Japan Honeymoon: Fukuoka 4-Day Itinerary
Welcome back to part 5 of my Japan Honeymoon π series, where I write about everything we did, what we ate, and where we stayed during our 3 week trip to Japan.
We are currently halfway through our honeymoon after spending 2 days in Kyoto, a must-see city in Japan. Now we are traveling west to an area of Japan my husband nor I have ever been to – Fukuoka!
Fukuoka is the 6th largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka prefecture. They are known to be a foodie land because a lot of different Japanese dishes and ingredients originated from Fukuoka, such as the famous Hakata style ramen chain Ichiran π.
Here is everything we did, ate, and where we stayed – I hope our itinerary helps give you an idea of things you want to do or check out if you are planning to visit Fukuoka.
Japan Honeymoon trip 2024 recap
Tokyo | Osaka | Kinosaki | Kyoto | Fukuoka
Day 10: Arrival to Fukuoka
Today we are leaving Kyoto and taking a bullet train to Fukuoka.
Lunch: Sushi no Musashi
One of the foods I wanted to eat during our trip was conveyor belt sushi – it’s a lot of fun! We stumbled upon one at Kyoto Station called Sushi no Musashi and had a quick sushi lunch before our train. This was a quick and easy stop and the sushi was decent, although it added up at the end of the meal.
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈβοΈ
Sushi no Musashi
Japan, γ600-8215 Kyoto, Shimogyo Ward, Higashishiokoji Takakuracho, 8-3 δΊ¬ι½ι§
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Transportation: Bullet train to Fukuoka
We took the bullet train from Kyoto Station to Hakata Station. The train ride took around 3 hours and costed us $321 CAD for 2 people. As usual, the train ride was relaxing and spacious. And after trying both reserved and non-reserved seating, I much prefer reserved seating. I also recommend you to bring a medium sized or smaller luggage if you can as these an fit above the seats in the carry-on storage, whereas larger luggages you will need to keep at your feet unless you are able to reserve a luggage storage.
Accommodations: Hotel Monte Hermana Fukuoka
We stayed 4 nights at Hotel Monte Hermana Fukuoka and paid $131 per night for a pretty spacious hotel room with a king bed. I would say this was one of our more comfortable hotels and I was glad because 4 nights is long π!
The location of this hotel was great as it was walking distance to both Hakata and Tenjin area, the most popular downtown areas of Fukuoka.
Activity: Fukuoka Tower + Momochi Seaside Park
After checking-in to the hotel, I was excited to explore a little bit of Fukuoka. We took took a local bus for 30 mins to check out Fukuoka Tower and Momochi Seaside Park, which were right next to each other.
I’m not a big fan of checking out observation towers and things like that (I think it’s kinda boring… just a view), but it was cool to see the tower from the outside and it lit up at night.
What was quite fun for us was just walking around and exploring Momochi Seaside Park and the beach. At this point, this was the first beach we’ve seen in our trip and the sand was actually soft β±! Water was warm and there was a beautiful sunset π. My first impression of Fukuoka is that it is much more relaxing and vacation-vibe than Tokyo and Kyoto, which were much more city and mountains and rivers.
Dinner: Pizzeria Farina
My husband was craving some Italian food so we found an Italian restaurant with good ratings on Google Maps called Pizzeria Farina. Later on, I will realize he was actually craving some Japanese pasta π. This is an authentic Italian spot with a wood fire oven for pizzas and yummy pastas.
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈβοΈβοΈ
Pizzeria Farina
1 Chome-2-19 Takasago, Chuo Ward, Fukuoka, 810-0011, Japan
Recommended: Read my full review of Pizzeria Farina in Fukuoka.
Drinks: Notime Mixology Bar
After dinner, we wanted to visit a cocktail bar for some post-dinner drinks and to wind down after a travel day. We found Notime Mixology Bar, a quiet tucked-away bar on the second floor of an alleyway πΈ.
They had some really beautiful and cool cocktails, each with a story and prices were very reasonable compared to Vancouver. I highly recommend the Alaskan grape cocktail I got!
Our bartender spoke English well and he even gifted us a chocolate dessert to celebrate our honeymoon. Thank you π₯°!
