page_title: Kitakyushu
section_title: Sea
hierarchical_section_title: Kitakyushu / Transportation / Sea
caption_attribution_description: Ferry between Wakamatsu and Tobata wards, Kitakyushu. The cheapest in Japan, 50 yen per person, 50 yen per bicycle, three minutes. Photo by Ian Ruxton (Historian)
context_page_description: Kitakyushu is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan.
  As of June 1, 2019, Kitakyushu has an estimated population of 940,978, making it the second-largest city in both Fukuoka Prefecture and the island of Kyushu after the city of Fukuoka. It is one of Japan's 20 designated cities, one of three on Kyushu, and is divided into 7 wards.
  Kitakyushu was formed in 1963 from a merger of municipalities centered on the historic city of Kokura, and its name literally means "North Kyushu City" in Japanese. It is located at the northernmost point of Kyushu on the Kanmon Straits, separating the island from Honshu, across from the city of Shimonoseki. Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki are connected by numerous transport links including the Kanmon Bridge and the Kanmon Tunnel. Kitakyushu's Urban Employment Area forms part of the Fukuoka-Kitakyushu Greater Metropolitan Region, which, with a population of 5,738,977, is the largest metropolitan area in Japan west of the Keihanshin region.
context_section_description: Kitakyushu is the largest ferry port in Kyushu, Chūgoku, and Shikoku. Ferry services operate between Kitakyushu and Shimonoseki, Matsuyama, Tokushima, Kōbe, Ōsaka, Tokyo, Ulsan (Korea), Busan (Korea) and isolated islands in the city limits. The main ferry port is at Shin-Moji, and there are ferries at Moji and near Kokura Station.
  In the Kanmon-Kitakyushu area, there are three commuter lines: the Wakato Ferry, the Kanmon Straits Ferry, and the Kanmon Straits Liner.
caption: Wakato Ferry
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