HISTORY

Yame-Fukushima, in southern Fukuoka Prefecture, has two intertwined stories: tea and townscape. It’s tea origins date back to 1423, the start of a flourishing tea region that now grows some of the country’s best gyokuro tea and shade-grown matcha. Architecturally, around 150 historic buildings still line the old highway today, with white-walled townhouses and earthen storehouses spanning styles from the Edo period through the early Shōwa era. It originally began as a castle town in 1601, when feudal lord Tanaka Yoshimasa built Fukushima Castle. The castle itself didn’t last — it was abandoned after only about 20 years — but the settlement endured and grew into a merchant and transport hub linking the Fukuoka and Oita regions, becoming a town where goods from the mountains and the sea came together. Many structures were originally sake breweries or merchant-family residences (the Kitaya brewery, for instance, dates to the Edo period), and some have since been converted into inns, cafés and craft shops while retaining their black-tiled roofs and plastered white facades.

WHERE TO STAY

Within the town’s historic landscape, stay in a 150-year-old renovated kominka (traditional townhouse) with guest rooms themed around all things crafts. At Craft Inn Tei, find the interiors furnished entirely with pieces made by local artisans. From the front entrance’s illuminated paper lantern, inside, find woven-bamboo lampshades to indigo-dyed textiles. The main bath is a spectacular wooden tub made by a local craftsman, perfect for soaking after a long day of sightseeing. Of course there is team, the hotel has curated tea sets with organic Yabukita tea in addition to cold green tea and hojicha roasted tea from Konomi Honke, the esteemed local tea family credited with naming Yame tea.

TEA

When the region is famous for its tea, a cup of tea is never far away. At yamecha speciality salon Ao (also known as Sarou Ao), a hidden respite from the main streets, a variety of local teas and traditional sweets are served within a renovated traditional timber structure. It occupies a former “kenban” — a registration house where geisha of the district were historically enrolled — reborn as a serene café and tea salon run by a husband-and-wife team, Yabe Hidenari and Chika. On the first floor, find pottery and crafts from across Japan on display and available to purchase. Towards the rear and on the second floor find tatami-floored seating areas for enjoying specialty teas or their original parfait, complete with matcha gelato.

DESIGN

Originating as a castle town, then merchant town, the merchant architecture that followed — largely dating from the late Edo period through the Meiji era — is built in dozukuri (earthen-wall) and nurigome-zukuri (plastered-wall) styles, defined by tiled roofs, massive wooden beams, and the district’s signature white walls. That white finish isn’t just decorative — it’s fire engineering. Traditional kura-style storehouses like the ones in Yame Fukushima were built with a wooden post-and-beam frame packed with thick layers of earthen daub, sometimes 20–30 cm deep, then finished in lime-based shikkui plaster; the earth-and-plaster envelope let the building contain flames rather than feed them, which mattered enormously in dense merchant districts prone to fire. The pure white coloring came from that final lime plaster coat.

At Sakaiya, a former family residence who earner their fortune over generations as sake brewers, the hanare zashiki (detached guest parlor), completed in 1908, was originally used as a reception and lodging space for distinguished guests visiting the main house. The interior’s intricate craftsmanship reflects its lavishness for a private residence: find transoms (ranma) carved from single slabs of Yakusugi (ancient Yakushima cedar) and alcove posts (tokogamachi) made of rosewood. Other details include a coffered ceiling with an openwork carving of Mount Fuji, nature-motif transoms, staggered shelving, and rare kurojibugaki-persimmon wood pillars — a timber so scarce it’s said to occur in only one of a thousand trees.

SHOPPING

At 珈琲と日用品の店 TOOLS (Coffee & Everyday Goods Shop TOOLS), find freshly-brewed coffee alongside carefully selected household/lifestyle goods by owner Kazushi Inoue. Find timeless garments from clothing brands YAECA, Batoner, CIOTA to pottery from ONE KILN or Danso Kiln, both located in Kyushu. Custom-ordered Kurashiki-made rush mats can be display wall coverings or cooling floor mats, perfect for napping during summer heats. Timeless items alongside delicious coffee from April Coffee Roasters.

HOW TO GET THERE

Located about 50 km south of Fukuoka City, Yame-Fukushima can be accessed by car or public transport (train and bus), taking about an hour to reach the destination. After decades of quiet, community-led restoration work, visitors to the town can now discover boutique inns, craft shops and tea salons interwoven within the quiet town’s landscape; found in a wave of small, design-conscious renovated kominka that preserve the local architectural history and culture whilst adapting for the future.

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