One day in Fukuoka

Day by day

1. Day 1: Kushida Shrine and Tocho-ji

   Kushida Shrine, Tocho-ji, Shofuku-ji and Hakata Machiya Folk Museum, then Yatai food stalls in the evening.

   1. Morning

      Kushida Shrine

      Look up at the zodiac wheel above the gate and the huge float on display, then walk to Canal City or the old temples nearby. Allow 30 minutes.

   2. Late morning

      Tocho-ji

      Walk the short pitch-dark tunnel behind the Buddha with one hand on the wall, as visitors are asked to do. Allow 45 minutes.

   3. Lunch

      Lunch: Hakata ramen

      Ramen shops around Hakata Station and Nagahama, yatai stalls and the Ramen Stadium in Canal City.

   4. Afternoon

      Shofuku-ji

      Combine it with Tocho-ji and Jotenji on a morning walk of the old temple quarter from Gion station. Allow 30 minutes.

   5. Late afternoon

      Hakata Machiya Folk Museum

      Pair it with Kushida Shrine across the street for an hour on old Hakata. Allow 45 minutes.

   6. Evening

      Yatai food stalls

      Go early in the evening to get seats, order a drink plus one or two dishes per stall, and move on to try several.

If it rains

• Swap in Canal City Hakata (Nakasu): Catch an evening fountain show in the central canal, then compare bowls at the Ramen Stadium.
• Swap in Fukuoka Asian Art Museum (Nakasu): Check the resident artists' open studio on the same floor, which visitors can sometimes visit for free.
• Swap in Fukuoka Art Museum (Ohori Park and Ropponmatsu): Stop at the museum café's terrace overlooking Ohori Park's lake.

Where to stay for this itinerary

Pace and daylight

The sights in this plan add up to roughly 5–5 hours of visiting over one day, before meals and getting between them. Daylight runs from about 9.9 hours in December to 14.4 hours in June, so in winter start early and keep museums for the afternoon.

Getting between stops: Metro. The Kuko (Airport) line runs from Fukuoka Airport via Hakata, Nakasu-Kawabata and Tenjin to Ohori-koen and Meinohama; the Hakozaki and Nanakuma lines serve other districts.

More or fewer days

• 2 days in Fukuoka
• 3 days in Fukuoka
• 5 days in Fukuoka

Questions travellers ask