Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, is lit up on Oct. 17, 2024, to mark the 60th anniversary of its establishment.

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, is lit up on Oct. 17, 2024, to mark the 60th anniversary of its establishment.

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, is lit up on Oct. 17, 2024, to mark the 60th anniversary of its establishment.

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower

Hakata Port Tower in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, is lit up on Oct. 17, 2024, to mark the 60th anniversary of its establishment.

Hakata port in Fukuoka Pref. in southwestern Japan

Hakata port in Fukuoka Pref. in southwestern Japan

File photo taken on March 30, 2023, shows Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Travelers to Japan recovering sharply

Travelers to Japan recovering sharply

A cruise ship carrying foreign travelers arrives at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on May 28, 2023, as the number of travelers to Japan has been recovering sharply following the lifting of COVID-19 measures.

Travelers to Japan recovering sharply

Travelers to Japan recovering sharply

A cruise ship carrying foreign travelers arrives at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on May 28, 2023, as the number of travelers to Japan has been recovering sharply following the lifting of COVID-19 measures.

Cruise ship from mainland China

Cruise ship from mainland China

Chinese-owned cruise ship Blue Dream Star enters Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 28, 2023. It is the first cruise ship from mainland China to arrive in Japan since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cruise ship from mainland China

Cruise ship from mainland China

Chinese-owned cruise ship Blue Dream Star enters Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, on May 28, 2023. It is the first cruise ship from mainland China to arrive in Japan since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

CORRECTED: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

CORRECTED: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

File photo taken on May 26, 2023, at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka shows JS Shimokita, a tank landing ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

CORRECTED: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

CORRECTED: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

File photo taken on May 26, 2023, at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka shows JS Shimokita, a tank landing ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship JS Shimokita

File photo taken on May 25, 2023, at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka shows JS Shimokita, a tank landing ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

A Japan Self-Defense Force vehicle is being loaded onto a ferry boat at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on April 23, 2023, for the SDF's mission to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in Okinawa Prefecture ahead of an expected launch by North Korea of a rocket carrying its first reconnaissance satellite that Japan believes is actually a long-range ballistic missile.

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

A Japan Self-Defense Force vehicle is being loaded onto a ferry boat at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on April 23, 2023, for the SDF's mission to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in Okinawa Prefecture ahead of an expected launch by North Korea of a rocket carrying its first reconnaissance satellite that Japan believes is actually a long-range ballistic missile.

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

A Japan Self-Defense Force vehicle is being loaded onto a ferry boat at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on April 23, 2023, for the SDF's mission to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in Okinawa Prefecture ahead of an expected launch by North Korea of a rocket carrying its first reconnaissance satellite that Japan believes is actually a long-range ballistic missile.

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

A Japan Self-Defense Force vehicle is being loaded onto a ferry boat at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on April 23, 2023, for the SDF's mission to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in Okinawa Prefecture ahead of an expected launch by North Korea of a rocket carrying its first reconnaissance satellite that Japan believes is actually a long-range ballistic missile.

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

SDF to deploy PAC3 missiles in Okinawa ahead of N. Korea satellite launch

Japan Self-Defense Force personnel prepare to board a ferry boat at Hakata port in Fukuoka, southwestern Japan, on April 23, 2023, on their way to deploy Patriot Advanced Capability-3 interceptor missiles in Okinawa Prefecture ahead of the expected launch by North Korea of a rocket carrying its first reconnaissance satellite that Japan believes is actually a long-range ballistic missile.

Cruise ship Borealis

Cruise ship Borealis

Photo taken March 30, 2023, shows the Borealis cruise ship at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Cruise ship Borealis

Cruise ship Borealis

Photo taken March 30, 2023, shows the Borealis cruise ship at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Cruise ship Borealis

Cruise ship Borealis

Photo taken March 30, 2023, shows the Borealis cruise ship at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Cruise ship Borealis

Cruise ship Borealis

Photo taken March 30, 2023, shows the Borealis cruise ship at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Cruise ship Borealis

Cruise ship Borealis

Photo taken March 30, 2023, shows the Borealis cruise ship at Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka.

Powerful typhoon hits Kyushu

Powerful typhoon hits Kyushu

FUKUOKA, Japan - Photo taken on Sept. 17, 2012, shows the empty international terminal at Hakata port in the city of Fukuoka, where all sailings were cancelled due to the season's 16th typhoon which brought powerful winds and heavy rain to the southwestern Japanese island of Kyushu.

