Most of the fun spots in Fukuoka Prefecture are on the outer islands, and Nokonoshima is one of them. From Hakata, take the subway to Chikuzen-Maebaru Station, then transfer to a bus to the ferry terminal. It’s a 30-minute walk if you choose to go on foot.
There’s no manned ticket counter at the terminal. Buy your round-trip ferry tickets from the vending machine—round trip is 460 yen, and the ferry ride takes just about 10 minutes.
Don’t linger too long at the terminal after disembarking, as the island buses run according to the ferry schedule. Missing one means waiting up to an hour, and the bus fare is 230 yen one way.
DouDou visited in winter, when the only flowers you can see are narcissus and plum blossoms. Plum blossoms usually start blooming around the end of February, but narcissus begin around January. Narcissus fields are pretty rare, so DouDou went to check them out.
Nokonoshima Island Park is mainly about seasonal flowers, making it a great place to visit and relax all year round. In spring, there are rapeseed flowers and cherry blossoms; in summer, hydrangeas and sunflowers; in autumn, cosmos and dahlias; and in winter, narcissus and plum blossoms.
Upon entering, DouDou headed straight for the coastal narcissus fields. Japanese narcissus are planted along the slopes. The wind was strong there, but narcissus are cold-resistant plants, so it didn’t affect their beauty.
When the wind died down, you could catch the faint, sweet fragrance of the narcissus.
The posture of the narcissus is graceful. Usually, you only see them one by one at New Year flower markets, but seeing them in large fields is truly beautiful.
There’s a resting spot on the narcissus slope.
From there, you can gaze out over the vast Genkai Sea. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t great that day—it was almost raining.
After viewing the narcissus, DouDou headed back and passed by a small zoo that had a goat house.
Even though the weather was cold, the goats were still out walking around.
There were also little rabbits, super cute. You can buy feed to feed them, but remember to clean and disinfect your hands when entering and leaving—the park provides the necessary equipment.
After spending time with the rabbits, head back to the bus stop at the exit. There’s a souvenir shop near the exit, so consider picking up some local specialties to take home.
Nokonoshima Island Park official website (Traditional Chinese): http://nokonoshima.com/zh-hant/
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Having traveled to over 30 countries/regions, lived in Taiwan for a year and a half, explored 19 counties and cities, spent several months traveling and living in Japan, covering all 47 prefectures, worked and traveled in Canada for two months chasing the Northern Lights, enjoys off-the-beaten-path attractions. Travelogues have been published on Yong’an Travel, U blog, DC fever, likeJapan, now.com, and Travel Bar. Open to various forms of collaboration.