ferry from busan to fukuoka

[Delinjapan]

has anybody actually done the trip by ferry from Busan to Fukuoka? how was it? how long did it take? do you need to reserve in advance?

DelinKorea

[Taro Toporific]

has anybody actually done the trip by ferry from Busan to Fukuoka? how was it? how long did it take? do you need to reserve in advance?

For details, go to the official, engrish website of the JR ferry.

http://wikitravel.org/en/Fukuoka#By_boat
JR Kyushu's Beetle hydrofoils to Busan (South Korea) run five times a day and take just under 3 hours. They are quick, but in 2005 one hit a whale and had to be towed back to Busan. Improved radar to detect such large animals and underwater objects seems to be needed. From Osaka to Kita Kyushu, it takes 6600 yen by Meimon ferry, but it is economy price, you can choose any price, higher and lower.

See the old FG thread: Beetle bad --- Whacks whale

[Monica_G]

I've been once with my zemi during my final year at college. The trip was kind of shaky if you know what i mean. I didn't slept well the night before the trip so I managed to pass the trip nicely by sleeping almost the whole time.However, my classmates weren't as lucky as me, especially to consider the trip was after meal, so you could notice most of the people got sea sick. Hope this information is useful.

[amdg]

I've done it once before and it was very cool. Lots of fun and nothing at all to worry about. In contrast I've also made the same trip in a 35 foot yacht, which is not quite as much fun at all. As to reserving a ticket - like anything in life, you should reserve a ticket in advance if you are on a strict schedule and absolutely need to get on that ferry. Otherwise, take your time. There is always another ferry.

[Taro Toporific]

...As to reserving a ticket - like anything in life, you should reserve a ticket in advance if you are on a strict schedule and absolutely need to get on that ferry. Otherwise, take your time. There is always another ferry.

Ah yes..... If you travel on New Years or Golden Week, the ferry might sell you ticket without a place to sit inside the boat. Once a took a Golden Week ferry to Ogasawa Islands and the only place to sleep was on the deck chairs (damn cold at 3am).

[Delinjapan]

actually it went quite OK. From Busan station you can take the subway to Jungangdong and there walk to the international Ferry Terminal (about 5-10min). On the second floor you can buy tickets for the faster 3 hour service. I was expecting to ride on the beetle but ended up on the Kobee and it was only 10000 yen instead of 13000. It seems that there were ferries leaving every half an hour. The ride was mostly uneventful (didn't meet any whales) and from Hakata port it's a 15 min busride to Hakata JR station.

Yeah! did it, Seoul to Tokyo by land and sea in one day (14 hours). I wonder how many kilometers that is?

[amdg]

Yeah! did it, Seoul to Tokyo by land and sea in one day

You arrived in Tokyo?

[Delinjapan]

No I arrived in Hakata/Fukuoka then I took the Shinkansen all the way to Tokyo (6 hours). I was travelling through Japan before I went to S. Korea and my JR Pass expires sunday so it didn't cost me a thing.

[Taro Toporific]

No I arrived in Hakata/Fukuoka then I took the Shinkansen all the way to Tokyo (6 hours). I was travelling through Japan before I went to S. Korea and my JR Pass expires sunday so it didn't cost me a thing.

Smart boy! Tokyo to Korea for only the cost of the Kobee ferry, 10,000 yen!:clap:

(Of course there a few discount flights Tokyo to Seoul for less than 18,000yen and Busan is a long way from Seoul.)

[Greji]

Smart boy! Tokyo to Korea for only the cost of the Kobee ferry, 10,000 yen!:clap:

(Of course there a few discount flights Tokyo to Seoul for less than 18,000yen and Busan is a long way from Seoul.)

I know that listening to "the good old days" stories turn a lot of people off, but in the days before the Korean car market was fully developed domestically, a lot of FGs with their international licenses used to buy used super cheap clunkers in fairly good shape in Japan take them on the ferry to Korea and sell them for huge markups.

This was long before the freighters started hauling them to Russia from Niigata, Aomori and Hokkaido!

[CrankyBastard]

I know that listening to "the good old days" stories turn a lot of people off, but in the days before the Korean car market was fully developed domestically, a lot of FGs with their international licenses used to buy used super cheap clunkers in fairly good shape in Japan take them on the ferry to Korea and sell them for huge markups.

Been there, done that! 1970 Toyota Crown sold in Busan for twice it's value in US dollars. I love 'the good ol'days':D
'course shortly after that, toilet paper was rationed in japan

[Delinjapan]

Smart boy! Tokyo to Korea for only the cost of the Kobee ferry, 10,000 yen!:clap:

(Of course there a few discount flights Tokyo to Seoul for less than 18,000yen and Busan is a long way from Seoul.)

yep, the plane tickets are cheap except during the high season...

Actually the train from Seoul to Busan costs about 5000 yen.

[Blah Pete]

I rode the ferry once during the World Cup because most of the flights were booked and it was real cheap. The ride was smooth considering the seas were choppy and I was severely hungover (had just seen USA loose 0-1 to Germany).

[Taro Toporific]

Great journeys: Russia to Taiwan [color="Gray"] [via Japan] [/color] by boat
In the final leg of his flight-free adventure, Gary Merrill sails over the East China Sea towards Taiwan
* guardian.co.uk, Wednesday June 25, 2008
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/jun/25/japan.russia.ferry

[Mulboyne]

Kyodo: Regular ferryboat service inaugurated between Kitakyushu, Busan

A regular ferryboat service was inaugurated Saturday [June 21] between Japan's Kitakyushu and South Korea's Busan, linking northern Kyushu and South Korea via the sea for the first time in about four years. A ceremony to mark the launch of the Moji Line, run by South Korean shipping firm C & Cruise, was held at Moji port in Kitakyushu. The previous ferry service linking northern Kyushu and South Korea -- Kokura, Kitakyushu, and Busan -- was terminated in 2004 due to the operator going bankrupt. The ferryboat in the new service will make six round trips per week between Moji and Busan. The travel time is about seven hours, with the boat leaving Moji at noon and Busan at 11 p.m. The ferryboat features amenities such as a duty-free shop, a large public bath and an event hall. The cheapest one-way adult fare is 8,000 yen, cheaper than fares offered by other companies linking Busan with Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture or Hakata, Fukuoka Prefecture. The number of customers is projected at 146,000 for the first year of the service.

[Greji]

I took the Busan fairy one night, but we were both drunk.....Oh, you're talking about boats here....

[rooboy]

Does Immigration scan you and fingerprint you when you go off to Korea from any ferryport and does it do that when you come back?

Been there, done that at airports throughout Japan but how about the ferry, especially in Fukuoka?