New course launched
Trekking & Packraft
Yufugawa Gorge Adventure Tour (Active Course)
Event period: April to November 2025
In 2025, a new adventure will be born on the Yufugawa Gorge Packraft Tour!
Until now, the world beyond the chockstones was a mystery.
But with this new course, you can explore even deeper into the gorge.
After enjoying the mystical scenery, experience a thrilling packrafting ride.
Now, a new adventure begins!
Introduction to the Yufu River Gorge
Yufugawa Gorge is about a 20-30 minute drive from the nationally famous Beppu Onsen and Yufuin Onsen.
This mysterious gorge, with its steep rock faces and untouched nature brimming with greenery, is a hidden gem known only to those in the know.
Yufugawa Gorge has been selected as an “Oita Heritage,” “One Hundred Views of Oita,” and “A Prefectural Place of Scenic Beauty.”
Mystical Chockstone
Chockstones in the Yufugawa Gorge.
A chockstone is a rock sandwiched between rock walls.
The chockstones are a symbol that shows how rare this canyon is, and they still capture the hearts of many people,
and have become a popular subject for photographers.
The chockstones of the Yufugawa Gorge have been featured on posters for major companies and in photo books by famous photographers.
First, we’ll head towards these chockstones!
Hop on a packraft and head deeper into the countryside!
Packrafts are extremely light, weighing just 3kg. Even women and small people can easily carry and move around. Using these packrafts, you can explore the depths of the Yufu River Gorge, which was previously inaccessible. When you get to areas with a lot of water, you ride the packraft, and when you get to rocky areas, you carry the packraft. On the way back, you can go down the river while still remaining in the packraft.
A safe tour accompanied by an experienced guide
The Yufugawa Gorge is characterized by its steep rock faces and beautiful scenery, but it is also an area that is cut off from the outside world, with some parts of the gorge having no cell phone reception.
To ensure that you can enjoy your tour safely inside the gorge, experienced guides who have taken safety training will accompany you. The river’s topography changes daily due to rain and wind, but our guides frequently enter the gorge and are familiar with the river route.
In addition, for our tours, we report the tour to the Yufugawa Gorge Tourism Association and other local organizations, the local fire department, police, and autonomous district, and Yufu City, which manages the gorge, to build a cooperative system.
To ensure that the tour can be conducted safely, we plan the tour after creating a backup system.
This tour is just the right amount of exercise!
It is recommended for anyone curious about packrafting but hesitant to dive into a full tour, and for returning customers who have packrafted before.
You can see rare scenery that not everyone can see.
[Notes]
- This tour will be guided by a Japanese guide. Participation is required to be able to speak Japanese. Please be aware of this for safety reasons.
- Those aged 15 to 19 may participate if accompanied by a parent or guardian.
★★★All inclusive★★★
Rental equipment, snacks, drinks, hot spring tickets, and insurance are all included!
Free rental equipment
(packraft, paddle, wet pants, life jacket, helmet, water shoes, gloves)
One snack and one drink
Insurance fee
Free hot spring ticket to Hasama Onsen
All-inclusive!
No additional fees on the day!!
| Event period | April to November 2025 |
|---|---|
| Meeting point | 729 Honoki, Hasama-cho, Yufu City, Oita Prefecture (former Honoki Elementary School) |
| Meeting time | 10:00am *Please arrive 10 minutes early. |
| Travel time | 4 to 5 hours |
| Reservation Deadline | Please apply by 12 noon 3 days before the tour. Please make sure you apply with plenty of time. We need to arrange a guide. Application submission ⇒ Guide arrangement ⇒ Reservation confirmation. |
| Honoki Base Facility Information | ・Changing rooms |
- Price
- Clothing/Rental Items
- Eligibility
- Cancellation conditions
- Cancellation Policy
Price (All the Price is Tax Included)
■Fee
- Guide with Translation Machine(English) 27,000 yen per person
- Japanese-speaking Guide 22,000 yen per person
*For safety reasons, all the participants must be able to understand the selected language option.
*Our insurance policy does not cover damage or injury caused by a participant’s inability to understand the language spoken by the instructor.
■What is included in the fee
Experience fee, use of the honoki base, equipment rental fee (packraft, paddle, life jacket, wet pants, helmet, water shoes, gloves), accident insurance, snacks, drink (1 bottle), Hasama Onsenkyo free ticket, parking fee, photo fee (will be sent by email, Airdrop, etc.)
