Yanagawa
A unique experience boating through canals in Fukuoka that date back hundreds of years.
· Yanagawa is a small city in the southern part of Fukuoka Prefecture, near Kumamoto and Saga Prefectures
· It’s famous for its canals and boat rides
· One of the foods its known for is unagi
In the southern part of Fukuoka prefecture, on the middle of Kyushu island is Yanagawa. It’s not a major destination for most tourists, however it does feature a unique canal boating experience that I haven’t had anywhere else in Japan.
I’ve visited the area twice, once while I was living in Fukuoka in 2011 and once when I went for a trip in the late spring of 2022.
How to get there
Yanagawa is relatively easy to get to from Fukuoka City. You can catch the Nishitetsu-Tenjin-Omuta Line from Nishitetsu Fukuoka (Tenjin) Station in Tenjin to Nishitetsu-Yanagawa Station.
About Yanagawa
Yanagawa is a small city of just over 70,000. It’s located near Kumamoto and Saga prefectures, near the bottom of Fukuoka prefecture.
The city is most known for its canals. It was originally constructed in the mid-16th century by the Kamachi clan, and the canals were used for a castle. Since then, they’ve been maintained and the present city has been built around it.
Hakushu Festival and Parade on Water
A man steers a boat under lanterns at the Hakushu Festival and Parade on Water
I was fortunate that the first time I visited Yanagawa was being able to take part in their major festival: Hakushu Festival and Parade on Water.
A well known poet in the Meiji Era, Kitahara Hakushu, was born in Yanagawa, and the city comes alive for this festival each November that commemorates his death.
About 130 boats travel through the canals, passing by various musical performances, lanterns and decorations until arriving in an area to watch fireworks.
A musical performance at the Hakushu Festival and Parade on Water
I was lucky to get to ride one of the boats then, drink and eat foods like oden.
Even without the festival, if you’re traveling in Fukuoka, it might be a fun experience to head down for a canal boat ride.
If you’d like to see what it’s like normally, check out my video at the 5:04 mark.
Passing a choir at the Hakushu Festival and Parade on Water
Wakamatsuya
Unagi is famous in Yanagawa, but it’s unique here as it’s cooked differently from the typical method. It's steamed together with rice in a wooden box, resulting in a denser meal that’s full of flavor.
Wakamatsuya is one of the famous restaurants that serve this, and it made for a perfect stop after our ride through the canals.
le cafe patisserie Sakura
Keep in touch:
MORE TRAVELS:
Fukuoka: Hakata Ramen Favorites
Here are my favorite authentic Hakata ramen spots after living in the area for five years.
When I moved to Fukuoka, I had no idea at the time that it was the prefecture arguably known to have the best ramen in Japan. Much of the ramen that has dominated the global boom is Hakata’s ramen, named after the main area of Fukuoka, and known for its tonkotsu (pork) broth and thin, firm noodles.
Having lived in Yukuhashi, a small city in the prefecture, I’ve eaten at a lot of different tonkotsu ramen shops. When I go back to visit, I make sure to stop at as many of my favorite spots as I can:
Ichiran
Ichiran is the king of Hakata ramen, and its fame is well deserved. Each bowl of ramen is custom made to your taste, and you can enjoy it in your semi-private counter cubby. In my opinion, they have the best noodles (get it Fukuoka style: “Barikata” or very firm), and their broth is always rich in flavor. One difference in some of Fukuoka's locations is the signature rectangle box bowl. This is how it's served in locations like Tenjin's Nishidori.
Marushin
My personal favorite ramen shop in Yukuhashi and one of my favorites in all of Fukuoka. It may not be the most famous in town, that award goes to the now international Kanada-ya, but Marushin’s ramen has a perfectly balanced and tasty tonkotsu pork broth that's just the right amount of rich. Their "Akamaru" is fantastic and has a little bit of Korean gojchujan spiciness to it. Each bowl is full of toppings and all in all amazing, and they're open until 2AM for those late nights.
