3-Day Okinawa Itinerary

Our recent fall trip to Japan included an amazing 3-day Okinawa itinerary where we got to reconnect with Ryan’s Okinawan family roots. We spent a full three days in Okinawa discovering its history, culture and delicious food.

If you would like to experience a very different side of Japan, we highly recommend a trip to Okinawa to explore this unique and beautiful island!

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Okinawa in 3 Days – What you need to know

Table of Contents

Is 3 days in Okinawa enough?

In our opinion, three days in Okinawa is the minimum amount of time you should plan to spend here. We stayed a full three days and four nights, but we wished we could have stayed five days.

In three days, you can certainly see a lot but you won’t have any down time. You’ll be able to get a good taste of what this wonderful little island has to offer, but you’ll likely want to come back for more.

If we had visited during the warmer months, we would have definitely wanted an extra day or two to enjoy the beaches as well. However, since we visited in late fall, all the beaches were closed. That’s definitely something to consider when planning your Okinawa itinerary.

How to get to Okinawa

Okinawa is the southernmost island of Japan, located about 640km south of Kyushu. The island is actually closer to Taiwan than the rest of Japan, being only 500km north of Taiwan.

To get to Okinawa, you have two options: by plane or by boat. Most tourists fly to Okinawa for convenience, but for those looking for more of an adventure and have the extra time, taking the ferry is another option.

By airplane

Okinawa’s main airport is Naha International Airport. There are many domestic flights available from airports across Japan. ANA, Japan Airlines, and many budget airlines all operate flights to Naha.

We went with a Jetstar flight from Tokyo’s Narita Airport. From Tokyo, the flight takes around two and a half hours.

In addition to domestic flights, there are also a number of direct international flights. You can fly in from Taiwan, Hong Kong, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and South Korea.

By ferry boat

If you have the extra time, or if you would like to take a car, you can take a ferry from Kagoshima to Naha. The journey takes 25 hours and is not really any cheaper than flying.

There are two companies operating daily sailings to Naha: Marix Line and A Line. You can search availability and book online here.

The most affordable option is a second class ticket (Japanese-style shared room) for ¥14,880. If you prefer a Western-style private room with beds, first class rooms are available for ¥29,760-37,200 per person.

To bring a car, it costs about ¥88,000, so it would be cheaper to just rent one on arrival in Okinawa.

How to get around Okinawa

Okinawa is the smallest of Japan’s five main islands at only 106km long and about 11km wide on average. Although it is small, it is not well connected by public transportation. Within the city, it is easy to get around, but outside of Naha, your options are limited.

Car Rental

The best way to get around Okinawa (outside of Naha city) is by renting a car and driving yourself. Having a car allows you to visit all the amazing sights outside of the city at your own pace. There’s not much traffic on the roads so driving is not very difficult even if you’re not used to driving on the left-side of the road.

Since we were on a large family trip to Okinawa, we ended up chartering our own bus so that we could all ride together. However, if it had just been the three of us, we would have chosen to rent a car and drive ourselves.

Monorail and buses

Public transportation on Okinawa is nothing like the rest of Japan. If you are used to the wonderful rail system in Tokyo, you unfortunately won’t find that here.

Okinawa has only one rail system, a monorail, with 19 stations. It will get you from Naha Airport to the city centre, but not much further.

There is an extensive bus network across Okinawa but some routes don’t run very frequently, especially those outside of the city. You can find the full route list here.

Limousine buses are available from the airport to a number of hotels. You can check this list to see if your hotel is serviced by the limousine bus.

Taxi/Uber

Taxis and Ubers are readily available, and we found them to be more affordable than in Tokyo. We easily booked Ubers between the airport and Naha city centre, which only cost us ¥1,800 each way.

Where to stay for 3 days in Okinawa

Okinawa is a popular vacation destination for Japanese locals and other Asian tourists and therefore has an abundance of great resorts. You can have your pick of beach resorts, modern city hotels or long-term condo rentals, with price points to suit any budget.

Whether you stay in Naha city, the mid-island or north island, the island is small enough that you easily explore wherever you like without worrying too much about where you’re based out of (as long as you have a car).

We chose to stay right in Naha so that we had easy access to shops and restaurants within walking distance.

Luxury

Hotel Collective

This modern 5-star hotel is conveniently located right on Kokusai street, steps from fantastic restaurants and shops. It features a beautiful outdoor pool and a great breakfast buffet.

Read our full review of Hotel Collective!

