Date Night in Fukuoka

The Christmas season is upon us and what better way to get in the holiday spirit than to spend an evening perusing a Christmas Market?! Well, this past weekend, Ryan and I did just that! We recently discovered a small German Christmas Market taking place at the Hakata train station in Fukuoka and decided it would be the perfect place to have a fun date night reminiscing about our holidays spent in Europe while doing a little holiday shopping.

From November 11 until December 25, the square in front of the Hakata Station is transformed into a glistening winter wonderland. True to Japanese fashion, the Hakata market is a stunning example of their over-the-top holiday illuminations with thousands of twinkling lights, hundreds of hanging snowflakes, and dozens of oversized statues like the four-story Christmas Tree that sits in the center of Hakata square towering over the quaint Christmas Market.

The Hakata Christmas Market is a traditional European style market run by a community of Germans living in Japan. While Hakata is a small market, with only a couple dozen stalls, it has all of the wonderful things you would expect to find at any Christmas market in Europe!

There are German food vendors selling roast chickens and pommes {fried potatoes}, sausage and stefan wurst, Mutzen {fried dough balls served with chocolate, honey, or icing}, Stollen {German fruit bread}, heiße Schokolade {hot chocolate}, European wines and German beer, and my personal favorite, glühwein {hot spiced wine}. They even serve their glühwein in a collectible Christmas mug like they do at the markets throughout Europe!

In addition to all of the delicious food, the Hakata Christmas Market is a great place to do some holiday shopping! There are vendors selling all of the things you would find in Europe like German houses, candles, nesting dolls, wooden toys, ornaments, spice decorations, nutcrackers, snow globes, etc. While living in Europe, Ryan and I started our own collection of German houses that we set up every Christmas, and while at the Hakata market, we purchased a new house to add to our Christmas village this year!

While shopping and sipping on glühwein, you can enjoy listening to Christmas tunes played by various bands throughout the evening. There is a stage in the center of the market surrounded by fest tables welcoming visitors to sit and listen to the performances while dining al fresco. Afterwards, wander through the garden of colorful trees, large statues, and illuminated gates in front of the station.

Glühwein and this year’s collectible Christmas mugs… just say “Zwei glühwein, bitte!”

“Hot Chocolate in the cup with a chocolate truffle!!”

· More Information ·

Hakata Christmas Market 

Located in front of the JR Hakata Station in Fukuoka

+ 81 092 516 4025

www.hakata.christmasworld.jp

Open daily from November 11 - December 25

Monday through Friday: 5:00 pm - 11:00 pm, Saturday - Sunday/Holidays: 12:00 pm - 11:00 pm

· Tips ·

• For those of you wanting to visit the Hakata Christmas Market, I suggest traveling via the bullet train, which is only a 1.5 hour ride from Iwakuni.

• Once you arrive in Fukuoka, the Christmas Market is located in front of the train station, so no car or taxi needed!

• After you are finished shopping at the Christmas Market, there is even more shopping to do right there in the Hakata City Shopping Mall or at Canal City just a short 10-15 minute walk from the train station.

• The Hard Rock Cafe is located right around the corner in the shopping center adjacent to the train station for additional dining options.

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