Ippudo
Ippudo is one of the most globally known Hakata ramen chains with locations in 13+ countries outside of Japan. Each bowl is hearty, with a rich, smooth broth, nice pork slices and perhaps the thinnest noodles I’ve had in Hakata ramen. Their “Akamaru” is my favorite due to its added spiciness, but two of the best things about Ippudo are their Hakata-style, bite-sized gyoza and all-you-can-eat flavored bean sprout sides free for the taking on the table.
http://www.ippudo.com [J]
http://www.multilingual.ippudo.com
Shin Shin
The most famous “local” ramen spot in Fukuoka city. The original location, a hole-in-the wall in the Tenjin area’s backstreets, has walls covered in signed cards and posters from Japanese celebrities. Shin Shin’s broth is just slightly lighter than some of my other favorite ramen spots but with no sacrifice in taste, and their noodles are pretty similar to Ichiran’s. They have a few more locations beside Tenjin’s with two conveniently located in Hakata station.
http://www.hakata-shinshin.com [J]
Danbo
A simple yet tasty bowl, Danbo was the first ramen to really make me think about whether or not to go to Ichiran. Originally from the Chikushino area of Fukuoka, they now have locations around Japan and abroad as well in places like Vancouver, Seattle, NYC, Australia and Vietnam. Their broth’s flavor is a tiny bit thinner than Ichiran’s but their noodles are quite similar. Each bowl has some great melt-in-your-mouth slices in it.
http://danbo.jp [J]
A couple other ramen shops that I recommend in Fukuoka are Taiho [J] and Ramen Kurume Honda [J]. Both are from the Kurume area of Fukuoka and serve some hearty bowls of ramen with fantastic slices of pork. Next time.
By no means is this a comprehensive list, there are endless good bowls of ramen in Fukuoka and everyone knows you can’t get enough. So if you have a Hakata ramen recommendation, please write it below!
Keep in touch
More travels
Fukuoka
Fukuoka city is Kyushu's biggest, and rated as amongst the best places to live in the world.
Updated Oct. 2024
Fukuoka City is the 5th largest city in Japan
It’s consistently ranked as one of the most desirable places to live in Japan
Many Japanese consider it to be a top destination for foodies
Fukuoka is one of my favorite places in all of Japan. I lived in the prefecture for 5 years, often visiting Fukuoka City, and quickly grew to love it for so many reasons. I may have a bias since it’s my “Japan home” in a sense, but I think it’s quite overlooked considering what it offers.
How to get there
Fukuoka Airport is an international airport with many flights flying into it directly. It’s also a 1.5-2.5 hour flight from Osaka and Tokyo.
Fukuoka is one of the most convenient cities I’ve been to in Japan. From the airport, the main train station, Hakata Station, is only 2 subway stops away. The second main station, Tenjin Station, is only 5 subway stops away on the city’s main Airport Line.
About Fukuoka City
Fukuoka City is one of Japan's five largest cities and is the biggest on the southern island of Kyushu. It's the capital of Fukuoka prefecture, which sits at the top of the island and spans across from its eastern to western shores.
The city is consistently ranked as one of the most desirable places to live in Japan due to reasons such as convenient access, good urban/nature balance, somewhat moderate climate, and relatively low cost of living compared to other Japanese cities. In a public survey by Fukuoka’s government, 96.2% of people answered that it is "easy to live in," and the population growth rate is the highest among major cities in Japan. [J]
It has also been ranked in the world's top 10 in Quality of Life by Monocle.
Unofficially, the image of Fukuoka that many Japanese have is that it’s a place with delicious foods, is one of the top prefectures for women, and has a cute local dialect, “Hakata-ben”.
There are 2 main downtowns in Fukuoka City: Hakata and Tenjin. Both have many businesses, shopping and places to eat, and are only 3 stops away from each other by subway. The Shinkansen and other express trains stop at Hakata Station, making it better for access around Kyushu, but Tenjin has more boutiques and more nighttime activities.