7th Fleet flagship at Hakata port

7th Fleet flagship at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - Vice Adm. Scott Swift, commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet, speaks in a press conference aboard the 7th Fleet command ship, the Blue Ridge, as the vessel calls at Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, for a friendship visit on Aug. 10, 2012.

7th Fleet flagship at Hakata port

7th Fleet flagship at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - The U.S. 7th Fleet command ship, the Blue Ridge, calls at Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture, southwestern Japan, for a friendship visit on Aug. 10, 2012.

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - The world's largest floating bookshop on the 6,818-ton Doulos opened to the public at Hakata port in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, on May 12 with about 500,000 books and 350 volunteers from more than 50 countries aboard. The Doulos, the world's oldest ocean-going passenger vessel still in service, will open for 10 days at Chuo pier following its arrival on May 11.

Japan unveils new patrol boat to seize suspicious ships

Japan unveils new patrol boat to seize suspicious ships

FUKUOKA, Japan - The 770-ton Aso, Japan's first patrol boat designed to seize unidentified vessels, is anchored at a terminal at Hakata port in Fukuoka on April 11. It has been deployed at the Fukuoka Coast Guard Office of the Japan Coast Guard since mid-March.

(1)Strong quake damages 800 houses, forces 2,800 to evacuate in Kyushu

(1)Strong quake damages 800 houses, forces 2,800 to evacuate in Kyushu

FUKUOKA, Japan - An injured person is moved to a stretcher on arrival at Hakata port late March 20 from Genkai Island, a tiny islet hardest hit by a powerful earthquake that hit northern Kyushu earlier in the day. The quake left about 800 houses damaged and forced some 2,800 people to evacuate from their homes.

Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka opens

Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka opens

FUKUOKA, Japan - A costumed parade features the annual Hakata Dontaku Port Festival that began in Fukuoka on May 3. About 2 million people are expected to visit the southwestern Japan city during the two-day event in what is likely the largest turnout nationwide for the Golden Week holidays. Dontaku comes from the Dutch word ''zondag'' which means holiday.

X-ray equipment for containers unveiled at Hakata port

X-ray equipment for containers unveiled at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - Containers are pulled through a 94-meter-long X-ray tunnel on a truck at Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture as the facility was unveiled for the media April 2. Containers are checked by X-rays from above and below and from left and right. The process takes about 20 minutes, down from two hours for one container under the current inspection process.

Stimulants seized from Chinese ship off Fukuoka

Stimulants seized from Chinese ship off Fukuoka

FUKUOKA, Japan - A Chinese ship is berthed at Hakata port in Fukuoka on Jan. 7. The Japan Coast Guard arrested several Chinese sailors after confiscating some 150 kilograms of stimulants from the ship off the coast of Fukuoka Prefecture in southwestern Japan. The ship is rusty and does not display its name or nationality.

Japan's MSA ships leave for joint drills with S. Korea

Japan's MSA ships leave for joint drills with S. Korea

KITAKYUSHU, Japan - Crew members of three Japan's Maritime Safety Agency (MSA) vessels stand at salute at Moji port in the southwestern Japan city of Kitakyushu on Oct. 3 before leaving for joint drills with South Korean vessels, in which they will simulate the rescue and cleanup of a collision of two vessels. The patrol boats are the 3,200-ton Echigo, the 1,200-ton Hakata, and the 180-ton Inasa.

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

Photo taken from Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka shows JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc.'s Queen Beetle high-speed ferry heading for South Korea's Busan on Nov. 4, 2022. The ferry service connecting the two cities resumed the same day for the first time since March 2020 in line with the easing of Japan's coronavirus border restrictions last month.

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc.'s Queen Beetle high-speed ferry leaves Hakata port in Fukuoka in southwestern Japan for South Korea's Busan on Nov. 4, 2022. The ferry service connecting the two cities resumed the same day for the first time since March 2020 in line with the easing of Japan's coronavirus border restrictions last month.

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

Ferry service between Japan, S. Korea resumes

Photo taken from a Kyodo News helicopter shows JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc.'s Queen Beetle high-speed ferry heading for South Korea's Busan shortly after its departure of Hakata port in the southwestern Japan city of Fukuoka on Nov. 4, 2022. The ferry service connecting the two cities resumed the same day for the first time since March 2020 in line with the easing of Japan's coronavirus border restrictions last month.

