Japan
Naha
Naha: The Ryukyu Kingdom's Capital and Okinawa's Living Culture
Naha is the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, Japan's southernmost, on the East China Sea coast of Okinawa Island, and was for centuries the commercial port of the Ryukyu Kingdom. Almost everything old was lost in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945, so the castle and many historic sites are careful reconstructions. Summers are hot and humid and typhoons are most likely from July to September, so watch the forecast.
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What Cruise Travelers Should Know About Naha
Cruise ships use the Naha Cruise Terminal, at berth 8 of Tomari Wharf in the Wakasa district of the city. It is separate from Tomarin, the Tomari ferry terminal, so check with your ship how transport into the center is arranged on your day.
- Naha's main shopping street, Kokusai Street, runs for about 1.6 km through the center and is the starting point for most visits.
- The Yui Rail monorail links Naha Airport, the city center and Shuri, and avoids Naha's traffic.
- Ferries to the Kerama Islands leave from Tomari Port, about 10 minutes' walk from Miebashi monorail station.
- Prices are in Japanese yen, and Japan is still largely a cash society; cash machines at 7-Eleven stores and post offices take some foreign cards.
Naha on Your Own
A good day on your own in Naha combines Kokusai Street and the Makishi market in the center with a monorail ride up to Shuri Castle. Your ship will tell you how passengers reach the center from the terminal; from there the monorail and your feet cover the rest.
- Kokusai Street and the market: Makishi Public Market, about 150 meters off Kokusai Street along Ichiba-hondōri, sells fish, meat and produce downstairs, and the eateries upstairs will cook what you buy below.
- Tsuboya: The pottery district's Yachimun Street is about a 5-minute walk from the Don Quijote store on Kokusai Street.
- Shuri Castle: Take the Yui Rail to Shuri station, then walk about 10 minutes to the castle park. Check what is open on your date before you go.
- Fukushūen: A Chinese garden built in 1992 with stone and wood from Fuzhou, in the Kume area where Chinese scholars once lived.
- Getting back on time: If you are on a port call, all-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own. All-aboard is given in ship's time, which may not match the local clocks or your phone.
- Carry your passport: In Japan you must carry your passport at all times, and the police can arrest you if you cannot show it.
Getting Around Naha
The Yui Rail monorail is the way to cross Naha, because Kokusai Street and the main roads are chronically congested. Buses and taxis cover the rest of Okinawa Island.
- The monorail runs 17 km from Naha Airport to Tedako-Uranishi in about 37 minutes, with stations near both ends of Kokusai Street.
- Single tickets are sold from machines; children under 12 pay half fare, and up to two children under 6 ride free with each adult.
- One-day and two-day passes, valid for 24 or 48 hours from purchase, give unlimited rides and a discount at the Shuri Castle ticket gate.
- The monorail stops running when winds exceed 25 meters per second, usually when a typhoon is near.
- On Sunday afternoons most of Kokusai Street is closed to traffic and becomes a pedestrian street.
What to Eat in Naha
Okinawan cooking draws on Chinese and Southeast Asian influences and on the years of American administration, and pork, bitter melon and noodles are at its heart. The Makishi market and the streets around Kokusai Street are the places to try it.
- Okinawa soba: A noodle soup, somewhat like udon, often topped with stewed pork ribs as soki soba.
- Gōyā champurū: A stir-fry made with bitter melon.
- Rafute: Pork belly stewed in soy sauce.
- Awamori: Okinawa's own distilled spirit.
Tipping in Japan
Tipping is not part of Japanese culture, and money left on a restaurant table is likely to be brought back to you. Some Western-style hotels and restaurants add a 10 percent service charge to the bill instead.
- Prices are in Japanese yen (¥).
- Tour guides and interpreters are an exception where a tip may be given; hand it over in an envelope, and never leave cash on a table.
- Pay at the counter when you leave a restaurant rather than leaving money on the table.
Shuri Castle, Ryukyu Arts, and the Makishi Market
Okinawan culture grew from centuries of trade with China, Japan and Southeast Asia, and Naha shows it in its castle, its crafts and its market. Look for the pairs of lion-dog figures, shisa, on roofs and gateposts all over the city.
- Shisa: The guardian figures come in pairs, traditionally one with its mouth open to drive away evil spirits and one with its mouth closed to keep good spirits in.
- Tsuboya ware: Okinawan pottery made in Naha's Tsuboya district since 1682, noted for its enamel decoration.
