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The crystal blue sea
with white-sand beaches and colorful fishes dancing through corals
Shuri Castle, the castle of the King of Ryuku, registered as a World
Cultural Heritage
Okinawa, lying nearly halfway between Kyushu and Taiwan, consists
of more than 100 islands and isles of different sizes and is situated
at the southern extremity of the Japanese Archipelago. The climate
there is mild and comfortable to live, with temperatures not falling
below the springtime levels in Tokyo and Osaka even in winter.
On the islands grow gregariously tropical and semitropical plants,
like banyan trees, blooming one after another all the year round. The
features of Okinawa also include the inhabitation of many rare living
things, such as Iriomote wildcats registered as a natural monument and
living on the Iriomote-jima Island. The crystal blue sea with
white-sand beaches and colorful fishes dancing through coral attracts
vacationers as a holiday resort with many diving spots.
For about 400 years from the 15th century to the middle of the 19th
century, Okinawa had seen prosperity as the Kingdom of Ryuku, a
prosperous state independent of Japan's central government. Cultural
properties and conventions born through the intercourse with foreign
countries in those days still survive in such interesting forms as
artifacts and festivals, giving additional charm to Okinawa.
Especially, Shuri Castle (the castle of the King of Ryuku),
reconstructed in Naha City and registered as a World Cultural Heritage
in 1992, attracts many visitors.
Okinawa boasts of many traditional public-entertaining arts of its own
that have been handed down to this day, like the Ryukyu dance
gracefully performed by female dancers in red-patterned costume
expressing the feelings of a woman over her lover or husband, the
shishi-mai (lion dance) said to have been introduced from China and
performed with the mask of a lion with a colorful mane and the Eisa in
which a group of dancers dance to the accompaniment of soul-stirring
drums and shamisen (a three-stringed Japanese instrument).
Getting there
Two hours and 45 minutes to Naha Airport from Tokyo Haneda
Airport. Two hours and 10 minutes from Kansai International Airport.
Two hours and 15 minutes from Osaka Itami Airport. Twenty minutes to
Naha Bus Terminal from Naha Airport by bus.
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Central Okinawa
U. S. Military Facilities and Remains of Ryukyu Kingdom - Water
Front Popular Among Young People
The area between Urasoe, the northern neighbor of Naha, and
Yomitan-son Village in the central part of the Main Okinawa Island
is marked by a noticeable concentration of U.S. military facilities
including the Futenma Airfield and the Kadena Air Base, throughout
all of Okinawa. National Highway 58 is lined with drive-ins,
secondhand interior goods shops, shops dealing in used U.S. military
goods and others with English language signs.
Urasoe was the capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom for more than 200 years
from the mid-12th century to the early 15th century and the
political and cultural center of Okinawa before the capital was
transferred to Shuri. The Urasoe Castle in the city is of the
largest scale, along with the Shuri Castle in Naha, among all
castles in Okinawa. Remains of protective structures and a canal
with fences were found near the rock walls of the Urasoe Castle.
The Water Front Area at Chatan is a new amusement center popular
among young people. There is a great inflow of customers and
visitors to a large shopping center, beach, leisure land park,
American-style restaurants and other attractions in this area.
Many potters have moved to Yomitan in the past 30 years or so. They
have built the largest nobori kiln in Okinawa Prefecture. The place
where they work is known as the Village of Yachimun and pottery made
there is the major craft product of Yomitan-son.
Getting there
Two hours and 45 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Naha
Airport. Two hours and 10 minutes from Kansai International Airport.
Twenty minutes by bus from Naha Airport to the Naha bus terminal. An
hour and 20 minutes by bus from the Naha bus terminal to the Chatan
bus terminal. Fifty minutes to Futenma (Nakagusuku), and 45 minutes
to Chatan.
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Iriomote-jima Island
Semitropical island where Iriomote wildcats inhabit - Canoeing in
the river with thick mangroves
Iriomote-jima Island is the largest in the Yae-yama Islands that
lie 470 kilometers to the southwest of Okinawa Island and 18
kilometers to the west of Ishigaki-jima Island. Over 90 percent of
the island is covered with semitropical jungles. The special natural
monument, Iriomote wildcats, crowned eagles and other endangered
species of animals inhabit, and you can see another natural
monument, Sakishima-sappan, nipapalms and other rare plants.