Housing in Fukuoka City
Rent in Fukuoka City is considered to be reasonable, especially when considering that it’s a major city and access to conveniences is high. The average monthly cost for a 1k studio apartment in the main Tenjin area is 62,200 JPY (USD $424) and a 1LDK single bedroom apartment is 109,200 JPY (USD $744) as of October 2024. [J]
Here’s a video of my trip to Fukuoka in 2022 where I introduce places I went:
Tenjin
Tenjin is my personal favorite part of town due to the abundance of shopping, food and it just being really walkable.
Department stores like Parco and Daimaru are centered right around Tenjin station, but if you walk a few blocks west, you'll hit an area called Daimyo. This area has a lot of smaller shops, boutiques and places to eat. The feel of it is a bit like the side streets of Tokyo's Harajuku/Omotesando area, if you've been to Tokyo before. At night, there are bars and clubs, as well as some yatai food stalls.
Nakasu
The Nakasu area is known to be the adult nightlife area, with dance clubs, hostess clubs and bars. It’s actually a really nice area with riverside walkways that are great for taking a stroll on.
It’s also home to the one of the main yatai food stall areas. Fukuoka is known for these yatai, and it’s really impressive how the chefs manage to set up every day at around 5pm and cook up delicious dishes all through the night in such a small space. It’s a very close and exciting vibe at these yatai, and there’s a lot of interaction, whether it’s with the chef or the other guests around you.
Momochi
One of the best views for photography is the Fukuoka Tower area near Momochi, a 15-20 minute walk from the Nishijin subway station.
The most famous shrine nearby is Dazaifu Tenmangu. You can get there by train from Tenjin station, and the road leading up from Dazaifu station to the shrine area is lined with shops selling Japanese confections and gifts. If you go further in from the shrine, you can check out the Kyushu National Museum, which is worth adding onto your trip as it has various special exhibits and a big glass wall that reflects the surrounding nature.
Fukuoka also has a relatively well known festival, Hakata Dontaku, that takes place on the streets in central Fukuoka city. You'll see people dressed up in traditional wear carrying and pulling big wooden structures, shouting chants and spraying water.
Shin Shin
You may have heard of Hakata ramen before, or Fukuoka-born chains like Ichiran or Ippudo, but Shin Shin is one of the most famous "local" Hakata-style ramen shops.
The interior of its original, hole-in-the-wall location is covered with signed cards and posters from Japanese celebrities.
Their pork broth is tasty without making you feel heavy after, and their noodles are on the firm side and quite thin, which are signatures of Hakata ramen.
I recommend ordering the noodles "barikata" (extra firm) because it's how many locals prefer it. You also can't go wrong with a plate of bite-sized, Hakata-style gyoza. A great choice for local ramen that’s open until the early AM.
Nagamasa
One of the best things to do when traveling Japan is going to a local izakaya to try authentic local dishes. Nagamasa is a highly rated one near Hakata Station.
Here, you can order local some of the best local dishes like motsunabe (pork offal hotpot), gomasaba (fresh mackerel sashimi in sesame sauce), yari-ika (fresh squid sashimi), basashi (horse sashimi from neighboring Kumamoto Prefecture), and a lot more.
Nagamasa, like most izakaya, has a lively atmosphere. Service is great and the food is absolutely delicious.
Keep in touch:
More travels:
Yukuhashi: Cherry Blossoms
I lived in one of Fukuoka's secret cherry blossom spots.
One of the most unknown and overlooked cherry blossom spots in Fukuoka is along the Imagawa River in Yukuhashi city.
Full disclosure: I lived right next to it for five years. I don't think I'm being biased however as friends would want to travel from all over the prefecture to have picnics here.
How to get there
Yukuhashi Station is about a 30 minute train ride (15 minutes on the Sonic Express) south from Kokura Station, and an hour ride on the Sonic Express train from Hakata Station. It's a small seaside city on the island's east coast with around 70,000 residents.
The main river, the Imagawa, is about a 15 minute walk from Yukuhashi station. Lining both sides are cherry blossom trees and under them, a walkway and space to sit down.
This is the go-to spot for locals to have BBQ's and picnics while the flowers are out, yet it doesn't get packed like the more well known "hanami" cherry blossom locations in Fukuoka.
For more about Yukuhashi, you can check out their tourism site.
