Okinawa, Japan: Ryukyu Kingdom History and the Pacific's Clearest Blue Water

Shuri Castle, the restored seat of the Ryukyu Kingdom, stands on a hill 4 kilometers east of Naha's port and is the most visited historical site in Okinawa. The original castle was destroyed in the 1945 Battle of Okinawa and rebuilt between 1992 and 2019; a fire in late 2019 damaged the main hall, which reopened in 2022. The complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site (together with eight other Ryukyuan sites on the island), and the architecture — distinctly different from Japanese mainland castle design, with Chinese-influenced red lacquer and stone gateways — reflects the kingdom's position as a trading intermediary between China, Japan, and Southeast Asia. The Shurei Gate at the castle's approach is the image most associated with Okinawa and is reproduced on the 2,000-yen note.

The Kokusai-dori (International Avenue), running 1.6 kilometers through central Naha from a point about 15 minutes' walk from the pier, is the island's main commercial street. It covers the full range from tourist shops selling shisa figurines and Okinawan glassware to clothing stores, restaurants, and pharmacies that serve residents. The side streets off Kokusai-dori — particularly the covered Heiwa-dori and Ichiba-dori market arcades — are more concentrated for local shopping: fresh produce, beni-imo (purple sweet potato) processed into everything from tarts to chips, awamori (Okinawan rice spirits distilled from Thai rice and aged in earthenware jars), Okinawan soba noodles, and the sea-vegetable products that define the local diet.

Cape Manzamo, on the west coast about 25 kilometers north of Naha, is a promontory of coral limestone eroded by the Pacific into formations that include a natural arch over the water and steep cliffs dropping directly to the sea. The cape is one of the most photographed natural features in Okinawa; the setting sun over the East China Sea here is reliable. The surrounding parkland has walking paths along the clifftops for about a kilometer in each direction. A car or taxi is necessary; the journey from Naha takes approximately 40 minutes.

The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium, 70 kilometers north of Naha in Ocean Expo Park, is one of the largest aquariums in the world, notable for its main tank — the Kuroshio Sea tank — which holds whale sharks, manta rays, and several thousand other fish in 7,500 cubic meters of water. The whale sharks have been maintained in captivity here since 1980 and are studied as part of ongoing research into the species. The tank's acrylic viewing panel, 8.2 meters high and 22.5 meters wide, gives an unobstructed view of the sharks swimming directly overhead. The aquarium is at the end of a long day excursion from the port; allow 5 hours for the round trip plus 2 hours inside. The surrounding Ocean Expo Park includes dolphin shows and a separate manatee section.

Okinawan cuisine is genuinely different from mainland Japanese food: goya champuru (bitter melon stir-fried with tofu, egg, and pork), rafute (braised pork belly slow-cooked in awamori and soy until the fat is gelatinous), and Okinawan soba (thick wheat noodles in a pork-and-kelp broth topped with braised pork ribs) are the defining dishes. The regional food hall in the Makishi Public Market, two blocks off Kokusai-dori, lets you select fresh seafood and have it cooked to order by the restaurants upstairs — the standard Okinawan market experience. Awamori, typically served with water and ice in a clay vessel, is the drink most specific to the island and is available by the glass at any izakaya near the market.