Okinawa: Naha, the Kerama Islands, Ishigaki, Iriomote and Taketomi

1. Day 1: Arrive in Naha

   Naha Airport (OKA) to your hotel in central Naha

   • Drive about 18 min
   • Dinner
   • Stay in Naha
   Day 1 details

   Fly into Naha Airport (OKA), usually through Tokyo, Osaka or another Japanese hub, and our driver meets you in arrivals for the short drive, about 20 minutes, into the centre. Naha is the capital of Okinawa Prefecture and the old port of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which traded with China, Japan and Southeast Asia for centuries before Japan annexed it in 1879. The afternoon is free: walk Kokusai-dori, the main shopping street, or duck into the covered arcades behind it. In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing on the week, the boat days, what to pack for snorkelling and how we handle wind and ferry changes. Then we sit down together to a welcome dinner of Okinawan home cooking: goya champuru with bitter melon and tofu, rafute pork belly slow-cooked in awamori and soy, and sea grapes.

   Included

   • Pick-up at Naha Airport (OKA)
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Welcome dinner of Okinawan dishes

   Free time: Free until the early-evening briefing

2. Day 2: Shuri at opening, the market and Tsuboya

   Naha to Shuri and back, then the Makishi market and Tsuboya pottery street

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Naha
   Day 2 details

   We drive up to Shuri for opening time (about 8:00 to 8:30, confirmed at booking because the main hall rebuild changes which areas open when), before the tour groups, and walk in through the Shureimon gate. Shuri Castle was the seat of the Ryukyu kings and is part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing, the Gusuku Sites of the Kingdom of Ryukyu. Its main hall burned in October 2019 and has been rebuilt by traditional methods, with completion scheduled for 2026, so depending on your date you see the finished hall or the last stage of the work. From the castle we walk down the Kinjo-cho stone-paved lane, shaded by old trees and coral-stone walls, and visit Tamaudun, the 16th-century royal mausoleum. Back in town, lunch is at the Makishi Public Market: choose your fish downstairs and have it cooked upstairs. After lunch, walk the potters' workshops of Tsuboya, a pottery quarter since the late 17th century. The rest of the day is yours.

   Included

   • Shuri Castle Park at opening with your guide, including the paid area
   • The Kinjo-cho stone-paved lane
   • Tamaudun royal mausoleum
   • Lunch at the Makishi Public Market, fish chosen downstairs and cooked upstairs
   • Tsuboya pottery street

   Easier option: Ride down from the castle in the van instead of walking the Kinjo-cho lane, which is steep and can be slippery after rain.

   Free time: Late afternoon and evening free in Naha

   Activity: About 5 to 6 km on foot, with steps at the castle and a steep cobbled descent on the Kinjo-cho lane.

   

3. Day 3: A day on the water in the Kerama Islands

   Naha port to the Kerama Islands by snorkel boat and back

   • Drive about 18 min
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Naha
   Day 3 details

   A short drive to the port, then a licensed local snorkel boat takes us west to the Kerama Islands, a scatter of small islands about 40 km from Naha that became a national park in 2014. The water here is clear and a deep, bright blue, and the skipper picks two or three reef sites for the conditions of the day. Sea turtles are often seen grazing on the seagrass, though nothing is promised. Masks, fins, wetsuits and floats are provided, and the crew give a short briefing before anyone gets in. Between swims we stop at a sheltered spot or a beach for lunch, and there is time to dry off and warm up on deck. We are back in Naha by late afternoon, salty and sun-tired, with the evening free to find an izakaya or to rest at the hotel before tomorrow's unhurried drive south.

   Included

   • Full-day snorkel boat to the Kerama Islands National Park with a licensed local operator
   • Mask, fins, wetsuit and float
   • Lunch on the boat day

   Easier option: Stay on deck or on the beach stop and watch the reef from the surface with a float; the trip is worth it from the boat.

   More active option: Extra time in the water at each site with the boat crew, for confident swimmers.

