By plane

Fukuoka Airport (IATA: FUK)is located to the east of the city, surprisingly close to the city centre (the domestic terminal is only 2 subway stops away from the Hakata JR station - there is a 10 min. free bus connecting the intl. terminal to domestic). Within the country, Japan Airlines and ANA fly to Fukuoka from most larger cities, including Tokyo (both Haneda and Narita), Osaka (Itami and Kansai), and Nagoya (Komaki and Centrair Airport). There are scheduled flights to most major cities in China and South Korea, as well as Taipei, Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Manila, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, but the only scheduled transpacific flights are to Honolulu and Guam.

By train

Fukuoka's Hakata Station is the terminus of the Sanyo Shinkansen. Shinkansen services are offered from Kokura in Kitakyushu (20 min), Hiroshima (1 hr), Okayama (1 3/4 hrs) and Osaka (2 hr 30 min), and through via the Tokaido Shinkansen from Kyoto (2 hr 45 min by Nozomi), Nagoya (3 hr 30 min by Nozomi) and Tokyo (5 hr by Nozomi).

Ohori Park, Fukuoka Art Museum, Ohori Park Japanese Garden, Shofukuji Temple, Momochi Seaside Park, Canal City Hakata, Fukuoka Castle Ruins (Maizuru Park)

Ohori Park

Ohori Park is a pleasant city park in central Fukuoka with a large pond at its center. There is a walking path around the circumference of the pond that is just a little over two kilometers long and is popular for jogging, walking pets and leisurely strolls by the water.
Ohori is Japanese for moat, and the pond at the center of the park once served as part of the moat system of the neighboring Fukuoka Castle. The park was constructed between 1926 and 1929 and designed after the classical garden style of the West Lake in China. There are three islands in the middle of the pond that are connected to the mainland and each other by elegant stone bridges.

Fukuoka Art Museum

The museum was opened in 1979 and has a permanent collection that includes Buddhist statues dating back to the 11th century and paintings and sculptures by modern artists like Miro and Dali. Besides the permanent collection, the museum also holds a variety of special temporary exhibitions.

Ohori Park Japanese Garden

which in contrast to the rest of the park charges a small entrance fee. Here visitors can see typical features of Japanese gardens like dry landscapes and tea houses. The Gokoku Shrine is located across the street about 150 meters to the southeast. The path to the shrine leads under a massive torii gate and the main shrine building is a unique gold structure situated in front of a spacious yard.

Shofukuji Temple

Shofukuji has the distinction of being the first Zen temple constructed in Japan. It was founded in 1195 by the priest Eisai, who introduced the Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism from China into Japan. Although the temple buildings cannot be entered, visitors can walk through Shofukuji's attractive temple grounds and observe the buildings from outside.
Before Zen's introduction to Japan, Buddhism has already had a long history in Japan dating back to the 500s. The new teachings of Zen, which Eisai amassed during his travels in China, promoted meditation and discipline as the means to enlightenment and became very popular with the samurai class, which was exerting political power through the shogunate government based in Kamakura.

Momochi Seaside Park

The Momochi Seaside Park is Fukuoka's modern waterfront area with wide, tree lined streets, futuristic buildings, public parks and no phone or electricity lines above ground. The area's main attractions are centered around Fukuoka Tower and the Hawks Town entertainment complex, which are located about a kilometer apart.
Standing 234 meters tall, Fukuoka Tower is far and away the city's highest building. An observation deck is located at 123 meters from where visitors can get a good look of the surrounding city and Hakata Bay. In front of the tower there is an artificial beach with walking paths and a wharf that juts out into the water called Marizon, which has restaurants and shops. A number of interesting attractions are located near the tower, including the Fukuoka City Museum and a Robosquare robot show room.

Canal City Hakata

Canal City Hakata is a large shopping and entertainment complex, calling itself a "city within the city". Attractions include about 250 shops, cafes and restaurants, a theater, game center, cinemas, two hotels and a canal running through the complex.
Visitors, who are planning on shopping, will likely be able to find something of interest in one of Canal City's many stores, whether it be in a shop unique to Japan or a branch of an international company. There is also a wide variety of restaurants, offering Japanese and international food, that generally have reasonably priced menus. The fifth floor consists of the "Ramen Stadium", which has eight ramen shops with noodle dishes from across Japan, including the local specialty Hakata Ramen.

Fukuoka Castle Ruins (Maizuru Park)

The ruins of Fukuoka Castle are located in the middle of the city in Maizuru Park, named after the castle's alias, Maizuru Castle. During the Edo Period (1603-1867), Fukuoka Castle used to be the largest castle on Kyushu, but it was almost completely torn down after the Meiji Restoration as an unwanted symbol of the feudal past. Nowadays only ruined walls and a few turrets remain, and the park attracts visitors with walking trails and a few lookout points.Fukuoka Castle was built in the beginning of the 17th century by Kuroda Nagamasa, who was appointed lord of the surrounding Chikuzen feudal domain (part of today's Fukuoka Prefecture) for his support of Tokugawa Ieyasu during the battle of Sekigahara. The Kuroda clan ruled from the castle for more than two centuries until the abolition of the feudal system in 1870.

March - August

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