Best Things To Do in Fukuoka-shi, Japan

Are you looking for what to do in Fukuoka-shi?

PLACES TO SEE

Fukuoka is unbelievably urban, with two city centers (Hakata and Tenjin) despite having quite a rich feudal part. Most of the feudal heritage was torn down in the Meiji era in the 19th century. Heritage-wise, all that’s really preserved are innumerable shrines with deep significance to the city’s and Japan’s history. Most of the best ones are in the Gion area.

The city really appreciates its green spaces. It has a plethora of parks, the crowning jewel of which is Ohori, closely followed by Maizuru and Nishi. All of these are really beautiful in springtime, during cherry blossom season. The beaches along the harbourside are fun, but not spectacular. There are a couple of attractive islands offshore that you can access by ferry.

There’s a lot of shopping to do. A good percentage of city’s main attractions are incredible shopping areas, malls and arcades. Nightlife is good, but there’s no one single bar or pub or club that is objectively great.

If there’s anything at all in the things to do that really sets Fukuoka apart, it’s the food. The city’s cuisine is phenomenal, and if a traveller happened to arrange their itinerary around the best way to eat their way through the city, they’d likely have an incredible experience.

Below we have a list of things to do in Fukuoka-shi and the places where you want to spend the best moments of your trip. At the same time, the city offers you the best neighborhoods to explore and new foods to try.

This list should help you in deciding and prioritizing what you should plan on your Fukuoka-shi getaway. Find a mix of must-see tourist spots, underrated local hangouts, and maybe even a few new experiences you can try out.

Make the most of your trip to Fukuoka-shi with confidence.

Tourist Attractions in Fukuoka-shi

Here is the list of things to do in Fukuoka-shi and tourist attractions in city.

  1. Ohori Park

    4.4 (510 Votes)
    Ohori Park

    Garden, Park, Walking Area, Lake

    When a city is as urbanised as Fukuoka is, lush green spaces are a welcome and rare retreat. This makes the landscaped fields of Ohori Park the city's most precious attraction. Beautiful and welcoming in every season, the tranquil park is built around the lake-moat of the old Fukuoka Castle, the remnants of which are on the grounds. There's a lot to do. Visit the Art Museum there. The Japanese ...Read more
  2. Tenjin Underground Shopping Center

    Restaurant, Entertainment, Mall, Shopping Center

    Running under Watanabe street, this is the most popular shopping mall in the city. The 150 shops and a handful of restaurants are arranged around a cobblestoned street with soft, cool lighting. It's also famous for being well connected - twenty nearby buildings can be accessed from here, as well as two major subway stations (Tenjin and Tenjinminami). Most of the shops are fashion stores, with t...Read more
  3. Kushida Shrine
    This shrine, dedicated to the goddess Amaterasu, is the city's oldest. It was built in 757. Locals are much more enamored with it than tourists, as it is thought to be the guardian temple of the city. The first item of interest, after you pass the elegant red torii gates, is the ancient gingko tree in the yard, said to be one thousand years old. Surround it are monument stones, including the Et...Read more
  4. Fukuoka Tower

    4 (383 Votes)
    Fukuoka Tower

    Landmark, View Point, Tower, Observation Deck

    The 234-metre tower is the tallest seaside tower in Japan.  The 8000 half-mirrors that cover the tower gave it the name of 'Mirror-Sail'. Visitors actually have three different observation decks from which to take in the views - at 116 metres, a cafe-lounge at 120 metres, and another deck at 123 metres. Inside, there's also a lover's area, where a couple can purchase a lock to be set on to...Read more
  5. Nakasu

    Food And Drinks, Entertainment, Neighborhoods

    Leave the kids behind when visiting this entertainment district. Located on an island on the Naka River, and founded as a recreational area for local samurai and merchants a few centuries ago, the neighborhood has now become the city's most popular nightspot. It's easy to know when you've arrived - the whole place is lit up by vivid neon lights. Now, there are two reasons to come here.  Th...Read more
  6. Nokonoshima Island