   Free time: Evening free in Naha

   Activity: Boat days depend on wind and sea. If the Kerama boat cannot sail, we move it to another Naha day and bring the Peace Memorial Park forward.

   

4. Day 4: The Peace Memorial Park, then fly to Ishigaki

   Naha to the Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Park at Mabuni, then Naha Airport and a flight to Ishigaki

   • Drive about 2 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Ishigaki
   Day 4 details

   This morning is quieter by design. We drive about 45 minutes south to Mabuni in Itoman, where the Battle of Okinawa ended in June 1945 after nearly three months of fighting that killed soldiers on both sides and a very large number of Okinawan civilians. The Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Park sits on the clifftop above the sea. Your guide walks you through the Cornerstone of Peace, rows of black granite engraved with the names of more than 240,000 people of every nationality who died, and then gives you time in the Peace Memorial Museum, which tells the story largely through survivors' own words. There is no rush and no commentary over the quiet spots. After lunch nearby we drive to Naha Airport for the afternoon flight to Ishigaki, about an hour south-west, and transfer to our hotel near the ferry terminal.

   Included

   • Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Park with your guide: the Cornerstone of Peace and the Peace Memorial Museum
   • Lunch in the south of Okinawa Island
   • Flight from Naha (OKA) to Ishigaki (ISG)
   • Transfer to your hotel in Ishigaki

   Free time: Evening free in Ishigaki

   Activity: The museum covers civilian deaths in detail; your guide will tell you what is ahead so you can choose how much to see. The afternoon flight to Ishigaki is booked at a fixed time, so the Mabuni visit is planned back from it and never runs late into the airport transfer.

   

5. Day 5: Kabira Bay early, then an Ishigaki reef

   Ishigaki town to Kabira Bay and the Tamatorizaki viewpoint, then a reef snorkel boat

   • Drive about 1.5 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Ishigaki
   Day 5 details

   We leave after an early breakfast and drive about 30 minutes north-west to Kabira Bay, a nationally designated place of scenic beauty, to see it before the midday tour buses. Swimming is not allowed in the bay because of currents and boat traffic, so we see the coral and fish from a glass-bottom boat, then walk the white-sand shore and the pine-shaded viewpoint above it. Black pearls are farmed here, and the small islands in the bay sit in water that turns green and turquoise with the tide. On the way round the island we stop at Tamatorizaki, a short hill path with a wide view over the east coast. After lunch near Kabira, a licensed local snorkel boat takes us out to the reef, to sites chosen for the day's wind; manta rays are seen here in season, but not on every trip. The evening is free.

   Included

   • Kabira Bay with your guide, including a glass-bottom boat
   • Tamatorizaki viewpoint
   • Lunch near Kabira
   • Afternoon reef snorkel boat with a licensed local operator, gear included

   Optional experiences

   • A sail in a sabani, the traditional Okinawan wooden fishing boat, where a local operator runs one that week (booked ahead, paid locally)

   Easier option: Skip the snorkel boat and spend the afternoon on the beach or back at the hotel; the van returns to town after lunch.

   Free time: Evening free in Ishigaki

   Activity: Swimming is not allowed in Kabira Bay itself. The snorkel boat runs in open water with floats provided. If the snorkel boat cannot sail, the afternoon becomes a beach and town afternoon, and we move the reef trip to another Ishigaki day if seas allow.

   

6. Day 6: Iriomote: mangroves by kayak and the Yubu buffalo cart

   Ishigaki port to Iriomote by ferry, a mangrove kayak and Yubu island, then back to Ishigaki

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Ishigaki
   Day 6 details

   A short walk to the remote-island ferry terminal and a high-speed ferry of about 40 to 50 minutes to Iriomote, an island almost entirely covered in subtropical forest and mangrove and part of a UNESCO natural World Heritage listing since 2021. A licensed local guide meets us and sets us up in stable sit-on-top kayaks on one of the island's mangrove rivers, chosen for the tide. We paddle slowly upstream under the roots and canopy, with stops to look for crabs, mudskippers and kingfishers, and finish with a short forest walk. Lunch is on the island. In the afternoon we cross the shallow strait to tiny Yubu island in a cart pulled by a water buffalo, the way islanders have crossed for generations, and walk its botanical garden before the ferry back to Ishigaki. The Iriomote wildcat lives only here, but it is very rarely seen.

