Fukuoka is definitely one of my favorite places in Japan! It’s a lot less crowded and laid back compared to Tokyo and Osaka. At first, I was very scared of doing cross-city travels with 1 overnight stay per city (I usually just do day trips) — but the sights outside of Fukuoka were very unique and difficult to pass out on so I decided to do it! With very convenient transportation via bus and shinkansen/train, it wasn’t as scary and made the travel very seamless (thanks japan!).

Photos are by Theo Paolo Amora Lim

Go to Fukuoka if you want to:

1. Try bathing in natural hotsprings (Onsen)
2. Drink coffee by a lake
3. Visit a Ghibli themed village
4. Travel via bus/shinkansen across cities in Japan
5. Explore other parts of Japan aside from Tokyo & Osaka
6. Go to Kirby Cafe

Top Unique Experiences in Fukuoka:

• Kinrin Lake (Yufuin) – Very beautiful lake especially during spring & autumn! There are several nearby cafes where you can drink coffee with the beautiful view
• Yufuin Floral Village (Yufuin) – Small homey town that feels like going into a Ghibli town!
• Hells of Beppu (Beppu) – Get to visit all 7 Hells with different types of hotsprings!
• Yatai

How to get around?

Fukuoka

1. Get to Japan & fly in to Fukuoka Airport
2. Go to Hakata Station via Train (Airport Line – 5 mins). Hakata is their central station so all lines are connected there
3. To go around Fukuoka, you can either ride their train or bus. Both accept Suika cards

Yufuin and Beppu

You can go directly to either Yufuin or Beppu from Fukuoka – you can decide based on preference + itinerary. For us, we chose to go to Yufuin first then Beppu.

• Romance Train called “Yufuin No Mori” with beautiful interior & will drive you through the scenic places going to Yufuin.
• Shinkansen (Bullet Train) is a non-stop train in Japan. There’s also a regular train that stops across the city but I recommend taking the bullet train instead for a faster travel time
• Bus (SunQ Pass) is a common mode of transportation in rural areas of Japan. We took the SunQ Pass with unlimited rides for 2 days! You can use the same pass to travel within Yufuin & Beppu

I made a breakdown of transportation options so you can decide better!

	Yufuin No Mori Romance Train	Shinkansen Bullet Train	Bus
Pros	IG Worthy	Convenient	Cheapest
Cons	More expensive than Shinkansen	More expensive than Bus	Longer Travel Time (~30 mins)
What we did	No, because we didn’t book early 😦	Hakata to Yufuin (Booked at the Station)	Yufuin to Beppu & Beppu to Hakata (Sunq Pass)
Kyle Tips!	Book at least 1-2 months before because slots fill up quickly!	Book your tickets at least a week before to secure your slot	Check the SunQ pass for a cheaper option: https://www.sunqpass.jp/en/

Sample Itinerary:

Day 1: Explore Fukuoka!

Time	What to Do
Morning	Arrive at Fukuoka & go to Hakata Station. Check in at Hotel or leave luggage at coin lockers
Lunch	Grab some ramen at Ichiran
Afternoon	Go to Ohori Park to get some mid-day coffee then explore Fukuoka Castle Ruins
Evening	Have dinner by Momochi beach or Yatai Stalls

Ichiran Ramen. Remember those private seats in Japan where you can eat in peace? This is the place! This Ichiran branch is a big building with individual private seats to eat ramen! There’s a line sometimes so be ready to be patient

Ohori Park. Very peaceful park & surprisingly big! This is a casual tourist spot & workout place for locals. There’s not much food around so better to eat before going here!

Fukuoka Castle Ruins is called Ruins for a reason. There’s no castle (I looked for 2 hours lol)!!! You should try checking their downloadable app instead — that will show you how the Fukuoka castle looked like before. Make sure to checkout the view while you’re there!

Momochi Beach is a shoreline with some food stalls on the side that serve grilled food. It’s nice to eat here while watching the sea! There’s also a looong bay to nearby to walk around during sunset.

Yatai Stalls are small stalls along the streets are are unique to Fukuoka. They have a small menu to pick from and will cook your order in front of you! Eating at Yatai stalls are a very cultural experience but be ready to sit beside strangers and eat some yummy japanese food!

Day 2: Yufuin Adventure

Time	What to Do
Early Morning	Early checkout & ride shinkansen/bus to Yufuin. Leave luggage at coin storage
Late Morning	Go around Kinrin Lake & get coffee
Lunch & Afternoon	Grab some food around Yunostubo Street then go to Yufuin Floral Village
Late Afternoon to Evening	Ride the bus to Oita/Beppu Note: Check the bus time because last bus is early!!! unless u wanna be stuck in yufuin for the night haha
Evening	Get dinner in Oita or go to an onsen Note: Onsens are mostly open until early morning so this is a good evening activity!

Shinkansen to Yufuin

1. Make sure to reserve your seat & get your ticket at least the day before.
2. If you’re riding the Shinkansen, try to go early and buy a bento meal at the train station. You can eat this during the train ride!

Kinrin Lake is my favorite! Make sure the weather is nice for maximum IG power! There are a lot of cafes near the lake so go get some coffee before you head out!

Yunostubo Street is a looong street with lots of food stalls & stores.

Yufuin Floral Village is fairly small but still worth the visit! Merch is expensive so I would recommend buying else where

Day 3: Beeeeepuuuu!!

Time	What to Do	Kyle Notes
Morning until Afternoon	Explore the 7 hells at Hells of Beppu!	Trust me this is tiring but is definitely one of the most unique things I ever went to! Make sure the time each hell closes & prioritize which one you want to go to first!
Evening	Go back to Fukuoka (Hakata Statation)	Reserve your seats at least a day before!

7 Hells of Beppu has 7 different kinds of hotsprings to visit. Each of them has their own unique qualities like one has a red color, others have crocodiles living in them while some of them are color blue! You can just buy entrance tickets to 1-2 hotsprings if you don’t want to hike but I recommend going to all of them.

Tip: There are foot spas to visit so bring a personal towel!