Where to go after Fukuoka? Fortunately, visiting Japan’s main city on the island of Kyushu doesn’t mean backtracking to Tokyo when it’s time to go somewhere else.
As a rail and air hub, Fukuoka makes it easy to visit other destinations throughout Kyushu. Plus, Fukuoka International Airport (FUK) connects you to destinations not only throughout Japan, but China and Southeast Asia.
Plan your trip to Fukuoka
Tokyo isn’t always the right connection
When you travel to a different country, it’s understandable to assume that you’ll fly round-trip. Coming into Japan, most travelers think only of flying in and out of Tokyo. It’s understandable, often useful, but it’s not always the best choice.
Even if your itinerary focuses on the Golden Route of Tokyo and Kyoto, perhaps with a nod to Osaka, most travelers assume they need to go back to Tokyo, and they book a round-trip flight accordingly.
However, you’ll burn most of a day just packing up, being in transit, and heading to your pre-flight stop for the night. That’s one more day you could’ve spent enjoying Japan.
At the least, those itineraries often benefit from flying into Tokyo but flying out from Osaka.
Similar thinking comes into play when your itinerary includes Fukuoka. The city isn’t only a great destination. If your time allows, you can use Fukuoka as a jumping-off point for destinations throughout Kyushu. Or, if your travels continue, flying out of Fukuoka opens up convenient travel throughout East Asia and Southeast Asia, and not all of them are by plane.
In our experience
As part of our family of four’s multiple visits to Japan since 2013, we’ve taken advantage of FUK’s convenience for international flights. The experience highlighted to us how integral FUK can be not only for visiting other parts of Japan but also the broader region without having to backtrack to Tokyo or Osaka.
For example, we finished one three-month visit to Japan by staying a few days in Fukuoka. We didn’t leave Japan via Tokyo or Osaka, though. Instead, we had booked a flight to Taipei, Taiwan, direct from Fukuoka. The flight time? About two and a half hours, similar to flying between Portland, Oregon, and Denver, Colorado, in the USA.
Within Kyushu
Whether by rail or by air, here are a few notable Kyushu destinations you could head to after Fukuoka:
Hint: When in Fukuoka, orient yourself by your proximity to Hakata Station. It’s the area’s main rail hub for regular local trains, service to other parts of Kyushu, and the Shinkansen.
Saga
Especially known for its porcelain ceramics, Saga is just south of Fukuoka. Many visitors head to traditional towns such as Imari, and Arita is often considered the birthplace of Japanese porcelain. In Saga City, the Saga Castle History Museum is a 2001 reconstruction of the 16th-century castle.
Trains from Fukuoka’s Hakata Station can get you to Saga Station in about 40 minutes.
More about Saga
Nagasaki
Home to the Nagasaki Peace Park memorializing the 1945 atomic bombing, today’s city is so much more than this one event. Nagasaki comes to life with one of Japan’s largest Chinatowns, a penguin aquarium, a Lunar New Year Lantern Festival, and more.
A direct southwest bus from Fukuoka Airport takes about 2.5 hours to reach Nagasaki, or about 1.5 hours by train from Hakata Station.
More about Nagasaki
Beppu
So much volcanic activity surges through the earth and waters beneath Beppu, on the eastern side of Kyushu, that steam clouds rise from the ground and hillsides.
Many hotels and ryokans offer natural onsen, or hot baths, from mineral-rich waters. The multiple thermal pools of the Hells of Beppu are colorful—reminiscent of Yellowstone National Park—and many have other attractions around them, such as foot onsen, crocodiles, and a serene garden.
By train, it’s about two hours from Fukuoka, whether you take the scenic coastal route along the northeastern side of Kyushu, or you can cut inland through the hill country in around three hours.
More about Beppu
Kumamoto
Less than 45 minutes south of Hakata Station, Kumamoto is easily the most popular day trip from Fukuoka, and with two good reasons:
Most visitors come to Kumamoto for Kumamoto Castle, right in the city center. Damaged in a fierce 2016 earthquake yet still standing and under renovation, the castle is one of the best keeps in Japan. The nearby castle-style village is a delight for treats, souvenirs, and an engaging museum.
One Piece fans like us also come here for all things Straw Hats. Series creator Eiichiro Oda is from Kumamoto. In honor of his post-quake donations, the prefecture set up statues of all ten Straw Hat pirates throughout the prefecture.
Hint: While Luffy and Chopper are easily reachable by public transportation in the city center, the other statues are more rural. We’ve visited all ten. If you want to visit the full crew, we suggest renting a car and staying at least two nights in Kumamoto, breaking up your pirate statue visits over two or three days. Check out our One Piece statue guide for details and logistics.
More about Kumamoto
Kagoshima
Kyushu’s southernmost large city has one of Japan’s most dazzling settings. East of the city, the hunkering cinder cone of Sakurajima volcano steams. The volcano is so active that schoolchildren carry helmets in case of falling ash and cinders.
Depending on the day, visitors can go to the volcano. Other popular activities? Visiting the buried torii gate of Kurokami Shrine, where a 1914 quake covered the gate in ash up to its top beam. Natural geothermal energy upwellings heat many beaches, and being covered up for a therapeutic sand bath is a nice bit of volcanic self-care.
More about Kagoshima
Western Honshu
While Fukuoka is an ideal base for visiting Kyushu, a couple of notable destinations in the western part of Honshu, Japan’s main island, are more convenient from Fukuoka than from Tokyo.
Yamaguchi
While a train from Tokyo to Honshu’s westernmost city, Yamaguchi, takes over four hours, you can be there in just over half an hour when traveling from Fukuoka.