   Included

   • Return high-speed ferry Ishigaki to Iriomote
   • Guided mangrove kayak with a licensed local guide, about 2 to 3 hours on the water, and a short forest walk
   • Lunch on Iriomote
   • Water-buffalo cart crossing to Yubu island

   Easier option: Take a river cruise boat through the mangroves instead of the kayak, and meet the group for lunch.

   More active option: When seas allow the ferry to the north of the island, swap the river kayak for the longer paddle and jungle walk to Pinaisara Falls, the highest waterfall in Okinawa (about 6 hours, booked ahead).

   Activity: About 2 to 3 hours of paddling in calm, tidal water; no kayaking experience needed. The kayak river and route depend on tide and the island's current visitor rules.

   

7. Day 7: Taketomi by buffalo cart

   Ishigaki port to Taketomi by ferry and back

   • By ferry
   • Breakfast and dinner
   • Stay in Ishigaki
   Day 7 details

   We take an early ferry, about 10 to 15 minutes, to Taketomi so the village is ours before the day-trip peak. Taketomi is a small, flat coral island, and its single village is a nationally protected district of traditional buildings: low houses with red-tiled roofs, shisa lion-dogs on the eaves, white sand lanes and walls of grey coral stone with hibiscus spilling over them. We see it first from a cart pulled by a water buffalo, whose driver often plays the sanshin and sings as the cart creaks along. Then you can walk or cycle the lanes at your own pace, out to Kondoi Beach for the shallow turquoise water or to Kaiji Beach to look for star sand. We are back in Ishigaki by early afternoon, which is yours. In the evening we meet for a farewell dinner of Yaeyama dishes.

   Included

   • Return ferry Ishigaki to Taketomi
   • Water-buffalo cart ride through Taketomi village
   • Taketomi visitor support fee
   • Farewell dinner in Ishigaki

   Optional experiences

   • Bicycle hire on Taketomi, paid locally

   Easier option: Stay with the cart and a short walk in the village; the island is flat and small.

   More active option: Cycle round the island, about 9 km on quiet lanes, with stops at Kondoi and Kaiji beaches.

   Free time: Afternoon free in Ishigaki

   Activity: If wind cancels the Taketomi ferry, we swap this day with the Kabira day or the Iriomote day, and the farewell dinner stays in Ishigaki either way.

   

8. Day 8: Ishigaki and home

   Ishigaki town to New Ishigaki Airport (ISG)

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast
   Day 8 details

   A slow last morning. Walk to the Ishigaki public market for local sweets and island chilli oil, have a last swim or coffee by the harbour, or simply pack without hurrying. Your guide arranges the timing of the transfer with each of you, and our driver takes you about 30 minutes to New Ishigaki Airport (ISG), on the island's east coast. Most flights home connect through Naha, Tokyo or Osaka, so leave yourself a comfortable connection. If you are carrying on to the mainland, our Japan trips from Tokyo or Fukuoka start well from here, and we can quote extra nights in Naha or Ishigaki before or after the trip. Your guide sees you off at the hotel or the airport before saying goodbye.

   Included

   • Transfer to New Ishigaki Airport (ISG)

   Free time: Morning free in Ishigaki

   Activity: Book a flight out of Ishigaki leaving after about 11 am, and allow at least 2 hours for any connection in Naha, Tokyo or Osaka.

Wildlife and weather: April to June and October to November are warm, with sea temperatures from the low to high 20s Celsius; May and June bring the rainy season and occasional rough seas, and early autumn can still bring typhoons. Sea turtles are often seen in the Keramas and manta rays off Ishigaki in season, but no sighting is promised.

• Naha3 nights
• Ishigaki4 nights