Kagoshima Seaside: long holes above the East China Sea

Laid out on the hills behind the Fukiage-hama dunes in Hioki, west of Kagoshima city, this course opened in November 1976 and took its current Cherry Golf name in 2011. The 18-hole, par-72 layout stretches to 7,011 yards with a course rating of 72.1, using the rolling terrain cleverly, with some holes playing downhill toward the sea. The par 4s and par 3s run long, the 14th is known as the toughest test, and the sea breeze is a constant factor.

Big views over the East China Sea, and a breeze that never lets you relax.

Play here is relaxed and self-service, with riding carts, bent greens and rental clubs available, making it an easy add-on to a southern Kyushu trip. The course is about five minutes by car from Miyama IC on the Minami-Kyushu Expressway, or a short taxi from JR Higashi-Ichiki or Yunomoto stations. Yunomoto is a small hot-spring town in its own right, the pottery village of Miyama is next door, and Fukiage-hama, one of Japan's longest sandy beaches, glows at sunset. Kagoshima city, with Sakurajima smoking across the bay, is under an hour away.