Yatai, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Photo: Yoshikazu TAKADA via Flickr · CC BY 2.0
福岡KYŪSHŪ / OKINAWA
KYŪSHŪ / OKINAWA · 福岡県 · Japan

Fukuoka

Kyūshū's gateway city, famous for tonkotsu ramen and street-food stalls.

Fukuoka is Kyushu's largest and most vibrant prefecture, famous for Hakata ramen, lively yatai (open-air food stalls) along Hakata Bay, and as a gateway to Asia just a short ferry ride from South Korea. It blends a buzzing modern city with castle towns and easy day-trip islands.

Fukuoka (福岡) has been Japan's gateway to the Asian continent for centuries; Hakata (博多) merchants built its trading wealth, and its yatai (屋台) street-stall culture is unmatched in Japan.

Fukuoka-shi 福岡市Kitakyushu-shi 北九州市Nokonoshima 能古島
Where it isFukuoka, KYŪSHŪ / OKINAWA
Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine
Kushida Shrine, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Kushida Shrine
Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha
Nokonoshima Island Park, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan
Nokonoshima Island Park

Photos: Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine — FIND/47 contributor via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Kushida Shrine — mdid via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha — travel oriented via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nokonoshima Island Park — shota via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0

01

Getting there

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Fukuoka (Hakata) is ~5h from Tokyo by shinkansen, or ~2h by air.

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02

What to see

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Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, Fukuoka Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine

Head of ~12,000 Tenjin shrines and dedicated to Sugawara no Michizane, deity of learning; famous for thousands of plum trees that bloom in February and an…

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Kushida Shrine, Fukuoka Prefecture, JapanTop pick

Kushida Shrine

Founded in 757 AD in central Hakata; the spiritual home of the July Hakata Gion Yamakasa festival with its towering, racing floats.

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Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha, Fukuoka Prefecture, JapanHidden gem

Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha (Sasaguri)

Mountain temple ~21 min by JR from Hakata, home to the world's largest bronze reclining Buddha (41 m long, 300 tons); part of the Sasaguri 88-temple pilgrimage.

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03

What to eat

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Must-eat

Hakata Ramen (tonkotsu)

Fukuoka's signature ramen: ultra-rich, milky pork-bone (tonkotsu) broth simmered for hours with thin, straight noodles; born in the Hakata district and served…

Motsunabe, Fukuoka Prefecture, JapanMust-eat

Motsunabe (offal hot pot)

A local hot pot of beef or pork tripe with cabbage, garlic chives and chili in a soy- or miso-based broth, cooked at the table; a Fukuoka winter favorite.

Hakata Udon, Fukuoka Prefecture, JapanLocal secret

Hakata Udon (gobo-ten udon)

Lesser-known to foreigners but said to have origins in Hakata: soft, springy noodles in a clear niboshi-katsuobushi-kombu broth, often topped with burdock…

04

Fukuoka at a glance

Food Culture Nature City Access how we rank all 47 →
05

Say it in Fukuoka

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Ask a local
Oishii desu!
It's delicious!
Test yourself
Local word
yatai
open-air food stalls — a Fukuoka institution
Test yourself
One more
chotto yotte mimasu
I'll stop by for a bit / I'll pop in briefly
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Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan

Sleep in Fukuoka

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07

Next door

SagaJapan's porcelain heartland and a vivid autumn balloon festival.KumamotoA mighty castle and one of the world's largest volcanic calderas at Aso.Play the 47-prefecture mapUnlock Fukuoka in the RPG-style explorer.

Links marked PR are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Photos: Yatai — Yoshikazu TAKADA via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine — FIND/47 contributor via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Kushida Shrine — mdid via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha — travel oriented via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nokonoshima Island Park — shota via FIND/47, CC BY 4.0 · Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine — JoshBerglund19 via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 · Kushida Shrine — wongwt via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Nanzoin Temple Reclining Buddha — そらみみ (Soramimi) via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Motsunabe — Vaice-A via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Hakata Udon — Nissy-KITAQ via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0. Map: Geolonia (MIT).