In the basins of the Nakama-gawa River and Ura-uchi-gawa River with
thick growth of mangroves at the river mouths, there are cruising
courses for boats and canoes, from which you can enjoy the dynamic
virgin nature. There is Iriomote-jima-onsen Hot Spring, the
southernmost hot spring in Japan, where you bathe in a bathing suit.
You can go from the Mihara-shuraku village in the eastern end of
Iriomote-jima Island to the Yufu-jima Island by water buffalo-drawn
carriage. You can cross the shoal that is only 1 meter deep even at
high tide on a special water buffalo drawn carriage for 15 minutes
to the Yufu-jima Island. The entire Yufu-jima Island is a tropical
botanical garden. You can watch the birds, monkeys and other wild
animals at play among 40,000 palm trees and blooming hibiscuses.
Getting there
Three hours and 15 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport, or 3 hours
and 10 minutes from Osaka Kansai International Airport to Ishigaki
Airport. Take a ferry from Ishigaki Harbor to Iriomote-jima Ohara
Harbor. It takes 40 minutes.
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Ishigaki-jima Island
Coral of various colors
lying closely under the transparent water - The jungles of tropical
plants such as mangroves
Ishigaki-jima Island is the main island in the Yae-yama Islands,
which are about 420 kilometers southwest of Naha on the Main Okinawa
Island. The name of Ishigaki-jima is said to have been derived from
ishigaki (stone wall) with which the inhabitants of the island
surrounded their houses to protect them from typhoons. Yae-yama was
named after the appearance of the nineteen islands, large and small,
which looked like multi-layered (yae) mountains. Ishigaki-jima
Island is 90 kilometers around, and abounds in lots of mountains,
including Mt. Omoto-dake, 526 meters above sea level, the highest in
Okinawa.
There are lots of marine scenic spots on the island, such as Shiraho
noted to the world for the coral of various colors lying closely
under the transparent water, and Kabira Bay in which the blue of the
sea is said to be the brightest in Okinawa. Ninety percent of the
islanders live in Ishigaki. In the suburbs of the city, spread the
sugarcane fields, beyond which are the mountain areas containing Mt.
Omoto-dake. The green is deep, and in the jungles of tropical plants
such as mangroves, there live valuable living things unique to this
island.
On the sea about 4 kilometers to the southeast of the island, lies
Taketomi-jima Island, where there is a beautiful harmony of the red
roofs of the houses and the green of plantains and fukugi (a kind of
short evergreen tree), which produces an atmosphere of Okinawa in
old times. The sand beaches around Taketomi-jima Island are known as
one of the typical bathing places in Okinawa.
Getting there
Ishigaki Airport is about 3 hours 25 minutes from Tokyo Haneda
Airport, about 2 hours 50 minutes from Kansai-International Airport,
and about 1 hour from Naha Airport.
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Miyako-jima Island
Coral reefs, strange rocks, and milky-white beaches - Transparent
water and marine sports
Miyako-jima Island is the main island in the Miyako Islands
lying about 300 kilometers to the southwest of the Main Okinawa
Island. This main island is a flat island like a low plateau, which
consists of elevated coral reefs which rose with the bottom of the
sea after the coral reefs had grown. Much of the arable land is
sugarcane field. With transparent water, the beaches are most
suitable for marine sports like diving. It is known for the
triathlon race held in early summer and pro baseball's spring
training camps which are held every year.
There are seven islets around the island. Two of them, Ikema-jima
and Kurima-jima Islets, are connected with a long bridge, and you
can enjoy sightseeing by a rent-a-car or rent-a-cycle.
Irihen'na-zaki Point projecting from the northern tip of the island
commands a vast view of Ikema-jima Island to the north, Irabu-jima
Island to the west, and coral reefs below. At the east end of the
island, projects Agarihen'na-zaki Point, 2 kilometers long and 200
meters wide, where you can enjoy a wonderful sight of strange rocks
standing in line on the coral reef sea. Beautiful beaches such as
Yonaha-maehama and Suna-yama Beaches, which have milky-white shores
and are suitable for swimming in, are one of the charming points of
Miyako-jima Island.
In Yonaha-maehama, is a theme park, Ueno German Culture Village,
which imitates Stade in Germany, a sister city of Ueno-son, which
attracts a lot of visitors.
Getting there
Miyako Airport is 3 hours 15 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport,
and 2 hours 35 minutes from Kansai-International Airport.
