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Nature Spots in Yaeyama Islands Area

Area

  • Taketomi Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Taketomi
    Taketomi Island is one of the Yaeyama Islands in Okinawa Prefecture, which has a circumference of about nine kilometers. It is about six kilometers from Ishigaki Island which is the center of Yaeyama and it takes about 10 minutes to get there by ferry. It is a beautiful island where you can strongly get a feeling of typical Okinawa, such as the white sand on the red tiled roof of private residences and the brightly colored flowers typical of the south. On the west side of the island, there is Kaiji Beach which is famous for “Hoshizuna” (star sand), which is one of Yaeyama’s most popular tourist destinations.
    Taketomi Island image
  • Hateruma Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Hateruma
    This is the southern-most inhabited island in Japan, which is one of the Yaeyama Islands in Okinawa Prefecture. There are three monuments lined up on the cliffs of Cape Takanazaki which are located at the southernmost tip of the island—a monument of the southernmost point in Japan, a monument of Hateruma and a monument of peaceful prayers. This island is also famous as you due to its low latitude are able to observe the Southern Cross. The Star Observatory Tower has a planetarium and a 200 millimeters refractorial telescope, and it is also possible to observe craters on the moon. It is popular with tourists seeking a beautiful starlit sky.
    Hateruma Island image
  • Yonaguni Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Yonaguni-cho
    This is the westernmost island of Japan. There is a lighthouse and a viewing platform at the cape which is at the most eastern part of the island where you can get an unbroken view of the cobalt blue sea. Also in Irizaki, there is a monument of the westernmost point in Japan. If the weather conditions are right, you can see a silhouette of Taiwan in the distance. It was also the setting for the drama series, “Dr. Koto Shinryojo”; even now the set used for filming remain there.
    Yonaguni Island image
  • Ida no Hama (Beach)
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Iriomote
    Ida Beach is located in Funauki on the southwestern part of Iriomote Island. With crystal clear seas and a wide shallow sandy beach, it is also a popular place to bring children for sea bathing. As a result of there being no roads leading to Funauki, the only way to reach is to take a ferry (approximately 10 minutes) from the port of Shirahama. Ida Beach is about 10 minutes on foot from the port of Shirahama.
    Ida no Hama (Beach) image
  • Mariyudu Waterfall
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Uebaru
    Mariyudu Waterfall is located upstream of the Urauchi River on Iriomote Island in Okinawa Prefecture, which has been selected as one of the 100 best Japanese waterfalls. Mari means “round” and Yudu means “Stagnation”, and as this name suggests, one of its characteristic is that the basin under the waterfall is round. You will arrive at the waterfall by walking about 40 minutes through the jungle from the sightseeing boat’s upstream docking station, but be careful as it can be slippery.
    Mariyudu Waterfall image
  • Kaiji Beach
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Taketomi
    Kaiji Beach is a beautiful beach on Taketomi Island which is famous as you can find star sand on it. It is also known as the “star sand beach”. It is also good to walk and search for star sand and gaze at the cobalt blue sea from the shade of the Hasuno clover trees. However, swimming is prohibited due to strong currents.
    Kaiji Beach image
  • Cape Takanazaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Pref. Yaeyamaguntaketomichou Hateruma
    Cape Takanazaki is located to the south-east of Hateruma Island. It is a cape pounded by wild waves with a coast of sheer cliffs extending for roughly one kilometer. It is a picturesque place where you can enjoy the force of the waves which rise with a splash and the clear cobalt blue sea right in front of your eyes. There are three monuments lined up, a monument of the southernmost point in Japan, a monument of Hateruma and a monument of peaceful prayers. As there is also a Star Observatory Tower nearby, you can also enjoy the starlit sky at night.
    Cape Takanazaki image
  • Cape Irizaki & Monument of the Westernmost Point of Japan
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Yonaguni Machihisa BuRyo
