Tour Details

 CLICK HERE TO REGISTER >   Okinawa Mar 2025

Day 1.

 Enjoy a local breakfast before we visit to a local fish market.  The islands of Okinawa are surrounded by warm, clear waters, teeming with fish.  The tuna catch in Okinawa is among the largest in Japan, and fresh tuna is easy to come by. At the Tomari Iyumachi (Fish Market) in Naha, you find specialized tuna vendors from the Okinawa Fishing Cooperative. About 70% of the catch sold here is tuna, so Tomari Iyumachi is one of the best places to try fresh tuna.  Following lunch at local restaurant, we then conduct a hotel check-in where we will stay for 5 nights located in the international area of Kokusai Street and rest or perhaps explore the surrounding area for own orientation.  Dinner at local restaurant with some time to walk around the hotel area along Kokusai Street.

Day 2

The southern part of Okinawa

Start with Okinawa World Culture Kingdom that recreates an Okinawan settlement from the days of the Ryūkyū Kingdom.  It introduces visitors to the history, culture, and nature of the islands.Within the Okinawa World is the Gyokusendo Cave, a large, 5-kilometer-long cave system, considered to be the most beautiful in East Asia, where we walk 890 metres to explore more than one million stalactites and stalagmites which have formed over the centuries.Then be entertained at the Okinawa Eisa Drum Dance Show, a performance combining dancing and drumming, normally staged on the last day of the Obon festival in summer to see off visiting ancestral spirits.

Tour to the Okinawa Peace

Memorial Park, that advocates world peace and mourns the lives lost on all sides of the Battle of Okinawa. Visit the onsite Okinawa Peace Hall to see a large statue of Buddha and an impactful series of artwork depicting war and peace. We end our day finding out about Umibudo (sea grapes), an Okinawan specialty. Not only can you see and touch the sea grapes during the farm tour, your Sea Grape Picking Experience allows you to harvest to your heart's content follows with a tasting of raw sea grape soft serve and fresh sea grapes harvested in the morning. We return to Naha for dinner at local restaurant

Day3

Discover the sights of northern Okinawa commencing with a visit to Chura-umi Aquarium boasting a huge acrylic viewing window that allows you to view impressive manta rays, tiger sharks, and whale sharks from up close.  Following lunch, we visit the ruins of Nakijin Castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and was one of the largest gusuku castles in Okinawa.  Connecting to Yagaji Island by a remote island bridge spanning 1,960 metres, we visit Kouri Island dubbed “Love Island”, an iconic heart-shaped rock formation, and a legend about an Okinawan Adam and Eve. From the Kouri Ocean Tower (82 m), you enjoy the best views on the island: gazing out across the ocean, and over Kouri Bridge back toward the main island. 

Day 4 

Explore the sights nearer to Naha. We visit Shurijo Castle, which prospered as the Ryukyu Kingdom's center of politics, diplomacy and culture from 1429 to 1879 and is now inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List. Just a short walk from Shurijo Castle is Tama Udun Mausoleum, the final resting place of the royal family of the second Sho Dynasty of the Ryukyu Kingdom built in 1501. Notice how it is modeled after Shurijo Castle.  Moving on, we then immerse ourself in the art of coral dyeing, an Okinawan traditional craft, at Shuri Ryuzen.  With simple instructions using material provided, you get to take home your very own coral dyeing experience works (30-40 mins). 

Explore the Shikinaen Garden, located on a small hill to the south of Shuri in the afternoon

Castle. Constructed in 1799 as a villa for the royal family of the Ryukyu Kingdom, it is a World Heritage Site. The garden is a strolling garden, and you may find delicate, pink apricot and cherry trees that bloom in spring. 

Day 5 

The islands of Okinawa are one of the world’s “Blue Zones,” areas where a population has a life expectancy much higher than the global average. So what is the screte? Maybe it is in the food.  Okinawan’s have a word, nuchigusui, which they use to describe their cuisine. It literally means “medicine of life,” and indicates how, for the people of Okinawa, food is more than just sustenance; it is something that nourishes both body and mind. Following breakfast at hotel, we divide our group into 4-5 persons per sub-group as we journey to meet up with local hosts at their home for activities.  Experience spending time with an ordinary family in Okinawa and experience the farming lifestyle of Okinawan people for a morning.  At the same time, maybe learn Japanese and Okinawan cultures while enjoying lunch with the local family.  Bid farewell to your hosts and return to our meet-up place.  This afternoon, we explore Kokusai Street, Makishi Market, Heiwa Street with endless tunnels of shops with locals and tourists alike, surrounded by fresh fruits and vegetables, cafés, sweets, desserts and souvenir shops