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈβοΈβοΈ
Notime Mixology Bar
Japan, γ810-0004 Fukuoka, Chuo Ward, Watanabedori, 5 Chomeβ13β21 γ γγγ½γ¦ 2F
Recommended: Read my full review of Notime Mixology Bar, a cocktail bar in Fukuoka.
Day 11: Day trip to Itoshima
Today is our first full day in Fukuoka! Upon checking the weather, we noticed today will be sunny and nice but upcoming days may have rain. Because of this, we decided to go on a day trip to Itoshima.
Lunch: Ramen Kanetora
My husband loves tsukemen, a style of dipping ramen were the broth and noodles are separated.
We waited around 20 mins to eat at Ramen Kanetora, a highly rated tsukemen restaurant in Fukuoka π. A bowl of noodles only cost $16 and comes with a super fatty broth and tender char siu pork.
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈβοΈβοΈ
Ramen Kanetora
Japan, γ810-0004 Fukuoka, Chuo Ward, Watanabedori, 4 Chomeβ9β18 Fukusyu Bldg, 1F
Recommended: Read my full review of Ramen Kanetora, a popular tsukemen ramen restaurant in Fukuoka.
Transportation: Local bus to Itoshima
Itoshima is another city that is roughly 1 hour away from Hakata. The main thing on our itinerary was to check out the white shrine gates, Sakurai Futamigaura β© and this was 1.5 hours transit from our hotel, so it would take 3 hours total to go there and back.
The bus ride was peaceful and you get a nice view of the beach and waters along the way, but yes it is a long ride. As a side note, the buses need exact change.
Activity: Sakurai Futamigaura
We finally arrived at the white torii gates and there was quite a line for people to take photos in front of it. I recommend you to skip the line and just take photos on the side at an angle to still get the full gates in your photo.
The white gates are very beautiful as they are located a distance away from land, in the water and surrounded by some rocks. Because we wore sandals, we were able to comfortably walk around the beach and the waters and it felt so peaceful and serene, despite all the tourists lining up in the center.
We walked further down and there was a beach as well so we did some swimming as we had packed our swimsuits. And in case you were wondering, we were basically the only people swimming at this beach π . I only saw another couple (not locals) swimming a bit further down.
Snack: Surf Side Cafe
After swimming, we stopped by a cute cafe at the top of the hill to rest. We were basically dried from the sun and just used their washrooms to change out of our swimsuits.
Surf Side Cafe had a great view of the beach and a variety of American style food items like burgers and pizza. We opted for a mango sundae and relaxed a little before hopping back onto the bus and making the trip back to Hakata.
Surf Side Cafe
285 Nishinoura, Nishi Ward, Fukuoka, 819-0202, Japan
Dinner: Ieyasu Watanabedori
For dinner, we just walked into a skewer restaurant because it was pumping out some smoke and it smelled good. Prices were reasonable but I didn’t think the skewers were that amazing π’. Overall, I wouldn’t recommend it or go back as there are so many amazing restaurants across Japan and this one just fell average.
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈ
Ieyasu Watanabedori
5 Chome-24-21 Watanabedori, Chuo Ward, Fukuoka, 810-0004, Japan
Day 12: Our first rainy day
Today is our first rainy day in our entire trip βοΈ! It was actually kind of nice because for once we were not sweating and hot all the time. I could finally pull out the 1 pair of long pants and long-sleeve shirt I packed for the trip.
Lunch: Menya Ishii
One of the foods/ingredients Fukuoka is known for is mentaiko, AKA spicy cured pollack roe.
We found an udon place that specializes in mentaiko udon called Menya Ishii. The bowl featured in the photo above is only $11!
Loewe’s rating: βοΈβοΈβοΈ
Menya Ishii
Japan, γ812-0011 Fukuoka, Hakata Ward, Hakata Ekimae, 3 Chomeβ9β5 γγ΅γ³γγ³γ·γ§γ³η¬¬δΈεε€ 1ι
Recommended: Read my full review of Menya Ishii, an udon restaurant in Fukuoka popular for mentaiko.
Activity: Marine World
Originally, I only wanted to visit 1 aquarium during this trip and that was the one in Okinawa. However, due to the rain, we decided to check out the aquarium in Fukuoka as well called Marine World. Tickets costed us around $25 CAD per adult and we spent around 2.5 hours here.
