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Main roads are shown in yellow or orange (highways). Train lines are shown in green or blue (monorail), with stations shown as white dots. Grey areas are the residential/urban areas, with the red stars representing the locations of apartments. Places of interest are shown in blue.

Congratulations on being invited to Kitakyushu! Hopefully this page will help to provide a rough outline of the main aspects of city life here. But first, let's get it all out in the open by showing you the infamous entry in the Lonely Planet guide to Japan;

"Kitakyushu, literally 'North Kyushu City', is a place you simply pass through; this industrial conurbation sprawling along the north-eastern corner of the island is unlikely to be anybody's favourite Japanese city."

Admittedly this city may not be comparable to Kyoto or Tokyo in terms of tourist offerings, but it is a really great place to live. So lots of people do. About 1 million of them! Despite the large population, this city is not overwhelming like many other big cities. The majority of the city's size is taken up by residential or industrial areas, while the commercial end of things is focussed in two large areas; Kokura and Kurosaki. The city is bordered to the south by imposing mountains, dotted with scenic reservoirs. One of the mountains, Mount Sarakura, is visible from most of the city, and offers great panoramic views (see part of the night view in the photo on the Welcome page).

Places to visit
Of course no Japanese city is complete without a castle, and we've got one! Actually it's a reconstruction of the original, but it is surrounded by a small park and ornamental gardens. In the spring it's one of the best places to enjoy the cherry blossoms, and it's quite common to hear taiko drumming there. Several festivals are also held there throughout the year.

We've also got a huge amusement park, called Space World, filled with infuriatingly cutesy characters, but still a 'must-see'. If you're very lucky (or unlucky, depending on how you look at it) you might be invited to go on a school trip there. They all choose the same day to go! Space World hosts an impressive New Year's Eve party too, if you can stand the crush!

Smaller attractions include the Mojiko Retro area, which features several European-style buildings such as its stylish train station (shown left). Mountain roads offer escape from the city into rural Japan (well, fairly rural!), while temples and shrines turn up in the most unexpected places. Rumour has it there is also a beach or two tucked away somewhere in the city, but reaching them is harder than you'd think. A good time to enjoy them is slightly before or after 'beach season', which is a couple of weeks in August when all the world and his dog drop in there. By all means go then, but just make sure you have a tan beforehand!!

Next page of Kitakyushu City guidebook.....