Airport Transfer: How to get from Fukuoka Airport to Nagasaki?

We took a red eye flight from Singapore to Fukuoka with Singapore Airlines. When we arrived, we went straight from Fukuoka airport to Nagasaki. We travelled from 21 February to 1 March 2018. Here are the few options we considered for travelling from Fukuoka (International) Airport to Nagasaki.


Option 1: By Car


How to travel from Fukuoka Airport to Nagasaki - travel.joogostyle.com

Car is the most straightforward method, either you self-drive or you take a taxi. Taxi can get too expensive for such long distance travel in Japan. So you might want to consider driving.

There are a few car rental companies to choose from. We simply compared the car rental rates and booked in advance at: www2.tocoo.jp/en. When choosing a car rental company, it is important to consider where the the pick up and drop off points are located. And if you are travelling with a child, baby car seat is another important consideration too as it is a requirement under Japanese law.

Although we did a road trip around Northern Kyushu, we didn’t drive from Fukuoka airport to Nagasaki. After two flights, hubby wasn’t in tip top condition to drive safely. Though I must add, it was much easier for us to travel between the prefectures in Kyushu with a car than a bus or a train. No rushing for the timings and lugging the pieces of luggage up and down.


Option 2: Nishitetsu Bus Service


How to travel from Fukuoka Airport to Nagasaki - travel.joogostyle.com

Fukuoka Airport > Hakata Station > Ohato Station (Nagasaki)

There are different bus routes going from Hakata, Tenjin and Fukuoka Airport to Nagasaki. After looking through the routes on Nishitetsu Bus Service’s website, we considered going from Fukuoka International Airport to Hakata. Thereafter, transfer to Ohato Station (Nagasaki), which was right beside our hotel. Moreover, the bus from Hakata to Nagasaki is super non-stop, and hence a faster travelling time.

The ticketing staff at Fukuoka airport didn’t think this was a good idea. He pointed out that we will be heading further away from Nagasaki before making our way there, passing by the airport again. So we dropped the idea and went straight to Nagasaki station (read on).

If you are not going straight to Nagasaki from Fukuoka Airport, but to Hakata Station or Tenjin first, refer to this website for travel time and pricing: www.nishitetsu.jp/en/access.

Fukuoka Airport > Nagasaki Station

Route

In the end, we got the tickets for Kyushu highway bus (Nishitetsu). This bus travels from Fukuoka airport to Nagasaki station, via other stops in between. With a baby, I would have preferred a non-stop bus service I mentioned above (from Hakata to Ohato), but we listened to the staff’s advice to hop on to this instead.

However from Nagasaki Bus Station, we had to cross a massive overhead bridge and get to the other side of the bustling road. The tram station to reach our hotel was there, but no traffic lights was in sight. It would be extremely hard for us to carry all our luggage and baby to climb those steps. Hence we took a taxi and I didn’t remember it to be exorbitantly expensive to reach Hotel Belleview Nagasaki Dejima.
Time and Pricing

The travel journey is about 2.5 hours, depending on traffic conditions and bus speed. One way ticket for one pax is priced at 2570 Yen (~S$31.60). But for some reason, we got a 10% discount at the airport ticketing counter, and paid 2,315 Yen (~S$28.50). Infant is free.

How to travel from Fukuoka Airport to Nagasaki - travel.joogostyle.com

Experience

We took turns to carry baby Evangeline while she slept. And when she fussed, I would breastfeed her to sleep. Thinking back, it was quite dangerous, because we were dozing off or sleeping while carrying her. Red eye flight is tiring!

We sat in the first row, right behind the driver. In this way, we wouldn’t disturb two rows of passengers – those seated in front and behind us. Moreover, there was slightly more leg room at the front for our two bulky hand carry bags and the baby. Yet, there was little leg room left for us after we placed our bags on the floor. Thank goodness, there was a 5 minutes break for us to stretch our legs and run to the bathroom. Sitting at the far back was also out of the question as it was more likely induce motion sickness.

Turned out, we should have sat somewhere in the middle. The door kept opening and closing at the multiple bus stops, and so with the noise from the passengers, it was not a conducive environment for baby Evangeline to catch up on her sleep.

We were initially worried about how to handle our luggage and baby on a relatively long bus trip, with little leg room. Nevertheless, there wasn’t much problem in the end as baby Evangeline slept through with pockets of sleep and we were just so tired to care about the uncomfortable sitting positions.

Oh about the 5 minutes break, the rest stop seems interesting with all the vending machines. However we didn’t have the time to look at them because everyone practically zoomed to the toilet and back on bus in a jiffy. I was the last onboard!
Important References:

Do you know of other ways to go from Fukuoka airport to Nagasaki? Or questions about the bus transportation? Leave your comment below.



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