima and the Modern Age

The Nabeshima family ruled the Saga domain for two and a half centuries. In the 19th century, under Lord Nabeshima Naomasa, it became a pioneer of modernization: one of Japan's first reverberatory furnaces for casting cannons and a steam engine modeled on Western designs were built here. At the Mietsu naval shipyard, the first steamship constructed in Japan was built; its remains are now part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Japan's Meiji Industrial Revolution, and a visitor center presents them digitally. Saga was also the birthplace of statesmen such as Ōkuma Shigenobu, twice prime minister and founder of Waseda University, whose birthplace can be visited.

Sights in Saga

At the center stands the Saga Castle History Museum, a faithful wooden reconstruction of the Honmaru Palace of 1838, with long corridors and tatami halls that you walk through barefoot. The original Shachi Gate survives, with bullet holes from the Saga Rebellion of 1874. All around lie wide moats covered in lotus and old camphor trees. Saga Shrine honors the Nabeshima lords, and the Prefectural Museum displays lacquerware and ceramics from the region. At the Balloon Museum in the city center, simulators let you find out what it feels like to pilot a balloon.

The Balloon Festival

The Saga International Balloon Fiesta in early November is considered Asia's largest balloon festival. Over five days, competition balloons lift off from the riverbank early in the morning, and in the evening the envelopes glow in time with the music during the Night Glow. For the festival, JR makes a special stop at a temporary station right next to the launch field. If you want to be there, book your accommodation early; many visitors end up staying in Fukuoka instead.

Eating in Saga

The Ariake Sea off the coast of the city is a huge tidal flat with a strong tidal range. A large share of Japan's nori is harvested here, and the mud is home to mudskippers, which are considered a delicacy when grilled. Saga beef is known for its fine marbling and appears in restaurants as steak, shabu-shabu, or sushi. For dessert there is marubōro, round cookies dating from the era of Portuguese trade, and yōkan from nearby Ogi, a sweet bean paste that has been dried in wooden boxes there since the 19th century and is sold with a fine sugar crust. In the evening, you'll find izakaya around the station and in the downtown shopping streets, where shellfish from the Ariake Sea are grilled and sake from the prefecture's breweries is poured.

Getting There and Day Trips

From Hakata, the Limited Express takes about 40 minutes to reach Saga; Kyūshū Saga Airport offers connections to Tokyo. Day trips lead to the porcelain towns of Arita and Imari, to the onsen of Takeo and Ureshino, or to the prehistoric settlement of Yoshinogari. The best times to visit are spring, with cherry blossoms along the castle moats, and the balloon festival in fall; summers are hot and humid, winters mild.