Miyazaki Comprehensive Athletic Park is a large prefectural sports and recreation complex located in Kumano, Miyazaki City, in southern Miyazaki Prefecture. Surrounded by abundant greenery and facing the Pacific Ocean, the park combines modern sporting facilities with a natural coastal environment. It serves as one of the prefecture’s major centers for sports, training camps, recreation, and large-scale events.
The park extends along the coast of the Hyuga-nada Sea, from the right bank of the Kiyotake River estuary to the left bank of the Kaeda River estuary. Its grounds stretch approximately 2 kilometers from north to south, with an average east-to-west width of around 600 meters. The original article describes the park’s total area as approximately 13.7 hectares.
One of the park’s defining characteristics is its abundant vegetation. Approximately 500,000 trees and other plants create a green landscape around the sporting facilities, providing a refreshing atmosphere for athletes, spectators, and visitors. The park’s design follows the concept of building sports facilities within a forest, making effective use of the coastal environment while maintaining a balance between recreation and nature.
Miyazaki Comprehensive Athletic Park contains 19 sports facilities that accommodate a total of 32 different sporting disciplines. It plays an important role in supporting competitive sports throughout Miyazaki Prefecture and attracts athletes and sports enthusiasts from across Japan.
The park is particularly well known as a training destination for professional baseball teams, including the Yomiuri Giants, as well as J.League football clubs. Its combination of specialized facilities, mild climate, and extensive green surroundings makes it a suitable location for seasonal training camps and team practice.
The park also welcomes visitors who want to enjoy outdoor activities, attend sporting competitions, or explore its landscaped grounds. Depending on the facilities being used and the events taking place, visitors can experience a different side of Miyazaki, beyond its beaches, shrines, and traditional sightseeing destinations.
The development of Miyazaki Comprehensive Athletic Park began as part of a commemorative project marking the 80th anniversary of the establishment of Miyazaki Prefecture. In 1964, plans to create a comprehensive sports facility were announced. The following year, a site in the Kizaki district of southern Miyazaki City, on reclaimed land, was selected for the project.
Full-scale construction began in 1967. Some facilities were completed in 1972, followed by the athletics stadium and Miyazaki City Municipal Baseball Stadium, now known as Himuka Stadium, in 1974.
In 1979, the park served as the main venue for the Miyazaki National Sports Festival, known as the Furusato Miyazaki Kokutai. This event marked an important stage in the park’s development and established its role as a major venue for sporting competitions in the prefecture. Additional sports and recreational facilities were subsequently developed over the following decades.
In 2001, a dedicated hardball baseball stadium, now known as Hinata Sun Marine Stadium Miyazaki, was completed. The Kinokohana Dome followed in 2004, expanding the park’s capacity to accommodate sporting activities and training in a covered environment.
Further improvements were made in 2019, when the Sunrise Bullpen was constructed north of Sun Marine Stadium Miyazaki. The facility allows six pitchers to throw simultaneously and was accompanied by a newly developed secondary practice field. Both facilities began operating for the Yomiuri Giants’ spring training camp on February 1, 2019.
From 2020 onward, the park underwent several improvements intended to strengthen tsunami evacuation arrangements. Evacuation ramps were installed on the first-base and third-base sides of Sun Marine Stadium Miyazaki, while a bridge was constructed in front of the indoor sports facility to provide a more direct evacuation route from the cycling stadium area.
The central plaza was cleared and redeveloped to accommodate an elevated evacuation area. Two additional tsunami evacuation towers were also constructed near the southern entrance. These measures reflect the importance of disaster preparedness in a coastal park facing the Pacific Ocean.
In 2021, major renovation work was carried out on one of the rubber-ball baseball fields, including replacement of the infield soil.
The park is also used as a venue for large-scale entertainment events. On September 7 and 8, 2024, Hinata Sun Marine Stadium Miyazaki hosted Hinata Fes 2024, a live event by the Japanese idol group Hinatazaka46. It was the first live concert held at the stadium since its opening, demonstrating the venue’s ability to accommodate events beyond traditional sporting competitions.
Baseball is one of the park’s principal activities, and its facilities support professional training camps, competitive games, and local sporting events.
Visitors interested in Japanese professional baseball may find the park especially appealing during the winter and early spring training-camp season. The presence of dedicated practice facilities and supplementary grounds helps accommodate the demanding schedules of professional teams.
The park also has facilities for indoor training and traditional Japanese martial arts.
The combination of indoor and outdoor venues allows the park to support a broad range of training requirements and sporting activities.
Beyond baseball and athletics, the park offers a diverse selection of sporting facilities.
The nearby Aoshima Youth Nature House, located on the southern side of the park, complements the area’s sporting facilities with opportunities for youth activities and nature-based programs.
Although the park is primarily known for sports, it also contains Hinata Keishuen, a Japanese garden that provides a quieter setting amid the extensive sporting grounds. The garden offers a contrast to the stadiums and training facilities, allowing visitors to appreciate a more traditional style of Japanese landscape design.
The coexistence of sports facilities, landscaped greenery, and a Japanese garden reflects the park’s original concept of integrating athletic activities into a forest-like environment. Visitors can therefore experience both modern sporting infrastructure and elements of Japanese garden culture during the same visit.
The names of several facilities have changed over time through corporate naming-rights agreements.
In 2014, Miyazaki Prefecture entered into a five-year naming-rights agreement with Kirishima Shuzo Co., Ltd. Under the agreement, the park as a whole and five major facilities received the KIRISHIMA name. These included Sun Marine Stadium Miyazaki, Himuka Stadium, Kinokohana Dome, the Budokan, and the athletics stadium.
The agreement was not renewed in September 2019, and the prefecture subsequently sought a new sponsor. In December 2019, a new naming-rights agreement was concluded with Mera Denki Sangyo. From April 2020 through March 2025, the park as a whole, the athletics stadium, and the Budokan used names incorporating Hinata.
When researching older maps, travel guides, or sporting event information, visitors may encounter different names for the same facilities. Checking the latest official information is advisable when attending a specific event or visiting a particular venue.
The park can be reached using the JR Nichinan Line. Visitors can get off at either Kibana Station or Undokoen Station. Depending on the destination within the extensive grounds, the walk from the station takes approximately 5 to 10 minutes.
Miyazaki Kotsu buses operating toward Nichinan and Obi, as well as services toward Aoshima and the Shiramihama-iriguchi area, provide access to the park.
Because the park covers a large area and its facilities are spread across different sections, it is worth checking which entrance and bus stop are most convenient for the venue you intend to visit.
Parking facilities are available for visitors arriving by car. However, congestion may occur during major sporting competitions, professional training camps, concerts, and other large events. Public transportation is recommended when large crowds are expected.
Miyazaki Comprehensive Athletic Park is more than a collection of stadiums. Its extensive green spaces, coastal setting, wide variety of sporting facilities, and history of hosting major events make it an important destination for athletes and sports enthusiasts alike.
Whether you are interested in Japanese professional baseball, track and field, cycling, martial arts, or simply exploring a large green recreational area, the park offers a different perspective on Miyazaki. Its combination of modern facilities and a nature-conscious landscape makes it a distinctive part of the prefecture’s tourism and sporting identity.