What to see & do in Fukuoka/Kyushu?

[Caustic Saint]

I found out this week that my new job is pretty generous with the vacation time. I'll have a week sometime in December, 5 days in January for Lunar New Year, then a week again next August (right before my contract ends - if I don't renew).

I was already thinking of another trip to Tokyo over Lunar New Year, but I found a really good package deal for Fukuoka today. I've never been there, and taking the Beetle (hydrofoil ferry) would be pretty cool. The package is round-trip on the ferry and 2 nights hotel for only 240,000 won, with additional nights only 55,000. (The won:yen ratio is about 10:1.)

I've got the JNTO and Rough Guides links for Fukuoka and Kyushu, but was wondering if anybody knew of any stuff to see & do that may not be listed in any of the popular guides and sites. Any other links would be great too.

Thanks in advance.

[GomiGirl]

How many hours is the boat trip? Sounds pretty cool..

[Caustic Saint]

How many hours is the boat trip? Sounds pretty cool..

2 hours, 55 minutes for the Beetle. Beats the hell out of 16 hours for the regular ferry.