Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [537]
Dark Room (725-2989; www.thedarkroom.biz; 8th fl, Tenjin Bacchus-kan, 3-4-15 Tenjin; 6pm-2am) Dark, rocky and loud, this is a cool urban rock-oasis with a killer sound system, pool table, foosball, friendly dudes behind the bar and a spiral staircase leading to a fun, summer-only rooftop patio.
Voodoo Lounge (732-4662; 3rd fl, Tenjin Centre Bldg, Tenjin; 9pm-3am) Chilled-out and spacious, Voodoo Lounge is known for quality drinks and live bands or DJs most nights.
Sam & Dave (713-2223; www.samanddave.jp; 3rd fl, West Side Bldg, Tenjin Nishidōri) Like its sister bars around Japan, Sam & Dave’s vacillates between being somewhere fun to shake your ass, and just another boozy big-beat meat-market nightclub. Hope for a good crowd and you could be lucky, whatever you fancy.
FUBAR (722-3006; 4th fl, Okabi Bldg II, 3-6-12 Tenjin, Chūō-ku) More about the music and less of a pick-up joint, this compact club next to Family Mart on Oyafuko-dōri grooves till the wee hours.
KABUKI
Hakata-za (263-5858; www.hakataza.co.jp, in Japanese; Riverain Centre Bldg, 3-1 Shimokawabata-machi; admission ¥5000-18,600; performance times vary) Fans of classical kabuki will swoon over this 1500-seat state-of-the-art theatre, one of Japan’s finest, located at Hakata Riverain, above Nakasu-Kawabata subway station.
Shopping
Clay Hakata ningyō (Hakata dolls) depicting women, children, samurai and geisha are a popular Fukuoka craft. Hakata obi (silk sashes worn with kimonos) are another speciality. Try the Mitsukoshi or Daimaru department stores in Tenjin.
Daisou (4th fl, Fukuoka Kōtsū Centre Bldg; 10am-10pm) For last-minute bargain gift shopping, head for this sprawling ¥100 (and upwards) shop next to JR Hakata Station (Hakata-guchi).
Shopping in Tenjin’s high-rises and underground labyrinths is a popular pastime for many. Packed along a three-block section of Watanabe-dōri, Tenjin Core (721-7755), Mitsukoshi (724-3111), Daimaru (712-8181), Solaria Plaza (733-7004), subterranean Tenjin Chikagai (721-8436), mina tenjin (713-3711) and IMS building (733-2001) are all favourites.
Getting There & Away
AIR
Fukuoka is an international hub into Asia. Domestic routes include Tokyo (¥36,700, 1½ hours, from Haneda airport/Narita International Airport 45/four flights daily), Osaka (¥21,900, one hour, six flights daily) and Okinawa (Naha, from ¥27,500, 1½ hours, 12 flights daily). Both ANA and JAL have offices here.
Japan’s only independent cut-rate carrier, Skymark (www.skymark.co.jp/en; 736-3131, in Tokyo 03-3433-7026) flies to Tokyo’s Haneda airport (from ¥12,000, 10 flights daily).
BOAT
Ferry services from Hakata connect to Okinawa and other islands off Kyūshū. An international high-speed hydrofoil service called Beetle (in Japan 092-281-2315, in Korea 051-465-6111; www.jrbeetle.co.jp/english) connects Fukuoka with Busan in Korea (¥13,000, three hours, four daily). The Camellia line (in Japan 092-262-2323, in Korea 051-466-7799; www.camellia-line.co.jp, in Japanese & Korean) has a regular ferry service from Fukuoka to Busan (¥9000, six hours, daily at noon). In Fukuoka, the Beetle and the Camellia depart from Hakata Port Ferry Terminal via bus 11, 19 or 50 from JR Hakata Station (¥220), or bus 80 from Tenjin (Solaria Stage-mae; ¥180). From Busan, both the Beetle (Won 9000, three hours, four daily) and the Camellia (Won 80,000, 7¾ hours, overnight) depart from the International Terminal, approximately 200m from Jungang-dong subway station.
BUS
Long-distance buses (English information 733-3333) depart from the Fukuoka Kōtsū Centre Building next to JR Hakata Station (Hakata-gate) and also from the Tenjin bus centre. Destinations include Tokyo (¥15,000, 14½ hours), Osaka (from ¥7000, 9½ hours), Nagoya (¥10,500, 11 hours) and many towns in Kyūshū. There’s an excellent website (www.rakubus.jp/english).
TRAIN
JR Hakata Station (English