Stimulants seized from Chinese ship off Fukuoka

Stimulants seized from Chinese ship off Fukuoka

FUKUOKA, Japan - A Chinese ship is berthed at Hakata port in Fukuoka on Jan. 7. The Japan Coast Guard arrested several Chinese sailors after confiscating some 150 kilograms of stimulants from the ship off the coast of Fukuoka Prefecture in southwestern Japan. The ship is rusty and does not display its name or nationality.

Japan unveils new patrol boat to seize suspicious ships

Japan unveils new patrol boat to seize suspicious ships

FUKUOKA, Japan - The 770-ton Aso, Japan's first patrol boat designed to seize unidentified vessels, is anchored at a terminal at Hakata port in Fukuoka on April 11. It has been deployed at the Fukuoka Coast Guard Office of the Japan Coast Guard since mid-March. (Kyodo)

Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka opens

Hakata Dontaku Port Festival in Fukuoka opens

FUKUOKA, Japan - A costumed parade features the annual Hakata Dontaku Port Festival that began in Fukuoka on May 3. About 2 million people are expected to visit the southwestern Japan city during the two-day event in what is likely the largest turnout nationwide for the Golden Week holidays. Dontaku comes from the Dutch word ''zondag'' which means holiday. (Kyodo)

Fukuoka offers foreign travelers souvenir-keeping service

Fukuoka offers foreign travelers souvenir-keeping service

A public relations attendant at the Hakata Port International Terminal in Fukuoka explains on Feb. 10, 2015, an arrangement under which foreign visitors to the southwestern Japanese city who buy food, cosmetics and other duty-free items at three shops in the city can receive the purchased goods just before embarking on a liner to Pusan, South Korea, so that they can enjoy tourism in Fukuoka empty-handed. The "traveling light" service, the first of its kind in Japan launched in October 2014, is jointly sponsored by the terminal and Kyokuto Kaiun Co., a shipping firm. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Cruise ships with Chinese tourists pour into Japan

Cruise ships with Chinese tourists pour into Japan

Photo taken Feb. 17, 2016, shows one of the world's largest cruise ships making a call at Hakata port in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, and sightseeing buses awaiting tourists. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

World's largest floating bookshop opens at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - The world's largest floating bookshop on the 6,818-ton Doulos opened to the public at Hakata port in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, on May 12 with about 500,000 books and 350 volunteers from more than 50 countries aboard. The Doulos, the world's oldest ocean-going passenger vessel still in service, will open for 10 days at Chuo pier following its arrival on May 11. (Kyodo)

(1)Strong quake damages 800 houses, forces 2,800 to evacuate in

(1)Strong quake damages 800 houses, forces 2,800 to evacuate in

FUKUOKA, Japan - An injured person is moved to a stretcher on arrival at Hakata port late March 20 from Genkai Island, a tiny islet hardest hit by a powerful earthquake that hit northern Kyushu earlier in the day. The quake left about 800 houses damaged and forced some 2,800 people to evacuate from their homes. (Kyodo)

New high-speed passenger ship

New high-speed passenger ship

JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc.'s new Queen Beetle high-speed passenger ship arrives at the Port of Hakata in Fukuoka on Oct. 15, 2020. It is planned that the ship will sail between the southwestern Japan city and Busan in South Korea, with the date for the start of services yet to be determined due to the coronavirus pandemic.

New high-speed passenger ship

New high-speed passenger ship

JR Kyushu Jet Ferry Inc.'s new Queen Beetle high-speed passenger ship arrives at the Port of Hakata in Fukuoka on Oct. 15, 2020. It is planned that the ship will sail between the southwestern Japan city and Busan in South Korea, with the date for the start of services yet to be determined due to the coronavirus pandemic.

X-ray equipment for containers unveiled at Hakata port

X-ray equipment for containers unveiled at Hakata port

FUKUOKA, Japan - Containers are pulled through a 94-meter-long X-ray tunnel on a truck at Hakata port in Fukuoka Prefecture as the facility was unveiled for the media April 2. Containers are checked by X-rays from above and below and from left and right. The process takes about 20 minutes, down from two hours for one container under the current inspection process. (Kyodo)

Japan's MSA ships leave for joint drills with S. Korea+

Japan's MSA ships leave for joint drills with S. Korea+

KITAKYUSHU, Japan - Crew members of three Japan's Maritime Safety Agency (MSA) vessels stand at salute at Moji port in the southwestern Japan city of Kitakyushu on Oct. 3 before leaving for joint drills with South Korean vessels, in which they will simulate the rescue and cleanup of a collision of two vessels. The patrol boats are the 3,200-ton Echigo, the 1,200-ton Hakata, and the 180-ton Inasa.