The aquarium was quite nice and it was less crowded than I expected. My favourite thing to do was watch the dolphin show π¬ – it ended up being more impressive and comfortable than the dolphin show we watched in Okinawa a few days later. Overall, I was happy we went and checked it out.
Dinner: Menya Gaga
One of the most famous foods Fukuoka is known for is Hakata style ramen and the popular ramen chain Ichiran is a prime example of that. I didn’t feel like lining up for an Ichiran location, so we found ourselves another restaurant that specializes in tonkotsu ramen – Menya Gaga.
I really liked the ramen here as it had a hearty and rich broth and thin noodles, which I prefer π. Prices for a bowl of ramen was under $10 CAD which is just crazy to me. In fact, I was preparing myself for a second dinner at an izakaya after, so I ordered a half-size ramen for $5 and it was the perfect portion for me.
Loewe’s rating: ββββ
Menya Gaga Tenjin
Japan, γ810-0021 Fukuoka, Chuo Ward, Imaizumi, 2 Chomeβ5β6 1οΌ¦-B
Recommended: Read my full review of Menya Gaga, a tonkotsu ramen restaurant in Fukuoka.
Late night eats: γ·γ³γΈγγ€γγ―γͺγ«γγ³γΈγ³γγ³
I cannot find an English name for this izakaya, but here we go. γ·γ³γΈγγ€γγ―γͺγ«γγ³γΈγ³γγ³ is a Japanese style pub we walked across on our way to Menya Gaga. We saw a lot of local Japanese folks go in and it was just bumping, so we decided to check it out after our ramen dinner.
We were seated pretty quickly and the staff tried to give us a Korean menu twice even though we asked for an English menu (we asked in Japanese). I saw on Google reviews that quite a lot of Korean visitors have eaten here and many complained about unfair treatment (i.e. they treat Japanese people better).
I don’t know about you, but I would also treat Japanese people better π. Anyways, we didn’t notice any discrepancy in service even though we were foreigners as well. I’m not sure if it is because we were able to communicate and order in Japanese verbally though.
This izakaya is a funny memory because I thought all the posters pasted up on the walls were their menu. But upon closer inspection, they all said the same thing: 50 cent chicken skin skewers!
That being said, the chicken skin skewers were pretty good and for $5 you can get a mountain of them. The entire menu is quite cheap with drinks starting at $3 and if you want to pay double, you can get triple the amount π». I guess that’s just how the math works here.
Food wasn’t the best – overly salty and mid-range but they were all good drinking foods.
Loewe’s rating:
γ·γ³γΈγγ€γγ―γͺγ«γγ³γΈγ³γγ³
Japan, γ810-0021 Fukuoka, Chuo Ward, Imaizumi, 1 Chomeβ19β18 ζ₯½ε€©ε°γγ« οΌι
Activity: Darts + Karaoke
Now that we are officially tipsy, we went to a nearby darts place to compete with each other π―. They also had karaoke rooms but we didn’t do it.
The darts game was pretty cheap as they gave us student pricing for some reason (we had no student IDs… we are over 30). The drinks here were more expensive than the izakaya we were just at, but still better than Vancouver.
After I lost in 2/3 games of darts against my husband, we stumbled back to our hotel to end the night.
Day 13: Rainy day again
Today is our last full day in Fukuoka and unfortunately, it is raining again βοΈ! Despite this, we had an enjoyable day and actually found the rain refreshing.
Lunch: Hakata Robata Fishman
We had lunch at a stylish Japanese restaurant called Hakata Robata Fishman. They serve Japanese set meals and have a beautiful presentation for sashimi dishes. Each set meal comes with explanations on how to eat it and what the ingredients are good for in your body.
Overall, I found this lunch nice and healthy, but a little pricey.
Loewe’s rating: βββ
Hakata Robata Fishman
1 Chome-4-23 Imaizumi, Chuo Ward, Fukuoka, 810-0021, Japan
Activity: Dazaifu Tenmangu
Dazaifu Tenmangu is one of the leading Shinto shrines and around a 45 min transit from our hotel area.
