Itinerary in Kyushu (Japan) from north to west

Departure imminent on 10/27. The trip will be a full 18 days. I still have a few questions about transportation for certain legs:

Day 1: Arrival in Fukuoka in the evening at 7:30 PM

Day 2: Fukuoka city

Day 3: Ukiha (car or train?)

Day 4: Itoshima

Day 5: 11/01/2024: Okawa, Omuta (forge), and Yanagawa for the Yanagawa Hakushu Matsuri. A bit ambitious for a single day?

Day 6: Arita / Owakachiyama / rice fields in the evening: Is it better to go from Fukuoka to Arita by car or train?

Day 7: Sasebo + Kujukushima Pearl + fireworks show Day 8: Karatsu (Yobuko market + cave + cape) + Matsuri Kanchi Day 9: Kashima + garden + Tara Day 10: Higashi Sonogi, overnight in Nagasaki. Is it better to return the car in Arita or Nagasaki? Day 11: Nagasaki Day 12: Nagasaki, overnight in Fukuoka, so departure by train from Nagasaki Day 13: Munakata and Oshima, and in the evening, Hanabi Kama

Day 14: Mount Hiko, Toho, Soeda. Is there a pottery village? With or without hands-on experience?

Day 15: Yame (Hoshino tea visit) and Kurume Masure workshop

Days 16, 17, 18, 19: Fukuoka city and maybe Nokonoshima or Kitakyushu

Any suggestions? Does this seem balanced?

Thanks and have a great day

Hi there, here are a few comments:

Day 3 Ukiha (car or train?)

I’d lean more toward the car if possible.

Day 5: 01/11/2024: Okawa, Omuta (forge), and Yanagawa for the Yanagawa Hakushu Festival. A bit ambitious for a single day?

No, it’s fine. There isn’t much to see in Okawa anyway.

Day 6: Arita / Owakachiyama / evening rice terraces: Is it better to go from Fukuoka to Arita by car or train?

It’s very doable by train. Don’t forget to visit the porcelain shrine in Arita—the train passes right by it. The rice terraces aren’t worth it this season. The harvest is already over; they’re just plots of land now.

Day 8: Karatsu (Yobuko Market + cave + cape) + Matsuri Kanchi Day 9: Kashima + garden + Tara

That’ll be right during the hot-air balloon festival. If you’re early risers (arrive around 6 AM) and the typhoon spares us, it’s worth the trip.

Day 10: Higashi Sonogi, overnight in Nagasaki—but is it better to return the car in Arita or Nagasaki?

I don’t know how much the drop-off fees will be, but if they’re similar to the train cost between the two cities, it’d be best to return it in Nagasaki.

Day 14: Mount Hiko, Toho, Soeda. Is there a pottery village? With or without hands-on experience?

Toho is a pottery village. You can visit about 50 workshops there.

And at the end of this message, I see the trip has already started. My comments won’t be relevant anymore. Have a great trip, and watch out for the typhoon hitting central Kyushu this weekend.

Hi Béné,

Thanks for your feedback. I’m actually in Fukuoka right now, but some of your comments are still relevant since today was only my 2nd day here.

In the end, we’re going to return the car in Fukuoka, so no drop-off fees.

I have a few more questions.

For Fukuoka city: I’m debating whether to spend 4 or 5 full days dedicated to the city. Besides Old Hakata, Ohori Park, the tower, Canal City, Nakasu, and the Aburayama Yatai Observatory, do you have any suggestions for neighborhoods with a quiet vibe or parks?

For the second part of my stay in Fukuoka (split into two segments), I’m struggling to find a hotel/apartment under 130–150 € on the usual sites like Booking.com, etc. For 8 nights, preferably with parking. Is there a Japanese site where I can find accommodations not listed on the mainstream platforms? Are these the going rates?

I saw there’s a fireworks display on November 8th in the northwest, in Kama, I think. Do you know about it? If so, is it necessary to arrive super early to park, or not?

On another forum, I mentioned hydrogen water, and you gave me the Japanese word *suisosui* and said you’d seen it in a drugstore. I’ve been to 4 drugstores—3 in Fukuoka and 1 in the Itoshima countryside—and while everyone seems to know what it is, I keep getting told they don’t have it or that it’s only available online. Do you remember which drugstore you saw it in, just in case?

Any restaurant recommendations for a really good *nabe* and one or two addresses for a sushi master?

I think I saw something about a typhoon in the weather forecast, but I didn’t quite understand. I’ll check online.

Thanks in advance.

Regarding the typhoon, I see that it's the west coast of Kyushu that's most affected—Kagoshima, Nagasaki, and Saga? What's the weather usually like after a typhoon?

I'm wondering if it's worth changing my itinerary to avoid the risk of bad weather. I was planning to spend a week in Saga Prefecture and Nagasaki, but I could consider heading to the east side instead, toward Beppu and Mount Aso.

Thanks

Regarding the typhoon, I see that it’s the west coast of Kyushu that’s most affected—Kagoshima, Nagasaki, and Saga?