    4 (120 Votes)
    Nokonoshima Island

    Island, Nature

    Out in the middle of the Hakata Bay is the city of Fukuoka's second most favourite natural space - the Nokonoshima Island. The main attraction on the island is the park in the hills, a beautiful area that is bright with flowering blooms throughout the year - cherry blossoms, poppies, field mustard, sunflowers, bright red scarlet sage, cosmos and daffodils - and that's just to name a few. There ...Read more
  7. Tochoji

    4.2 (337 Votes)
    Tochoji

    Religious Site, Temple

    Though the building you see today is a modern granite construct, the original temple in this location was built in the early 9th century. It is dedicated to the monk Kukai, an important figure in the propagation of Tantrik Buddhism in Japan, who is interred here. The temple's main hall, gate and inner walls surround a large pond in the central courtyard. There are two major statues here. One is...Read more
  8. Uminonakamichi Seaside Park

    Garden, Theme Park, Walking Area

    This theme park is great, if a little strange. It's so large at 540 hectares, that half the times it feels totally deserted. The size also makes walking from one attraction to the other highly impractical, so rent a bicycle or take the train. That said, there's plenty of fun to be had. The Flower Museum and Rose Garden have blooms throughout the year. There's a small zoo with about 40 species o...Read more
  9. Marine World Umino-nakamichi

    Aquarium

    Some quick facts about this aquarium that focuses on the marine life in the warm waters of Tsushima.70 tanks, with three massive ones from 720 to 2000 cubic metres of water. The smallest of the large tanks is to house dolphins, the middle one for sharks, and the largest for the dolphin shows. There are 150 sharks in the shark tank, which covers about 10000 fish in 80 species. If you're sixteen,...Read more
  10. Maizuru Park And Fukuoka Castle Remains

    Park

    During the Edo Period, this park was part of the grounds of the Fukuoka Castle, of which only a few scattered ruins remain, walls and turrets, and the remnant of the castle moat has become the lake of the neighboring Ohori Park. The castle was torn down during the Meiji Restoration in the 19th century, during a time of fervent rejection of Japan's feudal past. The park itself is now a lovely ar...Read more
  11. Hakozaki Shrine

    4.3 (230 Votes)
    Hakozaki Shrine

    Religious Site

    The shrine, dedicated to the kami Hachiman and also the Emperor Ojin and Empress Jingu, is considered to be a national cultural property. The first Prime in the location was built in 923; The structure you see today dates from the late 16th and early 17th century. It is famous for being the place where defeater of the Russian Navy, Admiral Heihachiro Togo, prayed. Two festivals are annually cel...Read more
  12. Fukuoka City Museum

    4.2 (160 Votes)
    Fukuoka City Museum

    Museum

    This is quite likely the best place to first visit during our trip of the city. The museum tells the history of the city in 11 separate galleries - these are the permanent exhibitions rooms, which mostly focus on trade and cultural relationships between the city and foreign nations. The most important relic in the permanent exhibits are the Gold Seal, given to Japan by the Han Emperor of China ...Read more
  13. Hakata Hankyu

    4 (208 Votes)
    Hakata Hankyu

    Cafe, Mall, Shopping Center

    Cosmetics, apparel for both men and women, a supermarket, an excellent cafe, a delicious food hall - these are all packed into one location at this shopping mall. The mall is connected to the Hakata Station. Foreigners ought to remember that at some stores they can availe a 5% discount by showing their passports. Some of the shopping here is duty free, so ask at the information desk about the d...Read more
  14. Sumiyoshi Shrine

    4.2 (238 Votes)
    Sumiyoshi Shrine

    Religious Site

    During ancient times, those hoping to travel by sea to Japan and China would sometimes take a pilgrimage first, to the three main Sumiyoshi shrines around Japan. This was the last shrine of the pilgrimage. It also happiness to be dedicated to the spirit of poetry. So not only is this most spiritually important, the shrine you see today is actually a restored version from 1623. The architectural...Read more
  15. Nishijin Shopping Street

    Street Market

    Going to the mall is still relatively new in Japan. Before sleek shopping complexes were a things, people in Fukuoka went to shopping streets like this one. You may want to visit it before it dies out. The economy of the street can't hold up against competition from the internet and the malls, even though once upon a time, such streets used to be neighborhood landmarks, supplying people with go...Read more