Kusasenri
草千里ヶ浜32°53′ N 131°03′ EAlpine plateau
Kusasenri suits anyone who wants a wide, easy stop high on Aso with the steaming Nakadake crater in view, and it stays open at alert level 2, when the crater itself is closed.
Volcanic alert
Mt. Aso stays at volcanic alert level 2 with the crater area closed
JMA raised Aso to level 3 on 14 August 2026 and lowered it to level 2 at 16:00 on 1 September. Nobody may go within about 1 km of Nakadake's first crater, and the park road to the rim stays shut. The road to Aso Sanjo Plaza has been open since 2 September, so Kusasenri and Daikanbo are reachable, and the caldera rim rides sit well outside the closed zone. Check JMA's page before you ride.
Checked 2026-10-11 · data.jma.go.jp
Photo そらみみ · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Kusasenri is a broad grassland at about 1,100 metres on the slopes of Aso, with a rain-fed pond in the middle and horses grazing across it. From the lookout above the car park you see Nakadake smoking to the east and the farmland of the Aso valley and the outer rim to the north. On a clear day the view to the west runs over the Kumamoto plain to the Ariake Sea and Unzen.
Horses graze loose here and spook easily, so keep well back, keep your voice down and never feed them. Kumamoto's tourism office lists all three as rules. The Aso Volcano Museum beside the car park explains how the caldera formed and how people live inside it.
Kusasenri lies about 4 km west of the Nakadake crater, outside the 1 km zone that alert level 2 closes. At level 3 the closed zone grows to about 2 km and the road beyond Kusasenri to Aso Sanjo Plaza shuts.
Worth knowing
- Route buses from JR Aso Station take about 30 minutes to the Kusasenri Aso Kazan Hakubutsukan-mae stop.
- Check the Aso Volcano Disaster Prevention Council's page for the day's crater status before you head up.
Quick answers about Kusasenriよくある質問
Is Kusasenri open while the Aso crater is closed?
Yes. At alert level 2, in force since 1 September 2026, only the area within about 1 km of the Nakadake crater is closed, and Kusasenri lies about 4 km west of it.
When is the best time to visit Kusasenri?
Kusasenri: Summer turns the grass a deep green. In a hard winter the pond freezes and rime ice coats the trees, often until about mid-February.
Within 12 km
Places to eat and drink nearby食
Within 12 km