Halekulani Okinawa

For a little piece of Hawaii in Japan, head to this luxurious oceanfront resort in central Okinawa. With gorgeous ocean views and five stunning swimming pools, this Hawaiian-branded hotel is sure to deliver an exquisite stay.

Mid-range

Orion Hotel Naha

This 3-star hotel is located right on popular Kokusai Street and just a 3-minute walk from the Makishi monorail station. Bonus: room fridges come with complimentary Orion beer – perfect for fans of this Japanese beer!

Budget

Lestel Naha

This 2-star guesthouse offers super affordable bunk bed dorms starting at only ¥2,400 per person. It’s conveniently located in the heart of Naha on a shopping street.

Now that we have the basics out of the way, let’s get to our itinerary! This is the exact itinerary we followed during our three days in Okinawa this past November.

Since it was the fall season, we did not include any beach or pool time in our Okinawa itinerary. Instead, we focused on cultural experiences, indulging in Japanese and Okinawan cuisine along the way.

We hope this family-friendly 3-day Okinawa itinerary inspires you and helps you plan your Okinawa trip!

Day One: Southern Okinawa & A Bit of History

The first full day of our Okinawa itinerary will have us learning a bit about Okinawa’s history and finishing off with some delicious food and shopping. We will remain in the southern part of the island, in and around Naha.

Okinawa World

After breakfast at the hotel, set off for a fun visit to Okinawa World. This is a theme park of sorts, with seven different attractions or “wonders”.

The highlight is walking through 850 metres of the 300,000-year-old Gyokusendo Cave where you can see impressive stalactites and stalagmites.

Note that once you enter into the cave you must walk the entire length of it to get to an exit. This can take some time as some walkways are narrow and it’s difficult to pass other tourists.

Another highlight is the Super Eisa Show which showcases this traditional Okinawan dance. It’s a very energetic and engaging 30-minute performance. Shows are offered three times per day at 10:30am, 12:30pm and 2:30pm.

There are also tropical orchards, traditional craft experiences within a replica Ryuku village, and a snake museum and snake show (11:30am, 1:30pm, and 3:30pm). You can also dress up in traditional dress and have photos taken.

You’ll want to budget about 3 hours here, at least, as there is a lot to see!

Tickets: ¥1,900/adult, ¥950/child (4-14 years) Book online on Klook
Hours: 9am-5:30pm daily

Lunch

Before leaving Okinawa World, enjoy lunch at one of the on-site restaurants. You can enjoy Okinawan soba at Nantoya, local beer and side dishes at Cafe Sango, or taco rice at Teahouse Sandanka.

Taco Rice at Okinawa World — Trying taco rice

There’s also Okinawan tea at Bukubuk Teahouse and fruit smoothies and ice cream at the fruit stands.

If you are part of a group, you can make a reservation for the Okinawan lunch buffet. We enjoyed the variety of dishes here.

Okinawa World Lunch Buffet — Lunch Buffet

Buffet Cost: ¥1,980/adult (12+), ¥1,200/children (6-11), ¥600/preschool kids (4-5)
Buffet Hours: 11:00am-3:00pm daily

Himeyuri Cenotaph and Peace Museum

Visit the Himeyuri Cenotaph honoring the 227 female high school students and teachers who were killed in the Battle of Okinawa.

The museum’s exhibits are informative and very moving. Even our 5-year-old daughter was very interested and moved by all the displays.

It’s a very sad part of Okinawa’s history, but important to learn about. You’ll want to budget about an hour of time for this museum.

Tickets: ¥450/adult, ¥250/high school student, ¥150/elementary & junior high students
Hours: 9:00am-5:25pm daily

Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum

Not far from Himeyuri Peace Museum is Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum. This war museum is perched on the hills overlooking the ocean.

This modern building spans two floors with a number of impressive exhibits, including a children’s exhibition room on the bottom floor.

Outside in the park you will find the Cornerstone of Peace. This is an avenue of stones with engravings of all the names of those who died in the Battle of Okinawa.

You’ll want to budget about one to two hours here.

Tickets: ¥300/adult, ¥150/child
Hours: 9:00am-5:00pm daily

Shopping at San-A Naha Main Place Mall

After the sombre, but educational museum visits, lighten the mood with some shopping.

We were told that San-A Naha Main Place Mall is a popular place for locals, so that is where we went. The supermarket here is a great place to pick up more affordable snacks and food items. If you’re looking for a souvenir or gift to bring home, purchase some Okinawan black sugar here!

In addition to the many local shops, you can also find a food court, cinema, and large selection of gachapon machines (aka capsule toys)!