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Naha
Outer Port
of Shuri, Capital of Ryukyu Kingdom - Gourmet Town and Cultural
Center of Okinawa
Naha in the southern part of the Main Okinawa Island, is the
political, economic and traffic center of Okinawa. Kokusai-dori
Avenue is the most crowded place in Naha, the largest city in
Okinawa. This street, about 1.6 kilometers long, is lined with
department stores, souvenir shops, movie theaters, restaurants and
coffee shops, and there is heavy traffic all day long. The Makishi
Public Market is located on the Main Market Street running south
from a halfway point on Kokusai-dori Anvenue. The market, the
kitchen of Naha, is always full of energy and excitement.
Naha once prospered as the outer port of Shuri, Capital of the
Ryukyu Kingdom. In those days, Naha had much trade with China and
Southeast Asia. Among the major remains of the Ryukyu Kingdom are
the Shuri Castle, the ruins of the Enkaku-ji Temple, which is the
head temple of the Okinawa Rinzai Sect, and Tama-udon, the tombs of
Kings of Ryukyu. Placed in a cave excavated through natural rocks,
these tombs are of a grand scale and in a style unique to Okinawa.
Shurei-mon, a grand gate, is also a sight to see. It is depicted on
the face of the 2,000-yen bank note. Tsuboya, a pottery village with
a history more than 300 years long, is crowded with pottery
enthusiasts.
Getting there
Two hours and 45 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Naha
Airport. Two hours and 10 minutes from Kansai International Airport.
Two hours and 15 minutes from Osaka Itami Airport. Twenty minutes by
bus from Naha Airport to the Naha bus terminal.
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Northern Okinawa
No. 1 Beach Resort Area in Okinawa - Home of Yambaru-kuina
The western coast running from On'na-son in a northern part of
the Main Okinawa Island to the base of the Motobu-hanto Peninsula is
the largest beach resort area in Okinawa, with an array of big
hotels along the sunny typical subtropical beach. The area offers
many tourist spots and attractions including scenic spots like Manza-mo
Point and Maeda-misaki Point, the Ryukyu Village where a traditional
farming village in Okinawa was reproduced and an underwater tour in
the tourist submarine Mogurin.
The area to the north of Nago, called Yambaru, is in a subtropical
zone and made up of mountains and hills covered with primeval
forests. It is the home of Noguchigera, a woodpecker confined to
this area designated as a Special Natural Monument, and
Yambaru-kuina, a rare bird designated as a Natural Monument.
Trekking along a clear stream of river amid primeval forests is very
popular. At times, trekkers have to wade in waist-deep water.
Yambaru Subtropical Park and Ryukyu Castle Butterfly Park where
varied subtropical plants and insects can be seen are located in the
Motobu-hanto Peninsula jutting out from western Yambaru. These parks
are major tourist spots in northern Okinawa.
Getting there
Two hours 45 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport to Naha Airport.
Two hours 10 minutes from Kansai International Airport. Twenty
minutes by bus from Naha Airport to the Naha bus terminal. An hour
30 minutes by bus from the Naha bus terminal to On'na-son Yakubamae
bus stop (Manza-mo). An hour 20 minutes to Maeda-misaki Point.
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Southern Okinawa
Limestone cave boasting its most beautiful scene in Asia - Spots
with lots of sacred places and ruins of castles
The southern part of the Main Okinawa Island, which is also
called Shimajiri, is the place of Okinawa's foundation, where many
places of scenic beauty and historical interest remain, including
Shuri Castle, the castle of successive kings of the Ryukyu Kingdom,
and Tamaudon, the burial place of the successive kings, which is a
grand stone building with three grave rooms laid out on a rock face.
This area is also the site of a hard-fought battle in the Second
World War, and there are lots of memorials to war victims.
Itoman at the southernmost end of Okinawa is well known for agya
cornering fishing peculiar to Itoman and the Dragon Boat Race (Hari)
in early summer. In the city, there is an industrial art village for
Ryukyu glass and lacquer ware, in which you can take part in the
process.
In Tamagusuku-son Village, is Gyokusen-do Kingdom Village, which is
a great theme park containing Gyokusen-do, a very beautiful
limestone cave, a tropical orchard, and a traditional entertainment
spot.
Getting there
Naha Airport is 2 hours 45 minutes from Tokyo Haneda Airport,
and 2 hours 10 minutes from Kansai-International Airport. Then take
a bus from the Naha Bus Terminal to the Itoman Bus Terminal, which
takes 30 minutes, and to Chinen, which takes 1 hour.
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Information
provided by Japan National Tourist Organization.
