Kyushu never gets the attention that Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka do, but for those in the know, this can easily be one of the most rewarding places in the country to explore. Japan's third-largest island is where you go when you've already done the so-called “golden route” and you're ready for something with more texture and room to breathe. I’m talking volcanic calderas, hidden onsen villages, a mythological gorge, and a coastline that changes character every hour or two of driving. It's also, incidentally, one of the best road trip destinations in the entire country, the kind of place that begs to be explored by car. The expressways are excellent, the mountain roads are genuinely fun to drive, and unlike Honshu's big cities, a car here is an asset rather than a liability.