Chugoku is located on the western part of the main Island of Honshu – Japan’s main Island – and extends from east to west. The island south of it is Shikoku. The Chugoku region is composed of the Okayama, Hiroshima, Tottori, Shimane and Yamaguchi prefectures. Shikoku on the other hand, is composed of four prefectures: Kagawa, Tokushima, Ehime and Kochi.
The hottest months of the year are from late July to early September, and the coldest ones are from mid-December to February. In the prefectures that face the Sea of Japan and mountainous areas, it’s fairly common to see snow accumulate above 1 meter!

The Kyushu region is an island, southwest of the Japanese archipelago. It’s composed of seven prefectures: Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, Kumamoto, Miyazaki and Kagoshima.
On Yakushima, rain falls the most from March to June, and from July to September, many typhoons cross the regions.
During winter, from December to February, temperatures drop dramatically and it might snow in northern Kyushu. If you want to visit the northern part of the region during winter, coats, mufflers and warm clothes are necessary.

Okinawa is located at the southernmost point of Japan. A subtropical climate reigns on most of the region, and part of it belongs to the tropics, guarantying its inhabitants a warm climate through the whole year.
On the main Island of Okinawa, the best time to enjoy swimming without worrying about getting cold is from June to September.
The rainy season lasts from May to June, and the typhoon season from August to September – those two seasons are the months with the highest rainfalls of the year!