Home to one of NILS’ two campuses, Ogori is located about 26 km (16 miles) inland from Fukuoka City. While there are 27 other cities throughout Fukuoka prefecture to explore, Ogori is good place to start a Fukuoka sightseeing adventure. The top attractions in Ogori are the Kyushu Historical Museum, the city’s sports park, and the Nyoirinji Temple with its many, many frogs. You will definitely have fun at Marche Ogoori which is a complex of small curio and food shops that are both inexpensive and interesting.
Once your adventure ends in Ogori, there are many great places to explore outside of Fukuoka City, so plan a day trip to nearby Kitakyushu, Chikuho, and Chikugo with our suggested attractions.
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Stroll across Riverwalk Kitakyushu
About 62 km (37 miles) away from Ogori City is the coastal city of Kitakyushyu. By train, it’s about an hour and 30 minutes away and offers a wonderful array of places to enjoy, such as the Riverwalk Kitakyushu which is the city’s prestigious modern shopping center and multi-purpose complex. It has a good view of the Murasaki River, Katsuyama Park, and Kokura Castle with many open spaces and is divided into five areas that are color-coded not only for convenience but to represent the many parts of Japan like land and days of harvest.
Riverwalk Kitakyushyu has cinemas, museums, American brand coffee shops like Starbucks, shops and art galleries. However, the best attraction for most visitors is the river walk with its bridges, sculptures, kite flying, and giant windmill.
Summer is a good time to visit Kitakyushu because of the summer festivals like Kokura Gion (parade floats), Kurosaki Gion (street floats), Wakamatsu Minato Festival, and Tobata Gion (tiered floats with flags and lanterns) which all happen within the month of July. The Green Tea Flea Market is held every month except August and December and is a shopper’s adventure.
Other interesting places to visit are the Kawachi Fujien Gardens, Mt. Sarakura, Hiraodai, Kokura Castle, Space World, and dozens of parks and museums.
Take a Spin around Chikuho Town
In the eastern side of Fukuoka is Chikuho, which was originally a town of Fukuoka but has since been merged with other towns to expand the city of Iizuka. Fukuoka tourism in this part of the prefecture includes the Kaho Gekijo Theater, the Japan Spinning Top Museum, the historical Old Ito Denemon House, the Sun Village, and the sweet confectionary town of Chikuho in Iizuka where the wonderful story of the Hiyoko sweet candy began over 100 years ago.
Take a Dip in Chikugo City
Chikugo used to be a province but is now a part of Fukuoka prefecture with some interesting places to visit like the Koibotaru facility which is a park with a hot springs museum, free footbath, an affordable hot public bath area, and a Bussan Museum which features traditional and modern work of the prefecture. Another place to visit is the Funagoya Onsen village with its quiet, crowd-free, highly carbonated hot springs and mineral springs near the Yabe River.
Other places in Chikugo City to add to your sightseeing itinerary are Koiki Shrine and Kyushu Geibunkan Museum, which blends nature with culture and design. It is a popular place to go if you are an artist, enjoy photography, or want to experience the true sense of Japanese serenity.
For other Fukuoka sightseeing tips check out our blog page here.