Mall Hours: 9:00am-10:00pm daily

Dinner on Kokusai Street

There are so many great restaurants to choose from on Kokusai Street that it’s hard to decide on one! We walked up and down trying to figure out which one most appealed to us until we finally decided on ramen at Ichiran.

This popular little underground spot served up the best bowl of ramen we had in Japan!

It was one of my favourite meals of the whole trip. The experience of dining in the little isolated booths was super fun too.

Our daughter enjoyed it so much that she kept requesting to go back.

Prices were very reasonable too, starting at around ¥1,000.

Ichiran Hours: 10:30am-4:30am daily

If you’d prefer sushi instead, we highly recommend Sushiro.

We loved this conveyor belt restaurant and couldn’t believe how affordable it was (compared to back home in Canada!) We stuffed ourselves with sushi and our bill only came to ¥2,760 for the three of us.

Sushiro Hours: 11:00am-11:00pm Monday-Friday, 10:30am-11:00pm Saturday & Sunday

Another fun experience is the Kokusai Street Food Village where you can dine on little tables on the street and drink beer. It’s a lively little area if that’s the vibe you’re going for!

Street Food Village Hours: 12pm-12am daily

Blue Seal Ice Cream for dessert

Finish off your day with a local ice cream from Okinawa’s Blue Seal!

There are many shops located throughout Okinawa, including a few right on Kokusai Street.

Try the beni-imo or Okinawan salt cookie flavours for a real local taste.

Day Two: Cultural Experiences

For day two of our Okinawa itinerary, we will head off to enjoy some cultural experiences.

Shuri Castle

Start the day with a visit to Shuri Castle, which was once the palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom. Originally built in the 1300s, it has been burnt down multiple times, most recently in 2019.

The castle sits on a hill with great views over the city of Naha.

If you have kids with you, make sure to pick up one of the blank post cards at the entrance. Kids will have fun searching the castle grounds for the various stamps in order to complete the picture on the postcard.

Stamp Postcard at Shuri Castle — Completed postcard

Tickets: ¥400/adult, ¥300/high school student, ¥160/elementary & jr. high student, free for 6 and under
Hours: 8:30am-6:00pm (December-March), 8:30am-7:00pm (April-June, October-November), 8:30am-8:00pm (July-September)

Kimono Photos

There is a spot at Shuri Castle by the Shureimon Gate where you can rent kimonos and have your photo taken.

Our family had a lot of fun doing this and the photo was a great keepsake!

Lunch

There is a restaurant at Shuri Castle that serves Ryukyuan cuisine, open from 10am-5:00pm daily. This is an ideal spot to have lunch before heading off to the next destination.

Since we were a large group, we chose to dine at a nearby lunch buffet restaurant instead. We enjoyed the buffet at Grand Castle Dining within the DoubleTree Naha Shuri Castle Hotel.

If you’re in the mood for a buffet, this is another great option just 1km away from the castle.

Grand Castle Buffet Price: ¥3,500/adult, ¥1,800 (kids 6-12), free for kids 5 and under
Lunch Buffet Hours: 11:30am-3:00pm

Traditional bingata dyeing at Shuri Textile Museum – Suikara

After lunch, head to nearby Shuri Textile Museum for a fun hands-on experience! Here you can try traditional Okinawan bingata dyeing.

You’ll be taught by a local artist and create a lovely dyed tote bag to bring home with you as a souvenir.

We all had fun bringing out our creative sides and trying out this unique activity.

While waiting for your creation to dry, you can check out the textiles downstairs and even witness traditional weaving. There are a number of textiles for purchase but beware that the prices can be shockingly high.

Bingata Dye Experience Cost: ¥3,250 (for small tote bag) Reserve a slot online
Hours: 11:00am, 1:30pm, 2:30pm, 3:30pm

Stroll along Tsuboya Yachimun Pottery Street

Let’s continue with our artsy sides and check out the center of traditional Okinawan pottery, known as yachimun.

Tsuboya Yachimun Pottery street is just a short walk from busy Kokusai Street, but is much quieter and very charming.

Here you will find many studios with potters at work, galleries, and cafes.

You can also visit the Tsuboya Pottery Museum.

Museum Tickets: ¥350/adults, free for high school students and younger
Hours: 10am-6:00pm Tuesday-Sunday

Shop along Kokusai-dori

After wandering through the quaint alleyways of the pottery neighbourhood, continue along Kokusai Street and its side streets. If you are looking for some souvenirs to bring back home, now is a good time to search for them.