■What is not included in the fee
Pick-up fee (You will need to come by car/rental car or arrange a taxi yourself)
Lunch
■Payment method
- Credit card (payment will be made in advance after the reservation is confirmed. We will contact you by email regarding the payment method after the reservation is completed)
Clothing and rental items
■Clothing
- Outerwear that you don’t mind getting wet (swimsuit, shirt, rash guard, etc.)
- Underwear that you don’t mind getting wet
- Thick socks that you don’t mind getting wet (we recommend wearing socks with high cushioning for safety)
*Some people may feel cold depending on the weather from October onwards. Please take measures against the cold, such as wearing a windbreaker over a long-sleeved rash guard. You may get wet, so we recommend that you bring a light jacket that you can wear even if it gets wet. (We do not recommend heavy items such as cotton sweatshirts and barkers, as they will make it difficult to move.)
*We will lend you a wetsuit for the bottom clothes.
- We recommend 1-day contact lenses for those who wear them.
- We recommend that you remove false nails.
■ What to bring
- Change of clothes (Your clothes will get wet. Please bring a full set of clothes, including underwear and socks.)
- Thick bath towel
- Waterproof case for your mobile phone (only if necessary)
- If you wear glasses, bring a glasses band if necessary
- We recommend that you use 1-day contact lenses.
*If you bring your mobile phone into the canyon, please do so at your own risk. Please note that neither our company nor the guide will be held responsible for any damage caused by falling or breaking the phone while climbing up or down steep slopes or rocks, or by flooding in the river.
(Notes on what to bring)
- Please refrain from bringing large cameras or tripods that are difficult to carry.
- If the guide determines that it is dangerous to walk, you will be prohibited from using the phone in the canyon.
- Depending on the water level, there are places in the canyon where the water reaches up to your chest. Please use this information as a guide when deciding whether to bring a camera or cell phone.
■About rental items
[Free rental]
- Packraft
- Paddle
- Wet pants
- Helmet
- Life jacket
- Water shoes
- Gloves
- 1 bath towel
- Sandals
*The above is included in the experience fee.
Eligibility
- Age: 15 to 65 years old *Minors (15 to 19 years old) must be accompanied by a guardian.
- Weight: 100kg or less *Please note that this is for safety reasons.
- Those who can sign the “Participation Agreement” on the day of the tour
- Those who are not feeling well, are pregnant, or have consumed alcohol cannot participate.
- Guideline for physical strength: Those who exercise regularly.
- Those who have a fever on the day of the tour cannot participate.
- Participation fees will not be refunded if you do not follow the instructions of the instructors or staff, or if the instructors or staff deem it dangerous.
- This is a Japanese guided course. For safety reasons, those who can understand Japanese.
Cancellation conditions
- As a general rule, the tour will be cancelled if it rains.
- Even if there is heavy rain a few days before the tour, the tour may be cancelled if the water level rises.
- If the tour is cancelled due to weather, we will reschedule the tour or refund the full fee.
- If the tour is cancelled, we will contact you by 7pm the day before the tour, but please note that depending on the weather conditions, the decision may be made in the morning of the tour (around 6-7am).
Cancellation Policy
After application is completed, if the participant cancels or changes the date due to personal reasons, a cancellation fee will be charged.
| Cancellation deadline | Cancellation fee | |
| 1 | 7 to 3 days before the event | 20% |
| 2 | The day before the event date to the day before that | 50% |
| 3 | The day of the event | 100% |
| 4 | Cancellation without permission | 100% |
Time Schedule
*The schedule below may be subject to change depending on the number of participants, individual physical strength, and other factors. Courses may be omitted if necessary.
| 10:00 | Gathering at the Honoki Base |
|---|---|
| 10:20 | Departure from Honoki Base |
| 10:40 | Enter the gorge from Saruwatari Parking Lot |
| 11:40 | Arrival at Chockstone (light meal) |
| 12:00 | Packraft preparation and explanation |
| 12:20 | Further upstream |
| 12:40 | Turn around |
| Around 14:00 | Return to Saruwatari Parking Lot |
| 14:15 | Arrive at Honoki Base. *After changing clothes, the group will disband around 14:30. |