I've also turned some of the photos that I've taken here into cherry blossom wallpapers for phones here.
If you didn't get your fill picnicking under these trees, there are some good food spots that I'd recommend:
Marushin
My personal favorite ramen shop in Yukuhashi and one of my favorites in all of Fukuoka. It may not be the most well known in the city, that award easily goes to the now international Kanada-ya, but it has a perfectly balanced and tasty tonkotsu pork broth that's not too heavy nor too light. Try their "Akamaru" which has a little bit of spiciness to it. Each bowl is full of toppings and all in all amazing. And guess what, they're open late!
Ishokuya Sai
A couple blocks west from Yukuhashi station is Ishokuya Sai, an izakaya popular for families and offices having small parties. They have a variety of Japanese and even western dishes, but check out their motsu nabe hot pot in the winter, wagyu yakiniku and lunch sets. The staff is also very friendly.
* This place has closed.
Keep in touch:
More travels:
Mojiko
A little Europe-inspired town at the northern tip of Kyushu.
· Mojiko is a retro area and popular destination in the Kitakyushu area of Fukuoka Prefecture
· It used to be an international trade port in the late 1800s
· Being at the tip of Kyushu island, there is a view of the main Honshu island right across the channel
Near the northern-most tip of Kyushu, in Fukuoka prefecture, is Mojiko. It overlooks the channel between Kyushu and Honshu islands, and has a clear view of Shimonoseki city. What makes the area unique is that it has a European influence, with red brick buildings amongst others.
Mojiko, with European-inspired buildings (seen towards the left).
The Kanmonkyo Bridge connecting Kyushu and Honshu.
Shimonoseki city seen from Mojiko.
The dock area is where some locals fish, and you can catch the sunset from there. There's a couple places nearby worth checking out for dinner.
Kawarasoba Takase
This is from a chain that originated across in Yamaguchi prefecture. It's soba cooked on a traditional Japanese roof tile, topped with shredded egg, beef, nori, lemon and spicy daikon radish. We split one tile between two people, and it was decently filling with some local Mojiko Retro Beer, which they serve.
Bear Fruits
A small cafe right off from the main shopping area. They're most known for their super yaki curry, a curry perfectly oven-baked, full of cheese. Bear Fruits is pretty known to Japanese visitors, so don't be surprised if you have to wait for a little while.
Keep in touch:
MORE TRAVELS:
Share:
Kagoshima
Delicious kurobuta pork at its capital in south Kyushu.
If kurobuta katsu and active volcanoes sounds like a cool trip, Kagoshima will satisfy. CNN even had it listed as one of the top 5 most overlooked cities in Asia. It's at the southern-most tip of Kyushu in southern Japan, however, so it's unfortunately missed by most tourists.
Kagoshima was the first trip that I took after moving to Japan in 2009 after hearing people recommend it. I left Kagoshima putting it up there on my list favorite places in Japan. I made sure I went again for a second time in 2013. It's a great place to check out if you're looking for a tad bit of a warmer getaway to relax in "mainland Japan."
A subway sits in the waters between Kagoshima city and Sakurajima.
Sakurajima is (well, was) an island with the active volcano. Unfortunately I wasn't able to get a good shot of it, but it's easily visible from the coast of Kagoshima city. You can see ash spewing out at the top.
To get to the volcano island, you head over by a 15-minute ferry that you catch from the Sakurajima ferry Kagoshima Port. There are buses at the port that will take you around the island. If you're not headed someplace like one of the numerous onsen on there, you can catch a bus like us that stops at some scenic spots.
Shouting statue, commemorating an all-night concert by Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi. There is a bus stop nearby.
Nearby the ferry port on the Kagoshima city side is Kagoshima Aquarium. It's a pretty nice aquarium, with dolphins being a main focus. There's an indoor dolphin show as well as a dolphin viewing in what seems to be a converted canal.
Dolphins in the canal.
If you know a little bit of Japanese history, you'll probably know about Saigo Takamori. He's one of the most famous samurai, and was the inspiration to Tom Cruise's "The Last Samurai" film.
