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Tiger Beer · Joined: 08 Feb 2003 Posts: 778 Location: Hong Kong

Anyone get down to Okinawa? Is NAHA interesting in its own sake? How is Okinawa in winter? Is it better for summer or winter? Where are the better more popular beaches to visit?

mightyQ · Joined: 15 Nov 2008 Posts: 10

Okinawa is a great place to visit! Naha itself doesn't have a lot going on unless you really like okinawian food and culture. There is a lot more americanized shops and the food, even the fastfood, is very influenced by the bases and military personnel.

It's nice in the winter but too cool for the beach, I think beach season starts at the end of may. One of the best beaches I've ever been to, and I grew up in a beach town, is on Zamami Island! Only a short boat ride from Naha with plenty of people going for the day or staying in minshukus for a few days. Lots of divers go there even in winter!

Tiger Beer · Joined: 08 Feb 2003 Posts: 778 Location: Hong Kong

May....okay, that means a March trip I was thinking about, might be a bit boring.

I'd like to hit it right in peak season if there is one.

Is it also like the mainland, where July/August is when things REALLY get started? Then on September 1st, all the restaurants and stores on the beach close shop for the year?

Lyrajean · Joined: 19 Jul 2006 Posts: 109 Location: going to Okinawa

Okinawa is a good place to go if you like surfing, snorkeling, diving, fishing and other outdoor sports.

However, beaches are only open from mid-May to October.

Whale watching season is from February to April.

Winter temps are about 20degrees celcius in winter during the day and maybe as low as 15 at night. Quite comfortable, unless is it cloudy, gray and raining (i.e. cold and damp).

Since the American army flattened the place 60 some years ago it is not a great place to go to see historic culture,buildings temples etc... There are lots of local castle ruins but they are just that -stone ruins. Shuri-jo is a reconstruction done in the 1970s. Shinkanaen royal gardens are cool, but the buildings are all rebuilt. Unless you're interested in WWII history, then I recommend Yomitan (American landing site) and Himeyuri momument and museum and the Peace Memorial park (Mabuni beach).

There is a long touristy street in Naha called Kokusai dori. A bit touristy and crowded, but worth a day of browsing. There is also one of those covered arcades which has resisted the urge of such things to decay around the Heiwa dori.

There are a couple of theme parks that purport to show you real Okinawan culture, but I would skip those as they highly commercial and over-rated...

flyer · Joined: 16 May 2003 Posts: 539 Location: Sapporo Japan

re; above

it actually gets colder than 15 at night in mid-winter

I heard it does get down to single digits some days

Yes, okinawa is a great place to visit, but not much work! (unless you are US Military)

bad points? .... there is the monsoon and high humidity most of the year

womblingfree · Joined: 04 Mar 2006 Posts: 826

The first thing you notice on the bus from the airport are all the military vehicles around. Next thing you notice is that Naha's a pretty non-descript town that looks like it hasn't been finished yet.

Naha's a good place to base yourself though as there are regular ferries to the outlying islands. The islands are beautiful and hopping between them is one of my best memories of Japan.

There good things to do round Naha as well, some decent beaches reachable by bus and Shuri Castle spring to mind. The markets in Naha are pretty good and the food is wonderful.

There are many, many American sevicemen around the town though and they are not always welcome in clubs/bars at night due to past incidents. When I was there I had pretty long hair and was with some girls so I didn't have a problem. If you have a buzz-cut then you may have a problem.

Lyrajean · Joined: 19 Jul 2006 Posts: 109 Location: going to Okinawa

Tiger Beer · Joined: 08 Feb 2003 Posts: 778 Location: Hong Kong

So to go to Okinawa right now, in MARCH, it would be pretty dull and boring? I should be going in the summertime, right?

Apsara · Joined: 20 Sep 2005 Posts: 2142 Location: Tokyo, Japan

It depends what you are after really- I'm going to Ishigaki island (south of the main Okinawa island and much quieter) early next month and hope to go swimming, snorkelling, kayaking through mangroves, eat great food and generally laze around on the beach- doesn't sound boring to me, sounds like paradise.

I also see in the brochure I am looking at that from late May the prices of flights and accommodation start to go up- they have doubled their April prices by July and tripled by August- is price an issue? Also things tend to book out well in advance for summer, so start thinking about making reservations soon.