Located right by the Sea of Japan, in the middle of the country, Fukui is an area attracting national attention for its Hokuriku Shinkansen bullet train, which opened in March this year!
Fukui Prefecture: A Dinosaur Mecca?
Fukui is where most of the dinosaur fossils found in Japan were unearthed, and no less than five new species were discovered here. The Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum
one of the three leading dinosaur museums in the world recently went through a major renewal and reopened its doors in July of 2023. In addition to 50 complete dinosaur skeletons and the very first mummified dinosaur fossil to be shown in Japan, the highly interactive museum now also boasts an immersive theatre where three giant screens surrounding you (9 meters tall, 16 meters wide each) display exciting footage of dinosaurs in the wild, as well as a brand-new facility where visitors can challenge themselves to some hands-on dinosaur research.
But that's not all! Fukui Station, with its "trick-art" mural looking as if it's about to jump right out of the wall, and its moving dinosaur robots, also gives a great preview of what awaits you in this total "Dinosaur Kingdom"!
Did you know?
The heroine of the next 'Taiga' historical drama to be produced by national broadcaster NHK ----Murasaki Shikibu- also has strong ties to Fukui.
The only time she -you may know her as the author of the Tale of Genji- lived away from the then-capital of Kyoto throughout her whole life was spent in present-day Echizen City, Fukui. There, you'll find the Murasaki Yukari Museum of Echizen, which has been introducing the relationship between the prolific author and Echizen. And a museum dedicated to the upcoming historical drama based on her life was also opened in February this year!
Now that her most famous novel has been read and reread for over 1,000 years, why not come over and discover the woman behind the masterpiece?
With its impressive Tojinbo Cliffs -one of just three of its kind in the whole world- and Rainbow Line Summit Park -from which you can admire the Five Lakes of Mikata (each one is of a different shade of blue!)- Fukui happens to be a very instagrammable destination, too!

You'll also find here as many as seven Traditional Crafts of Japan, things such as Echizen Washi paper, which was used to make the very first paper currency in Japan, Echizen Blades, handmade knives loved by top chefs around the world, and Wakasa Lacquer, works of art that feel just as if they were covered in precious stones.
The local gastronomy, including amazing seafood such as the Echizen Gani snow crab and Wakasa Fugu blowfish, as well as Echizen Oroshi Soba buckwheat noodles-widely considered the best in Japan (the Showa Emperor even asked for seconds!)- and abura-age deep fried tofu-for which Fukui has been boasting the highest consumption volume per household for some 60 years now- also give us a hint as to why Fukui regularly ranks first in nationwide happiness surveys.
Time travel, breathtaking landscapes, fine dining and a traditional savoir-faire handed down from generation to generation.all of this (and so much more!) awaits you in Fukui Prefecture.
So, come on over and discover this hidden gem for yourself!