The Kanmon Strait and its bridge from the Shimonoseki shore; the pedestrian tunnel runs beneath this waterPhoto: Wei-Te Wong / CC BY-SA 2.0
The pedestrian walkway under the Kanmon Strait is 780 m long and is run by the City of Kitakyushu; pedestrians pay nothing, bicycles and mopeds ¥20.
Checked · Researched, not yet visited · times from official timetables and our estimates · Takumi Yamada
A lift takes you down to a 780 m walkway under the Kanmon Strait, about 15 minutes on foot from Honshu to Kyushu, with the prefectural border painted on the floor halfway. Free for pedestrians, open 06:00–22:00 every day. The Kanmon Bridge crosses overhead at the entrance. Come back by the 5-minute ferry from Mojiko to make a loop.
- Number 3 of ten on our list for Shimonoseki.
- Reachable on foot from the berth, so no timetable can strand you.
- 06:00–22:00, free to visit — bicycles and mopeds ¥20.
- On a 4–6h ashore call our verdict is "Yes, as a loop" — Karato, Akama Jingu, the tunnel, Mojiko Retro and the ferry back: about 4.5 hours from Arcaport.
- 06:00–22:00, free — bicycles and mopeds ¥20.
- 3 hr door to door needs a 5-hour call: a 2–3 hour stop cannot hold it. Pick something closer instead.
Things worth knowing
- The Shiokaze-go trolley from the Moji exit to the railway museum runs on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays only, about every 40 minutes, ¥500.
- Ferries from Mojiko to Karato leave at :10, :30 and :50 in the daytime; sailings can change with the weather.
Walk to Kyushu under the strait and your ship
Both pins on one map, so the distance is a fact rather than a feeling.
Where the 3 hr goes
The hour before all-aboard is not in this bar; it is already set aside. The minutes are our estimates from timetables and maps, not timed on the ground.
If your ship is late, cut the 2 hr in the middle. Never cut the hour at the end.
Questions
Can you walk from Shimonoseki to Kyushu?
Yes. The Kanmon pedestrian tunnel is 780 m, about 15 minutes, free, open 06:00–22:00.
How do I get back from Mojiko?
By the Kanmon ferry to Karato: about 5 minutes, ¥400, roughly every 20 minutes in the daytime. Karato Pier is about 7 minutes on foot from Arcaport.
Routes that already include it
Finished days timed from official timetables and our estimates, with this stop in them.
Under the strait to Kyushu, back by ferryNeeds a 6.5-hour call · ~4.5h door to doorArcaport calls of 6 hours or more, any day of the week. From Choshu Dejima take a taxi to Akama Jingu first, about ¥3,900 (our estimate)
The whole strait from Choshu DejimaNeeds an 8.5-hour call · ~6.25h door to doorBig ships at Choshu Dejima on an 08:00–17:00 call such as Norwegian Jade’s. Times assume off the ship at 08:30 and back by 15:30, an hour before a 16:30 all-aboardWhat to put beside it
Each of these still lands you back aboard with the hour to spare.
Eat · ~2hSushi stalls at Karato Market
On Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays the fishmongers of Karato Market sell sushi from their stalls, fugu nigiri among them: the Iki-iki Bakangai.
See the detail
See · ~2hAkama Jingu
The vermilion shrine of Emperor Antoku, who drowned aged eight at the battle of Dannoura in 1185; its Suitenmon gate was built to look like the Dragon Palace under the sea.
See the detail
See · ~4hMojiko Retro by the Kanmon ferry
Across the strait in Kitakyushu: JR Mojiko Station, a Neo-Renaissance building of 1914 restored in 2019 and the first station building made an Important Cultural Property, and a harbour quarter of brick and stone around it.
See the detail