I am not an avid shrine visitor, but I do like to visit 1-2 shrines during my trip to Japan to give some prayers/hopes and to buy some charms as souvenirs. This shrine was a beautiful walk with a little bridge and an interesting dragon head at one of the entrances.
Along the road to the shrine, there are also a lot of cute character shops like Miffy, Studio Ghibli and street food restaurants like traditional sweets and tamagoyaki for sale.
Snack: Gindaco
After visiting Dazaifu Tenmangu, we made our way to Canal City Hakata, a giant mall. But the first thing we did when we entered the basement floor food/cafeteria area is order some takoyaki as a snack from a chain called Gindaco.
We like the original takoyaki but they have a lot of versions catered to foreigners like with cheese and stuff like that.
Activity: Shopping at Canal City Hakata
Canal City Hakata is a big shopping mall in downtown Fukuoka ποΈ. I had high hopes for this mall as it was a rainy day and shopping is the best for when it rains, huehue.
Sadly, the “canals” and water show the mall is popular for was closed for construction, so we couldn’t see the One Piece themed water show that was promoted π. The shops were ok, but I found Aeon Mall back in Kyoto to be better. And I found the layout of the mall to be a little confusing as well.
Luckily, there was still a nice toy and arcade floor for my husband to spend time in while I looked at clothes.
On the top floor, there is also a “ramen museum” with 11 different ramen stalls and restaurants to choose from. Even though it was pretty empty, we stopped by the chicken ramen to try and it was just ok. I find chicken ramen to be not as good because the slices of chicken meat are always kind of dry.
Dinner: Yatai
One cool thing I noticed about Fukuoka’s food scene are the small food stalls called yatai. These are little carts and street food stalls that seat around 6-10 people and there are a lot of yatai scattered around Hakata and Tenjin area.
We visited 2 yatai for dinner to try and do a little bit of a “yatai hop” for dinner, but we ended up being quite full after only 2 and also the prices of each little dish add up.
The first stall we ate at was quite close to Canal City. We ordered oden ($6) and a mentaiko omelette ($8). The oden was quite comforting and the omelette was soft and fluffy with some spiciness from the pollack roe.
The last yatai we ate at was quite a famous/popular one called Chez Remy. Unlike some of the other stalls, they are not serving up Japanese food, but French instead! The stall is run by Remy and his team who all speak Japanese, English and French fluently.
We ordered the shrimp in garlic ($7.50), escargot ($8.50), pumpkin gnocchi gratin ($7.50), quiche ($6.50), and 2 glasses of white wine. Everything was very cheesy and rich, although in small portions. Chez Remy was also quite a funny guy and likes to interact with his customers through banter and silly expressions π€ͺ.
Overall, the vibe at both yatai was quite intimate and a fun experience – I recommend you to try at least 1 stall while you are in Fukuoka!
Final thoughts
It was both of our first times visiting Fukuoka and I feel like we did almost everything on our list (we had a pretty chill list). As a quick conclusion, I don’t think you need to stay 4 full days in Fukuoka.
What I liked most about Fukuoka is how close it is to the water and beach – it gives a very different scenery and vibe! I found Fukuoka to be more relaxing and peaceful and certainly less crowded than Tokyo and Kyoto. In the Hakata and Tenjin area, you can also get that city and shopping life so it’s kind of best of both worlds.
The next thing I liked about Fukuoka was the food scene! It seems like food is good no matter where you go in Japan but it was interesting to see that Fukuoka is just known for so many different foods, including: Hakata ramen, mentaiko, mizutaki (chicken hot pot), motsunabe (tripe hot pot), and more.
A lot of the recommended tourist spots for Fukuoka is actually a little out of the city (~1 hour commute), so you end up doing little day trips and that is also fun, although I don’t love the travel time. I would only recommend you to stay 3+ days in Fukuoka if you plan on going on these day trips to Dazaifu Tenmangu or Itoshima for example.
Overall, our time in Fukuoka was a bit more relaxing and healing than I thought it would be. Stay tuned for my next travel recap as we leave Fukuoka and travel to Okinawa!
Sincerely, Loewe
Japan Honeymoon trip 2024 recap
TokyoΒ |Β OsakaΒ |Β KinosakiΒ | Kyoto | Fukuoka
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