It’ll cross Kyushu from west to east, so the whole island will be hit, but it’ll probably lose strength as it moves inland. In Fukuoka, they’re forecasting heavy rainfall Saturday morning (30 mm per hour).

What’s the weather usually like after a typhoon?

Beautiful with a few gusts of wind.

I’m wondering if it’s worth changing my route to avoid the risk of bad weather. I’d planned to spend a week in Saga Prefecture and Nagasaki, but I could head to the east side toward Beppu and Mount Aso instead.

The main thing is to be in a city on Saturday and plan something to do in your hotel room.

For Fukuoka city: we're debating whether to spend 4 or 5 days entirely in the city. Beyond old Hakata, Ohori Park, the tower, Canal City, Nakasu, and the Aburayama Yatai observatory, do you have any suggestions for neighborhoods with a quiet vibe or parks?

Why not check out Nokonoshima, Yayoi no Kaze Park, and head over to Iimori Shrine, Shikanoshima Island, or Uminonakamichi Seaside Park.

I saw there's a fireworks display on November 8th in the northwest at Kama, I think. Do you know about it? If so, is it necessary to arrive very early to park or not?

It's on November 9th this year. I don’t think you need to arrive super early—it’s not a huge fireworks display.

Do you remember the drugstore where you saw it, so you could give me the address just in case?

That was a while ago, sorry!

Any restaurant recommendations for amazing nabe and one or two sushi master addresses?

Terusushi for sushi Hanamidori for mizutaki nabe Both places are in Fukuoka.

Regarding the typhoon, I see that the west coast of Kyushu is the most affected—Kagoshima, Nagasaki, and Saga?

It’ll cross Kyushu from west to east, so the whole island will be hit, but it’ll probably lose intensity once it moves inland. In Fukuoka, they’re forecasting heavy rainfall Saturday morning (30mm per hour).

What’s the weather usually like after a typhoon?

Beautiful with a few gusts of wind.

I’m wondering if I should adjust my itinerary to avoid the risk of bad weather. I’d planned to spend a week in Saga Prefecture and Nagasaki, but I could consider heading to the east side toward Beppu and Mount Aso instead.

The main thing is to be in a city on Saturday and plan something to do in your hotel room.

Saturday the 2nd is exactly when we’re supposed to drive from Fukuoka to Arita. Will we be able to drive?

Good news about the post-typhoon weather.

Thanks for the answers.

For Fukuoka city: we're debating whether to spend 4 or 5 full days there. Besides old Hakata, Ohori Park, the tower, Canal City, Nakasu, and the Aburayama Yatai observatory, do you have any suggestions for neighborhoods with a quiet vibe or parks?

Why not check out Nokonoshima, Yayoi no Kaze Park, and go as far as Iimori Shrine, Shikanoshima Island, and Uminonakamichi Seaside Park?

Okay, great for those ideas. I had actually forgotten to mention the two islands.

I saw there’s a fireworks display on November 8th in the northwest in Kama, I think. Do you know about it? If so, is it necessary to arrive really early to park or not?

It’s on November 9th this year. I don’t think you need to arrive super early—it’s not a huge fireworks display.

Do you remember the drugstore where you saw it, so you could give me the address just in case?

That was a while ago, sorry.

No worries. Thanks.

Can you recommend a restaurant for really good nabe and one or two addresses for a sushi master?

Terusushi for sushi Hanamidori for mizutaki nabe Both places are in Fukuoka.

For the restaurants, is a reservation required?

Thanks and have a great day.

Saturday the 2nd is exactly the day we’re supposed to drive from Fukuoka to Arita. Will we be able to drive?

Can’t tell yet. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow for fresh updates. The peak is expected between 3 and 10 AM, so it’s best to leave around noon.

For restaurants, is booking required?

No, but it might be a good idea to do it.

Okay, thanks for the reply.

We tried the Hanamidori restaurant tonight for motsu nabe—it was really good.

I have another question about suisosui, hydrogen water. We tried another drugstore, but again, no luck. However, we were told it’s sold in Lawson Natural stores. Are there any in Fukuoka? I’ve only seen them in Tokyo or Yokohama. If they don’t exist in Kyushu, is there an equivalent chain?

Is it possible to place an Amazon order from a kiosk in a konbini?

Have a good evening

It was more like a mizutaki, a very mild chicken and vegetable nabe.

I don’t think there are any Natural Lawson stores within Fukuoka city, but there seem to be some in Itoshima, Asakura, Koga, Ōkawa, Ōnojō, etc.

It was more like a mizutaki, a very mild chicken and vegetable nabe.

I don’t think there are any Natural Lawson stores within Fukuoka city, but there seem to be some in Itoshima, Asakura, Koga, Ōkawa, Ōnojō, etc.

It was definitely motsunabe with beef tripe. A delight! 😊

It was indeed motsunabe with beef tripe. A delight!

Weird, because Hanamidori doesn’t serve motsunabe.

Unless I went to the wrong restaurant or ordered the wrong dish, but there was no chicken in the broth?