    Yonaguni Island is located at the westernmost end of Japan. The cape at the westernmost extremity of the island is Irizaki, and on a sunny day, you can command a view of the silhouette of Taiwan in the distance. Built on the leading edge of the cape with its sheer cliffs of more than 50 meters in height is a lighthouse, an observation platform and a “Monument of the Westernmost Point of Japan”. The setting sun is a magnificent sight as it shines orange and dissolves in the cobalt blue sea. Also, the Yonaguni-Cho Tourism Association has published evidence that this is the westernmost point of Japan.
    Cape Irizaki & Monument of the Westernmost Point of Japan image
  • Tategamiiwa Rocks
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Yonaguni-cho
    These are oddly-shaped rocks which tower up and are located on the south-eastern coast of Yonaguni Island. As legend has it, in olden times, a young person climbed these rocks in order to try to get sea bird eggs, but could not get down from the rocks. He fell asleep when praying to God and when he awoke he had safely returned from the rocks. There are two observation platforms which command a view of Tategamiiwa Rocks: one is an old observation platform which is located 600 meters west of the “Sanninu” parking lot. The other is a new observation platform which is located approximately 500 meters west of the old observation platform.
    Tategamiiwa Rocks image
  • Cape Agarizaki
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Prefecture Yaeyama-gun Yonaguni Higashizaki Machi
    Cape Agarizaki is a cape at the easternmost tip of Yonaguni Island. It is a cape covered with idyllic meadows, and there is a lighthouse and a viewing platform at the tip of the cape—you can get an unbroken view of the cobalt blue sea which spreads out under the sheer cliffs. Yonaguni horses and cattle are graze in the meadow, and you can gaze at the tranquil rural landscape.
    Cape Agarizaki image
  • Kanpire Falls
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho
    Kanpire Falls image
  • Kondoi Beach
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Taketomicho Taketomi
    Kondoi Beach image
  • Pinaisara Falls
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho Uehara
    Pinaisara Falls image
  • Nishihama
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho Hateruma
    Nishihama image
  • Hoshino Cave
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Shimajiri-gun Minamidaitoson Kita 64
    "A limestone cave in Minami Daito Village, Shimajiri County. It is located on the Minami Daito Island, which was formed by the uplift of a coral reef, and it was formed through the erosion of the limestone that originated from the coral reef. It is the largest of the limestone caves scattered around the island. Visitors can view stalagmites, stalactites, ""curtains,"" and other limestone formations along with fossilized coral."
  • A Paradise for Subtropical Plants Yubujima
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho Komi 689
    "This remote island belongs to the Yaeyama Islands southwest of Okinawa Main Island. It is located just east of Iriomote Island, and you can go back and forth between these islands on a water buffalo cart that travels across the long shallow sea. On the island, where there is a rich natural environment with lush subtropical plants, you will find the butterfly park, where you can observe pupa of Japan's largest butterfly ""tree nymph butterfly"" sparkling in gold color, a water buffalo pond where water buffalo rest, a bougainvillea garden, restaurants and shops as well."
    A Paradise for Subtropical Plants Yubujima image
  • Kohamajima Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho
  • Iriomotejima Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho
  • Yubujima Island
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho
  • Kondoi Beach
    Travel / Tourism
    Okinawa Yaeyama-gun Taketomicho Taketomi
Okinawa Yaeyama Islands
Travel / Tourism Nature
Mountain Coast / Beach Waterfall Lake Plateau Valley Sea Island Cave Special Terrain River Pass Cape Wetland / Marshland Rock Whale Watching Peninsula Dune Other Natural Terrain

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Let go of your image of a busy, ordered Japan and replace it with crystal-clear waters, white sand beaches, and relaxing folk music: You’ve arrived in Okinawa. A world away from the high intensity of Tokyo, Okinawans appear to live a laid-back beach life on this paradisiacal tropical island that lies in the middle of the East China Sea almost 1,000 kilometers south of mainland Japan’s most southern tip. Home to a spattering of islands, prepare yourself to discover underwater caves, star-shaped sand, and an island culture sometimes unrecognizable from mainland Japan.

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