- Nokonoshima is a small island located
in Hakata Bay, the closest island to Fukuoka City.
Just under four square kilometers in size.
It has a population of just over 700 people.
If you love the feeling of warm ocean breeze in your hair,
eating fresh sea food,
exploring small towns
or spending time in a National Park,
Nokonoshima Island is one of the best places
to spend a free day in Fukuoka City.
Hey guys, how's it going?
Today it is very, very beautiful outside
and Tatsu and I
are at the Meinohama Passenger Ferry Terminal.
It's those words.
I'm not sure if it's in the right order,
but something like that.
We are just getting ready to hop on a ferry
over to Noko Island.
Noko Island, or Nokonoshima, is a very, very beautiful
little island.
It is one of the easiest islands to get to
from Fukuoka City if you're looking for a day trip,
or a way to spend a beautiful, sunny day in Fukuoka City.
We're gonna grab some lunch, go check out the park,
and I'll show you how to get there, and how to get back.
Hopefully, by the time you come and visit Fukuoka yourself,
you'll have the confidence to make this trip for yourself.
- Round trip tickets to Nokonoshima cost
460 yen, and can be easily be purchased
at the ticketing machine.
Don't worry if you can't speak Japanese the machine
offers written translations in English, Chinese, and Korean.
Just be careful you don't misplace your return ticket
on the way back.
The ferry between the island and the main land runs
once every hour, but if you happen to miss it,
you can hire a water taxi to send you to the island
for only 500 yen, or 5 dollars instead.
- See right in front of those small islands over there.
We are going to head to the closest one over there.
By the ferry, it takes 10 minutes, I think.
Yeah, that's it, good bye!
- So, the ferry between Meinohama Port and Noko Island
only takes about ten minutes,
but on a perfect day, like today,
where it's really warm outside,
and the sun is shining, and the wind feels so nice.
Once you've set foot on the island, you can take a bus
to the Island Park, or you can explore the island on foot,
stopping at one of the local cafe's and restaurants
to get a feel for the local culture
because most of the shops close for business by 5 pm,
I recommend stopping for food first before going out
and doing your exploring.
Because many of the residents on the island work
in the fishing industry, seafood is abundant on Nokonoshima.
This restaurant, Zakko, is famous for their fresh sashimi
set lunches and their fresh sashimi rice bowls.
The menu at Zakko is hand written everyday
based on what's in stock, and popular items sell out
very quickly.
When you're done exploring the harbor, hop on a bus,
and head to Nokonoshima Island Park for some spectacular
scenic views of the city.
So, the bus to Nokonoshima Island Park costs about 230 yen,
one-way, and takes about 13 to 15 minutes.
It is a three kilometer island,
so, you might want to actually just pay to catch the bus,
but if you miss the bus, you could take a taxi as well.
Nokonoshima Island Park is the last stop on the bus route,
so, don't worry, your stop will be hard to miss.
The cost to enter the park is 1,200 yen.
It is a fairly large park, but it closes at 5:30 pm,
so, you have to make sure that you allow yourself
plenty of time to explore it.
Wow, this is as clear as I have ever seen it.
Honestly,
how photogenic,
a little island framed by two trees.
Everything smells amazing here.
Snap dragons, do you love these flowers?
Welcome to Nokonoshima Island Park.
Check the website before visiting to find which flowers
are in bloom in each season,
and don't forget to bring a camera.
Not only is this a popular date spot, but it's also
really relaxing getaway from the busy city life.
You're so strong!
As you walk down here, we've got
an old-fashioned Japanese snack shop.
Yeah, this shop specialized in old show-off 70's, 80's
snacks, memorabilia.
I remember these.
These were the styrofoam,
build-your-own airplane glider things.
Tatsu, did you ever use these?
Do you know what this is?
You don't?
I'm so old!
What'd you find?
- I think it's a very primitive, the first version of drone
known as a dramon's tool.
- How does it work?
- You have to.
- There's surprisingly quite a lot of things to see
inside Nokonoshima Island Park,
and a small assortment of shops located within it
do a great job at preserving
older traditional Japanese feel.
Wow!
So, this field, the main field, the flowers actually change
depending on the season, so right now it is Marigold season,
which means we've got beautiful rows of orange and yellow,
but depending on the month, it could be completely
different colors, it could be completely different plants,
completely different flowers.
The way this is shot it looks like an advertisement
for Nokonoshima salty lemon.
How you choose to enjoy Nokonoshima Island Park
is completely up to you?
You can rent a cottage inside the park
and spend the night and even rent barbecue sets
so you can have your own camping cook-out.
The park also has plenty of play facilities
for your children, making it a fun destination for all ages.
Like a new born baby deer.
You can do it!
Hi!
Wow!
Alright, so now, it is just past 5 pm, and the park
is closed.
We're waiting for the last bus.
The last bus leaves Nokonoshima Island Park at 5:28 pm.
That's the last bus, so, if you do come here, make sure
you don't miss that bus otherwise you're paying for a taxi.
Yeah, I would love to come back here around the afternoon,
and do a barbecue party with friends.
Wouldn't that be fun?
Like a barbecue party, and everyone could come
yaki their niku, and we could play in the flowers,
and take pictures, hang out, and just enjoy the scenery.
Look at the ocean, it would be perfect.
One thing we sort of realized is that the last bus
is almost always crowded, so if you want a seat,
make sure you line up a little bit earlier than later.
Although most of the island closes to the public
around 5 or 6 pm, the last ferry from the island
isn't until around 10 o'clock at night.
If the weather is in your favor, you can stay on the island
long enough to watch the sunset,
or even catch a beautiful night view of Fukuoka City.
It's up to you.
We're grabbing the 6 o'clock ferry
back to the main land.
How you feelin'?
It was warm, and it's actually a lot more exercise
than you would think.
We did a lot of walking.
(foreign language)
- Please be brave
- Yeah.
- to go outside and try to explore whatever you can find
in Fukuoka.
- Yeah, there's lots of cool stuff to do in Fukuoka.
Come check out Nokonoshima. Come check out Fukuoka.
Come be our friend, be our neighbor.
Alright, good-bye.
This video was funded by our supporters on Patreon
who are helping us create informative videos
about Southern Japan.
Check the link in the description if you're interested
in becoming part of our team.
As always, guys, thank you so much for watching,
and if you like this video, if you want to see more
of this type of video, please subscribe to our channel,
leave us a comment, give us a thumbs up,
and just let us know you're here,
let us know you're watching, and that this is the kind
of thing you're interested in.
Alright, I hope you're having a nice day,
and I'll talk to you again soon.
Bye!