Even if you are not into souvenirs, it’s fun just getting lost in the side streets and people-watching.

Dinner at Suitenrou

Once you’re tired of shopping, head to Suitenrou on Kokusai Street. Here you can try traditional Okinawan cuisine in a lovely traditional setting.

Opt for one of the set menus so that you can try an array of delicious Okinawan dishes.

Suitenrou Hours: 11am-11pm daily, reservations can be made on the Suitenrou website

Indulge in some fluffy Japanese pancakes for dessert

Head to Mayonaka Sweets on Kokusai Street for some delectable fluffy Japanese souffle pancakes.

This is a small shop with a few tables, or you can take your order to go. It takes a bit of time for the pancakes to be prepared but just be patient. It’s worth it!

We ordered the mango pancakes to share and we gobbled them right up!

Hours: 11am-3am daily

Day Three: Northern Okinawa

For the third and final day of our Okinawa itinerary, we’ll head north where we’ll get to appreciate more of Okinawa’s beautiful scenery.

Visit Churaumi Aquarium

Start the day with a drive up to Churaumi Aquarium. Taking the expressway, it will take about an hour and a half.

Along the way, you’ll be able to see some of Okinawa’s beautiful coastline.

Churaumi Aquarium is one of the largest aquariums in the world. Its highlight is the humongous Kurushio Tank which houses the giant whale sharks and manta rays.

Aside from the aquariums, there’s also some fantastic kids’ playgrounds, beautiful Emerald Beach, a botanical garden, dolphin shows, cafes and gift shops.

Tickets: ¥2,180/adults (18+), ¥1,440/high school students, ¥710/children (6-15), free for under 6 – Purchase tickets online on Klook
Hours: 8:30am-6:30pm (8:00pm during peak season)

Lunch at Chura Hana Bettei

After a wonderful morning at Ocean Expo Park and Churaumi Aquarium, head to Chura Hana Bettei for a fantastic local Okinawan lunch.

Try some of their grilled chicken that they are known for or Okinawan soba. Alternatively, go for the set menu to sample many of the Okinawan dishes (which is what we did!)

Hours: 11am-3pm, 5-10pm Thursday-Tuesday (closed Wednesdays)

Make Sweet Potato Tarts at Okashigoten

After a traditional lunch, it’s time for some sweet treats. Head to Okashigoten (Onna branch) where you can make your own Okinawan beni-imo tarts!

Spend an hour learning how to make these famous Okinawan tarts.

While the tarts bake, you can check out the gift shop, beach, and have some ice cream.

Beach at Okashigoten Onna — The beach at Okashigoten

We found some great souvenirs here, enjoyed some ice cream, and savoured our freshly baked tarts! Each of us left with a box full of our handmade tarts. Such a fun experience.

Cost: ¥2,970/person
Tart Experience: 10am & 1pm, book online with Okashigoten
Store Hours: 9am-6pm daily

Visit Cape Manzamo

Next, head a bit further along the coast to the scenic Cape Manzamo.

This seaside cliff is popular for its views of the cobalt blue East China Sea and limestone rock formations. One of the cliffs even looks like an elephant with its trunk in the sea.

It’s a great photography spot and many people come here to catch the sunset.

Cafes at Cape Manzamo — Indoor shops at Cape Manzamo

There’s also a modern tourist facility with souvenir shops and restaurants.

Tickets: ¥100
Hours: 8:00am-6:00pm (November-December), 8:00am-7:00pm (January-March), 8:00am-8:00pm (April-October)

Eat some delicious sata andagi

Before leaving Cape Manzamo, you must head inside the building and visit Mitsuya Honpo for some tasty sata andagi!

If you’re unfamiliar with sata andagi, they are Okinawan donuts and are absolutely delicious. This shop has a number of flavours, such as beni imo, mocha, coconut and brown sugar.

These fried donut balls are crispy on the outside but soft on the inside and best eaten warm. I couldn’t stop eating them!

Hours: 10am-5:45pm

Churrasco Buffet Dinner at Hotel Collective’s Vision & Emotion

After driving back to Naha, finish off the day with a special churrasco dinner at Hotel Collective.

This Brazilian-style buffet is perfect for meat lovers and a fun dining experience.

Buffet Price: ¥8,800/adults, ¥4,000/elementary student, free for preschool
Hours: 5:30pm-9:30pm

We hope you’ve enjoyed this 3-day Okinawa itinerary and are inspired to visit this wonderful island. Even though Okinawa is usually considered a beach destination, we hope this itinerary shows you can enjoy it even during the colder months!

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