A trip to Kagoshima wouldn't be complete if it weren't for food. If you're a pork or tonkatsu lover, Kagoshima is the city best known in Japan for kurobuta pork. That means, kurobuta katsu, flavorful Kagoshima-style tonkotsu ramen, kurobuta shabu shabu... YUM.
Kurokatsu-tei
Big statement: This is my favorite katsu that I've had in Japan. I've been here twice, to two different locations, and I can say that I've never had such perfectly breaded and fried, melt-in-your-mouth tonkatsu like I've had here. My family feels the same way. And that's no easy statement to make, there are so many good katsu spots in Japan. Even if you have to wait a while to get a seat, stick it out.
Shirokuma
Kagoshima can be a little warmer than most places in Japan, so if you're looking for some shave ice, Shirokuma would be the place to go. It's probably the most famous dessert spots in the city, and is known throughout the country. While they do serve other foods, their assorted fruits in a fluffy bowl of snow is their most popular.
Keep in touch:
More travels:
Beppu: An Onsen City
A short getaway to Kyushu's famous onsen city.
Any fan of onsen hot springs in Japan knows about Beppu. It's a small city that sits along Kyushu's east coast in Oita prefecture, near the border of Fukuoka. You'll know you've arrived when you start seeing steam rising from buildings and smelling sulfur in the air.
Beppu isn't fancy or luxurious, nor is it a city that's built like a resort area. It's meant to have the onsen be the central focus, a time to get away. Some friends and I made a few trips here while I was living in Yukuhashi, Fukuoka, to do just that.
There are places to visit in the city, too. The most famous is the 7 "Hells" - a couple of areas with different types of waters bubbling up to create a range of environments, most of which look like another world. While they're good for a quick look, there's no need to have it take up a chunk of your schedule.
Umijikoku (Sea Hell)
Chinoikejikoku (Blood Hell)
To get above the city, go to the Beppu Ropeway for a gondola ride up Mount Tsurumi.
The neighboring area also has an African safari where you have the opportunity to feed roaming animals from the inside of a caged bus. Giraffes, kangaroos and lions, along with a tiger cub petting room makes it a fun experience for all ages. Make sure to keep your hands in the cage around the lions - no Simba's around here!
Businesses in the area tend to have a little more English-capable staff compared to other cities in Kyushu due to an international university nearby. While most meals will likely be in the ryokan that you're staying at, here's one place you can check out:
Rokusei
If you could use a break from the Japanese washoku meals at the ryokans, check out Korean-style reimen here. It's a really small, hole-in-the-wall shop, but these cold noodles of their's is refreshing in the summer.
Keep in touch:
MORE TRAVELS:
Share:
Yufuin: Oita's Onsen Town
Spending a night in Oita's quaint little onsen town.
If you're looking to find a perfect little Japanese onsen (hot springs) getaway in Kyushu, Yufuin is your place. Unlike Beppu, a city, Yufuin is a small town tucked nearby some mountains and surrounded by the nature of Oita prefecture.
We stayed at Yawaragi-no-Sato Yadoya, nothing extraordinarily fancy but just right in terms of what you get for the price. It's near the main street area, yet just off it for some peace and quiet. Included along with the room was some private onsen time where you can relax in an outdoor onsen without dealing with random strangers, and a yakiniku dinner at Yadoya's Bungo Tei (see below) featuring bungogyu beef - the local Oita wagyu. Getting to spend time in an onsen alone while being surrounded by peace and quiet (versus other men!) was nothing short of relaxing. And the bungogyu beef after? Amongst the best wagyu beef I've had in Japan.
Taking a walk around Yufin town adds to the getaway experience. There's a lot of shops selling Japanese goods, local specialties, as well as desserts and homemade confectionaries.
A bridge near Lake Kinrin.
Lake Kinrin.
Bungo Tei
Some of the best meals in Japan are when wagyu beef is involved. Bungo Tei serves melt-in-your-mouth, local "bungygyu" wagyu along with a variety of Japanese dishes. Definitely check it out if you're in town.
A unique experience boating through canals in Fukuoka that date back hundreds of years.