Visiting Okinawa for the first time
3 min readVisiting Okinawa for the first time
Okinawa has been always my dream destination for a very long time. I have been checking out flight prices from Kuala Lumpur to Okinawa since 2017. After years of waiting, i finally visited Okinawa for the first time.
Okinawa is a unique place in Japan. It is located near Taiwan and far away from Japan’s main island. The former Ryukyu kingdom is now part of Japan. Okinawa, Japan, offers a unique blend of stunning beaches, rich history, and vibrant culture. As a first-timer, you might be wondering where to start.
There is no direct flight from Malaysia and I chose to transit in Bangkok. The flight took four hours from Bangkok to Naha Airport.
This is my 13th time to Japan and Naha custom is the strictest of all airports in Japan. They checked every luggage regardless of your nationality includes locals. This is probably due to the American army presence on Okinawa.
Okinawa is huge and many travelers can choose self drive but I prefer day tour. This is just my preferences as day tours allowed me to visit more places without the hassle of driving and the advantages of having a tour guide explaining the history and details of each destinations.
The weather in Okinawa is forever hot and humid. It is probably cooler in winter time but it is never snow. The lowest temperature for Okinawa probably in the low 10 degree Celsius.
When I was in Okinawa the temperature was around 30 degree Celsius and it was very humid and warm. It is more humid than Malaysia.
During this trip, I chose to stay in Naha City as it is convenient to travel around with monorail or bus. Hence, it is also where the day tour companies operate.
There are many tourists from Taiwan. The rest is probably Chinese, Koreans, Hong Kongers and Americans. Many people surprised to see Malaysians in Okinawa.
I spoke to some Taiwanese tourists and it took them one hour to fly from Taipei to Naha but the airfare is not cheap! Many Taiwanese visit Okinawa for holiday and shopping. Interestingly, they will shop for Japanese electronics and household items.
Okinawa offers the summer island vibes similar to Hawaii. Most people wearing Hawaiian shirts and shades. Even locals wear short sleeves shirt to work unlike Tokyo or Osaka.
Something interesting you will notice once you are in Okinawa. The ORION beer! The local beer ORION is super popular and you can see most tourist wearing their printed t shirt.
Blue Seal is the local ice cream and they are almost every corner in Okinawa. It is the ‘Haagen Daz’ of Okinawa as the texture and taste is really good.
I find some local food or items slightly pricier than mainland Japan but I enjoy the summer vibes of Okinawa minus the heat and humid.
Will I come back again? Well of course, probably lesser travel but just to chill. Okinawa did not disappoint me at all and hope to make a come back to travel to this beautiful island in the future.
For the day tours, I bought via KKDay as it is the most popular day tours in Okinawa and as below:
Central Okinawa Tour:
South Okinawa Tour:
Hope this short article helps you on visiting Okinawa for the first time.
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