Itoshima Scenic Drive: Sakurai Futami-ga-ura and Akaya-no-Ōmon

Just next to Fukuoka City, this scenic drive course circles around the Itoshima Peninsula, surrounded by blue sea and verdant mountains. Start your morning at Sakurai Shrine (櫻井神社), where early Edo period architecture remains, then visit Sakurai Futami-ga-ura (桜井二見ヶ浦), where a white torii gate and the pair of rocks float in the sea. Walking along this coastline, selected as one of Japan's finest beaches, the azure expanse of the Genkai Sea (玄界灘) stretches endlessly. For lunch, savor Maki no Udon (牧のうどん), one of Fukuoka's three great udon restaurants, with soft noodles fresh from the pot. In the afternoon, experience one of Japan's largest basalt caves, Akaya-no-Ōmon (芥屋の大門), by sightseeing boat and observation deck, then conclude with a generous dose of negative ions at Shiraito Falls (白糸滝), a 24-meter cascade. Sea, udon, cave, and waterfall—a greedy one-day trip packing all the best of Itoshima into a single journey, perfect for the camera enthusiast.