From visiting vast limestone caves to walking an undersea tunnel between Honshu and Kyushu, Yamaguchi offers another plus: the city’s design and architecture were modeled after Kyoto. Visitors find that in Yamaguchi, they can find similar culture to Kyoto, but without the Kyoto crowds.
More about Yamaguchi
Hiroshima
After just over an hour’s train ride from Fukuoka, you can visit the Peace Memorial Park, Miyajima Island’s Itsukushima Shrine (famous for the floating torii gate), Hiroshima Castle, Shukkeien Garden, and more.
More about Hiroshima
Beyond Japan: Direct connections from Fukuoka
Your travels in Japan could be one part of a larger trip. We’re finding again and again that Fukuoka isn’t just a fun place to explore or an excellent base for explorations around Kyushu and the western part of Honshu. Fukuoka’s international airport, FUK, also positions you for easy direct flights to other major destinations throughout East Asia and Southeast Asia.
Visa requirements vary, of course. US passport holders can generally get a visa on arrival in Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan, but plan ahead for Vietnam and China.
When you’re wondering where you can go directly from Fukuoka, here are some options by air—or by sea.
Busan
We’ve talked about where you can go from Fukuoka via train and plane. But there’s another option: a ferry runs from Fukuoka to Busan, South Korea. You can start a visit on the Korean peninsula right on the coast, check out a popular destination, then head to other parts of the country, including Seoul.
In fact, the fast ferry can take you from Fukuoka to Busan in less than four hours. You’ll leave from Hakata Port on the Camellia Line (a former option, the high-speed Queen Beetle, has been discontinued as of 2025):
Ferry trips on the Camellia Line take about 6 hours during the day, and offers a 12-hour overnight, leaving Fukuoka at 8pm and arriving in port in Busan around 7:30am.
Book ferry tickets on the Camellia Line
Singapore
It’s one of the region’s most dazzling countries, and Singapore’s Changi Airport is one of the best in the world. Singapore is both a destination and a transition point. From Japan, visiting Singapore brings similar cleanliness, infrastructure, safety, and drinkable tap water. The diverse city-nation is also home to a mix of cultures, including South Indian, Chinese Pacific, and Malay.
Bangkok
Thailand’s capital is your gateway to one of the world’s most fun destinations—and also one of the tastiest. We enjoy Bangkok as a family, whether that’s heading to night markets and major sights such as the Grand Palace, or enjoying the cool night air on a dinner cruise along the Chao Pra Ya river.
From Bangkok, you can easily head north to Chiang Mai, south to Hua Hin and other beach towns, or to Thailand’s lovely islands. Bangkok’s two airports connect you with other parts of the world. Odds are if you want to visit Cambodia (such as going to Angkor), you’re probably flying through Bangkok.
Hanoi
The political and cultural capital at the northern end of the country is a lively start to your time in Vietnam. You can also catch tours to Ha Long Bay, trains to the hill country to explore massive caves (such as Phong Nag), and central coastal cities such as Hue, Da Nang and Hoi An.
Personally, Da Nang is our current favorite destination in Vietnam. If Fukuoka ever adds a direct flight to Da Nang, we can’t wait to use it.
Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam’s business capital is in the hot and humid south. The new Long Thanh International Airport (LTH) is expected to increase air traffic capacity in this region, making it easier for international visitors to check out Ho Chi Minh and more of the southern parts of the country.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
While only a few hours north of Singapore, KL is its own destination and hub. Depending on your travel plans and available airfares, odds are you’re flying to or through Bangkok, Singapore, or KL. While the major airport is about an hour outside the city center, it’s easy to snag a rideshare or take the train into town.
We enjoy the food, cultural diversity, and up-and-coming feel of KL. Plus, you can easily pop out to destinations such as Penang in the north and Johor Bahru (home of LEGOLAND Malaysia) in the south, right across from Singapore.
Manila
Flights from Fukuoka to the capital of the Philippines take about four hours. While that’s not insignificant, it’s still less time than it takes to fly coast to coast across the USA. Visitors can check out the city, though a lot of folks prefer to jaunt off to coastal destinations such as Cebu, Luzon, or Boracay.
Hong Kong
From Disney to dim sum, this powerhouse city continues to bring together cultures from around the world. My 12-hour stopover here in 2003 still sticks in my memory as full of water, a mix of Chinese and British cultures, and a city that thrums with energy and commerce on a level akin to New York and Tokyo. Hong Kong attracts visitors from around the world for its mix of skyscrapers and temples, islands and hillside nature trails.
Taipei
Flying to Taiwan’s capital from Fukuoka takes less than three hours, but it transports you to the sounds, bustle, culture, and delicious, affordable, ubiquitous food of Taipei. Like Japan, Taiwan offers excellent public transportation, a safe environment, and an opportunity to get to know a fascinating culture.
Shanghai
Mainland China’s bustling east coast city is just about straight due west of Fukuoka. It’s a handy entry point to China, too, combining traditional and modern culture. Gardens, electric taxis, endless food, and even a Disney park: sign us up.
Hint: As much as we love Japan’s public transportation, it’s worth considering a taxi when heading to the airport. FUK’s convenient location means you can reach the airport from most parts of the city for a decent price and travel time. Our taxi ride for our family of four to the airport cost around US$20 in 2025.
Fukuoka: destination, home base, and jumping-off point
If you’ve only thought of Fukuoka as a city with a name that’s hard to pronounce, now’s the time to consider it for what the city really is:
Kyushu’s largest city is fun to visit, a gateway to other urban and rural destinations throughout the island, and a jumping-off point to a range of countries via plane or ferry.
Our time in Fukuoka has us wanting to go back for more. When your Japan travels take you far from Tokyo, it’s good to know that you don’t have to double-back. From Fukuoka, you can head home, or onward to your next adventure.
