Japan’s largest station shopping mall, Kyushu JR Hakata City

Text & Photography / Chi Binghui

On March 12, 2011, the Kyushu Shinkansen line was fully opened, making travel between prefectures faster and more convenient. The newly launched “Hakata City” station building has also become a standout landmark. Aside from being currently Japan’s largest station and transportation hub, it also integrates shopping, dining, and entertainment, with hundreds of stores offering endless exploration possibilities. It is expected that around 100,000 people will pass through daily.

JR Hakata City houses three major department stores: the highly popular “Hankyu Department Store,” the “Amu Plaza Hakata” shopping mall with over 200 shops, and the five-story “Tokyu HANDS” (Tai Long Handicrafts). Facilities include a cinema and a rooftop garden. The “City Sky Restaurant” food area on the 9th and 10th floors is particularly unique, featuring nearly 50 well-known restaurants from across the country, and it is also Japan’s largest department store food court.

Hankyu Department Store has 8 floors. Floors 1 to 4 are mainly dedicated to women’s cosmetics and fashion, while the upper floors feature casual wear, children’s toys, bedding, and more. Amu Plaza is a popular shopping mall among young people, offering relatively new brands. Floors 1 to 8 include fashion, sundries, and household items, with parts of floors 1 to 5 being occupied by “Tokyu HANDS” (Daito Handicrafts), where, in addition to the usual offerings such as health and beauty products, daily sundries, and stationery, this particular HANDS store also features exclusive railway merchandise and more.