1N in Fukuoka - where to stay and what to do?

Hello everyone.

We'll be finishing up our next trip to Japan by flying out of Fukuoka airport, and will stay in Fukuoka/Hakata the night beforehand.

I've read the relevant pages on japan-guide.com, and have done some general reading and searching.

Based on that, I think that we'll want to see the Fukuoka Art Museum and the Japanese garden - both in Ohori Park.

I also think that our 5 yr old daughter would like Robosquare, so it would be good to go there as well. (I hear that they have a Hello Kitty robot, as well as an Aibo - so to be honest I think I'm going to love it there, and may be using my daughter as an excuse ;0))

We've passed through Fukuoka some years ago, and have eaten at the yatai. That was fun, and I think our daughter would love that too.

We'll probably get there mid-morning, and will need to get to the airport early the next day (about 8am). My questions are:

- where's a good location to stay? My thoughts were that staying at Hakata station would be good for getting around the city and also for getting to the airport the next day. We'll have mainly been in fairly rural places for the rest of our trip, so it might be a good contrast to stay in a big tower with city views. Any specific hotel suggestions are very welcome.

- Do you have any other tips for alternative sightseeing destinations? Our interests are mainly around art, architecture, gardens, and food.

- Other than Hakata ramen, are there any other local foods that we should try?

- Are there any unusual restaurants that could be a good alternative to dining at the yatai? I think I've read about a restaurant in Fuluoka where you can catch your own fish and have it prepared and cooked for you, but I may be wrong and I can't find any info on it.

- I know that the yatai may be considered to be tourist-orientated, but if we want to try them, is there a particular location that you'd recommend? We went to the ones on Nakasu island on our previous visit, but I gather that there are several locations.

- It will be our last night in Japan, and we'll have a long flight back to the UK, via Seoul, so I don't mind if our daughter stays up a little bit late as it will tire her out for the flight, but I don't want her to be out too late. What sort of time do the yatai get started?

Sorry to have so many questions. If anyone can help with any of them, I'd be very grateful. Thanks a lot.

Sorry - since my post above, I've found http://www.zauo.com/howto.html the fishing restaurant.

If anyone's been there, I'd love to hear how it was. Thanks.

Where to stay depends a lot on your budget. But areas with lots of hotels are near Hakata Station, the Gion area, and near Tenjin. You can see a good collection on cheaper places as well as sightseeing info on:

http://www.thejapanfaq.com/fukpic.html

As you have a whole day, regarding what to see, I'd recommend you see the best temple in the whole area - and nearly totally unknown to the tourist guides: about 20 minutes by train from Hakata Stn is Nanzoin, which blows away many more famous places in Japan in terms of size and sheer beauty:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lT4VQFmHFyM
For food, I'd also say that trying the local cuisine is important - and in answer to your question aside from the tonkotsu ramen, mentaiko (spiced salmon roe) is a big favorite. So are other dishes like mizutaki and motsunabe, but eaten more in winter. You can see a list of places to eat on
http://fukuoka-now.com/food/archive/
but I wouldn't waste too much time in searching for a restaurant.
For art you might be interested in the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum, and Fukuoka Prefectural Art Museum. There is also the Kyushu National Museum, but that is in Dazaifu. Aside from that you might like the Hakuhaku, a museum of Hakata food and culture, which is also next to a mentaiko factory where you can do some tasting, plus the Hakata Machiya Folk Museum.
For yatai most people go to the Nakasu area, which along with the neon lights on the river make a nice scenery - but many locals go to the Nagahama area near the waterfront. Most yatai start getting set up in late afternoon and are ready to go just before dinnertime.
Lastly, regarding gardens, you might like Yusentei and Rakusuien. The former is an old villa and a bit harder to get to; the latter is next to Sumiyoshi Shrine and easy to reach.
Both are very inexpensive. The best garden though would be the Nokonoshima Island Park - quite out there and pricey but a beautiful place with a grand view over Hakata Bay:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-RmFcmhs9c
Many places you can easily reach by subway, which is comparatively expensive to other cities, so a subway day pass might help. Or if you want to add buses, look into a Fukuoka Tourist City Pass:
http://goo.gl/XFQSwe

Thanks, rsl, your suggestions are really useful.

We were planning to go to Nanzoin on another day (we're probably going to hire a car from Fukuoka about three or four days before the end of our trip and set out to see some sights in northern Kyushu. We'd see Nanzoin at that time.)

If anyone has anything else to add, it would be greatly appreciated. Especially if anyone has a recommendation for a hotel near JR Hakata (to give us a short and easy journey to the airport in the morning).

I can see that there are plenty of regular business hotels, and we're very happy to stay in any of those, but it's our last night and I just wondered whether there was anywhere in that area that was a bit special and might make for a memorable last night in Japan.

Thanks again.

Well, you give no info on your budget or expectations. But there are countless hotels in the area.
You might look at:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g298207-Fukuoka_Fukuoka_Prefecture_K...
for some ideas, or try japanican or agoda.
The Nikko is one idea, or the Hyatt. The Washington Hotel near Canal City seems to be very reasonably priced, and while far from Hakata Stn the Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk looks really inexpensive now too. If you want to splurge there is the Okura.

We stayed at the Grand Hyatt last year and liked it a lot. The hotel is connected to a fairly large shopping mall where your 5 yr old can get rid of the last bit of energy if there is any left at the end of the day. We used our Hyatt points for a free night, had a nice room and friendly service. Enjoy your trip!

Sorry not to have given a clear steer on the budget question.

We're happy to splurge on an expensive place, and would do that if it could give us big city views. It's our last night, so it would be great to go out with a bang. We'll be spending the previous week or so in mainly rural places, so bright lights and city views would be a great contrast.

We'd need to balance that with the fact that we've got to be at Fukuoka airport by about 8am the next morning. On a map, the airport looks pretty close to the city centre, and I know it's a short ride on the underground from Hakata station, so my initial thoughts were to look for hotels around there, but I'd welcome any comments about alternative locations (or possibly someone could tell me that traffic isn't a big problem and that a can ride would be quick enough from elsewhere in the city).

Sorry: that was supposed to say "cab ride" (taxi), not "can ride"

I suppose a can ride might work too ;-)

At that hour yes there is not much traffic. Solely for the view, I'd say the Hilton by the Fukuoka Tower would offer the best view - especially a room facing the south side. It's over 30 stories, so you could get a nice picture of the city. And not a bad rate either:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g298207-d549539-Reviews-Hilton...
For a hotel like that, even at 7 or 7:30AM there is a taxi ready to take you from the lobby, or at worst that could have one ready for you in a couple of minutes. It could be at the airport in 20-30 minutes tops. Or if you want something closer to the airport, that is fine too.

Thanks, Ken.

I'll check it out.

(Can riding could be the new fashion. Remember, you saw it here first ;0))