14 Days in Japan, advise needed.

Hi there!

Great itinerary! Including a visit to Fukuoka is brilliant. Did you plan of visiting anything particular there? If you have the time be sure to check out one of the Yatai's (local food stalls).

Traveling traveling to the Mount Fuji Five Lakes does include railway travel on the Fujikyu line, which is privately owned and does not accept the JR Pass. The best way to get to Mount Fuji Five Lakes with the JR Pass is to travel from Tokyo to Otsuki and from there take the Fujikyu line, this last part is around 1,100yen.

A visit to Kobe and Himeji. You can certainly make a quick stop at Himeji just to view the castle and castle gardens. Kobe is a different story. Kobe city and surrounding area have a ton to offer in terms of attractions and sightseeing spots. If there is something specific you would wish that see that you should have enough time to visit it when you come from Himeji. However if you really want to get a good feel for Kobe a couple of days would be a better option.

Now to your questions:
1.) The route Fukuoka - Tokyo by JR Pass does involve one transfer at Shin-Osaka. The full route takes about 360 Minutes, including transfer time.

2.) Because of safety reasons, bullet trains operations shut down after midnight and resume the next morning around 6 A.M. This means that the last train will arrive at it's destination around 12 p.m. midnight. For instance if you want to take the last train from Tokyo - Kyoto, you would have to board the train around 9 p.m. to arrive around midnight.

I hope this helps!
Daniel

PS: When you look up Fukuoka in Hyperdia, search for Hakata station, which is the main station for Fukuoka.