Beaches on Okinawa Main Island
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7119.html
While
Okinawa Honto is not considered to have the prefecture's very best beaches (these are found on smaller islands such as
Miyako),
it, nevertheless, has some attractive beaches where visitors can enjoy
the sun, sand and sea. See the list below for some of the island's best
beaches and snorkeling spots.
Cape Maeda
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Admission: Free, 100 yen per hour parking fee
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Cape Maeda is located in central Okinawa Honto and is the most popular
spot for snorkeling and diving on the island, often busy with groups of
snorkelers and divers. Maeda's popularity is well founded, as there is a
wide variety of marine life in the area, as well as a cave that you can
swim into. Good facilities are located at the site.
http://www.maedamisaki.jp/en/ |
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Odo Kaigan
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Admission: Free, no parking fees
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Odo Kaigan Coast (also known as John Man Beach) near the southern tip of
Okinawa Honto offers interesting snorkeling with smaller crowds of
people. While the marine life is not quite as dense as at Cape Maeda, a
wide variety of creatures and plants can be found. Odo Kaigan is mostly
rough and rocky, and facilities are limited.
Cape Maeda
Take bus
number 120 from Naha to Yamada bus stop (山田; 80 minutes, 1090 yen from
Naha Bus Terminal, morning departures only, or 90 minutes, 1180 yen from
Naha Airport; 2 buses/hour), from where Cape Maeda can be reached in a
20-30 minute walk. By car, it takes about 50 minutes (more during rush hours) from Naha if using the expressway between Naha and Ishikawa IC (650 yen one way).
Odo Kaigan
Take bus
number 89 from Naha Bus Terminal to Itoman Bus Terminal (糸満バスターミナル, 60
minutes, 580 yen, departures every 10 minutes) and transfer to bus
number 82. Get off at Seimei Byoin-mae (晴明病院前, 25 minutes, 430 yen, 1
bus/hour), from where the coast can be reached in a 10-15 minute walk.
By car, it takes about 45 minutes from central Naha.
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Snorkeling
Snorkeling is better on the small islands than on Okinawa Island. Especially
Tokashiki is ideal for a day trip from Naha with ferries leaving in the morning and returning in the evening.
Camping
There are
many campsites around Okinawa, some on nice beaches. They offer cheap
accommodation if you have your own tent and sleeping bag (and mat) for
¥500-1,000/night. Their facilities are sometimes very poor, they have
only cold shower for example (and they even charge you for using it!)
and no cooking/cleaning facilities. However they often rent out BBQ sets
(¥2,000-3,000) which can make the night unforgettable.
http://wikitravel.org/en/Okinawa
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Guest House Okinawa Monogatari
http://jino.me/2424
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https://zamamitouristinfo.wordpress.com/stay/ama-beach-campground/
Ama Beach Campground & Cabins
The campground has a base fee of 300 yen per person per night to use
the facilities (shower, toilets, community kitchen, etc.) Camping gear
is also available for rental as follows:
- Small Tent (1 person) 1000 yen per night
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http://wikitravel.org/en/Zamami
Camping
There is a
campground about a 15 minute walk from the ferry port on the beach with
toilet, shower and bbq facilities. They also have some camping
equipment to rent. The campground is in a grove of shady pine trees
right on the beach.
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8/13/16
https://booking.flypeach.com/en/flight_search?access_uuid=75cabffb-8447-4aff-b22b-29ed4213d9b9
Flights from Seoul to Tokyo (Haneda), Osaka 35,000 won each way 9/21-29
10 kg baggage allowed. No checked-in baggage.
https://booking.flypeach.com/en/flight_search?access_uuid=838b5a32-38a2-4bb9-89b9-ced4337b617c
9/21-29 Seoul to Okinawa 25,000 won each way
- Regarding carry-on baggage restrictions
- In addition to one personal item such as handbags, cameras
and umbrellas, passengers are allowed one item of carry-on baggage
(including souvenirs) to total 2 items, and the 2 items must weigh under
10 kg in total.
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Allergy season:
- Japanese cedar sugi (February - April)
- Japanese cypress hinoki (mid March - early May)
- Rice plant ine (May - mid July / mid August - mid October)
- Ragweed butakusa (mid August - October)
- Artemisia yomogi (mid August - October)
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Unlike mainland Japan,
Okinawa is immune from the problems caused from cedar tree pollen.
“There are no cedar trees on Okinawa that bother people like in the
mainland,” said Dr. Akira Yagi of the Yagi ENT Clinic in Naha.
Yagi said that Okinawa’s geographical features spare many people from problems.
“Pollen is easily blown away into the ocean because Okinawa is a
narrow, long strip of island and therefore breezy and at times very
windy,” he said.
http://www.stripes.com/news/for-allergy-sufferers-spring-isn-t-pretty-1.4027
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Okinawa air front changes cause allergic reactions
As the month of November unfolds, my nose becomes itchy and
runny and I’ve started to spontaneously sneeze. Initially, I thought it
was just me but from outside of my window I could hear a chorus that was
my entire neighborhood suffering from a similar onslaught of symptoms.
I noticed that the warm trade winds had stopped coming from the southern
direction in the fall, and the winds had begun swirling in from the
northwest direction. This means that instead of receiving beautiful
clean air from the southern Pacific Ocean, we are now receive our gusts
from the cold northern areas of China and Korea.
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The good news about pollen allergies…….. in Okinawa there are none!!!
That’s right Okinawa has no hay fever at all!! In fact some Japanese
people who suffer really bad travel to Okinawa during pollen season just
to get away from it.
http://www.okinawa-information.com/hay-fever-pollen-japan
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Some travelers avoid Okinawa during the peak typhoon
season for this reason. It's often possible to find travel deals to
Okinawa in August and September that represent a great value if you're
lucky and no typhoon shows up.
http://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/typhoon-season-in-japan
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Miyako Island (宮古島, Miyakojima), located 300 kilometers south of Okinawa Main Island and 100 kilometers north of the Yaeyama Islands, is known for some of Japan's best beaches
and as a great destination for snorkeling and diving in the coral
reefs. The sub tropical climate provides mild weather year around.
Sounds great, but too far...
http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e7300.html
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