- Naminoue Shrine: The prefecture's principal shrine sits on a high bluff above Naminoue Beach; the site was sacred in Ryukyuan religion before it became a Shinto shrine.
- Tamaudun: The 1501 royal mausoleum in Shuri, with three stone chambers backed by a cliff, is part of the World Heritage Site.
- Kokusai Street: The name, "International Street," comes from the Ernie Pyle International Theater, a cinema opened beside the road in 1948 as the city rebuilt after the war.
A Brief History
Naha was the trading port of the Ryukyu Kingdom, which unified Okinawa in 1429 with its capital at Shuri, prospered as a tributary of Ming China, and fell under the control of the Satsuma domain in 1609. Japan annexed the kingdom in 1879, and Naha and Shuri were almost destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945.
- 1429: King Shō Hashi completed the unification of Okinawa Island and made Shuri Castle his capital, while Naha grew as the kingdom's port.
- 1501: King Shō Shin built Tamaudun, the stone mausoleum of the kings of the Second Shō Dynasty, near Shuri Castle.
- 1609: The Satsuma domain of southern Kyushu invaded and captured King Shō Nei, and Ryukyu became its vassal while keeping its ties with China.
- 1682: Okinawan potters began working in Tsuboya, where Tsuboya ware is still made.
- 1850s: Commodore Matthew Perry's American squadron called at Naha on its way to Japan.
- 1872 to 1879: Japan declared the kingdom the Ryukyu Domain in 1872 and abolished it in 1879, creating Okinawa Prefecture with Naha as its capital.
- 1945: The Battle of Okinawa began on April 1 and lasted about 81 days, and Shuri Castle, used as a Japanese command post, was destroyed.
- 1972: Okinawa returned to Japanese rule after the American occupation.
- 1992 to 2019: The castle's main buildings were rebuilt from 1992 and listed as part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000; a fire in October 2019 destroyed the main hall again, and rebuilding began in 2020.
- To learn more ashore: The Okinawa Prefectural Museum and Art Museum, at 3-1-1 Omoromachi, covers Okinawa's history and natural history alongside an art museum, with audio guides in English.
Naha with Children and Families
Naha works well with children if you use the monorail and avoid the midday heat in summer. Mix one historic site with the market and the beach.
- Younger children: The monorail itself is a treat, and up to two children under 6 ride free with an adult. Naminoue Beach is the city's own beach, below the shrine.
- School age: Shuri Castle Park lends strollers free of charge, and the castle gates, walls and rebuilt halls make a good introduction to the Ryukyu Kingdom.
- Teenagers: At the Makishi market, pick fish downstairs and have it cooked upstairs, then walk to the Tsuboya pottery lanes to watch the craft.
- Heat and storms: Japanese summers are very hot and humid, and the typhoon season runs from June to December, peaking from July to September.
Accessibility in Naha
Shuri Castle Park is hilly and paved with stone, and the nearest monorail stops to Kokusai Street are Kenchō-mae, Miebashi and Makishi. Ask your cruise line about step-free transport from the cruise terminal.
- Shuri Castle Park has many stone-paved slopes, steps and inclines, and it marks a barrier-free route through the grounds.
- Wheelchairs and strollers can be borrowed free of charge at the park's information desks.
Shopping in Naha
Kokusai Street is Naha's main shopping street and is now lined mostly with shops and restaurants for visitors; for everyday local shopping, turn off it into the covered arcades of Heiwa-dōri and the Makishi market. Tsuboya is the place for pottery.
- Makishi Public Market reopened in a rebuilt three-story building in March 2023, on its original site at Matsuo 2-10-1.
- Look for Tsuboya ware and shisa figures in the pottery district's shops.
- Awamori, Okinawa's own distilled spirit, is another local buy.
Okinawa's Beaches
Naha has one city beach, Naminoue, below the shrine on its bluff; it is clean, but the swimming area can be limited by season and weather. For clearer water, the Kerama Islands are a ferry ride away from Tomari Port.
- Naminoue Beach is straight down toward the sea from the southern end of Kokusai Street.
- The Kerama Islands, about 15 miles west of Okinawa, are known for snorkeling and diving, and Zamami for whale watching.
- Ferries to Tokashiki, Zamami and Aka leave from Tomari Port, where tickets are sold on the first floor of the Tomarin building.
- Some Japanese beaches and pools do not admit people with visible tattoos, or ask that they be covered.
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