Jump ahead:
Day 4 | Depart Ishigaki, Arrive Naha, Churaumi Aquarium, Monorail, Hotel Azat
Final Day 5 | Shuri Castle, Naha Kokusai Dori, Don Quijote International Street, Departure
Day 4 - Motobu & Naha
Our last morning in Ishigaki… we left the hotel around 0720 to get gas and return the rental car near the airport. Our flight departure was at 0855 but the rental company didn’t open until 0800 so we were a little worried and wanted to get there as early as possible. After putting gas in the car we got it returned exactly at 0800. The company at least gave us a quick shuttle ride to the airport after that. Check-in was fast with only our carry-on bags and we did still have a little time to look around some of the omiyage shops.
We arrived in Naha at 1000, then quickly found a locker to put our luggage in. To make the most of our time, we decided to catch the bus to the Churaumi Aquarium (in Motobu) directly from the airport rather than go to our hotel first. The cost for the locker was only ¥400/initial 6 hours, +¥100/6 hours after that.
We were able to make it onto the 1030 express bus to the aquarium, planning to arrive at the aquarium park by 1250. This bus ride was ¥2000/person which I guess is ok for the distance it covers (the aquarium was farther than I thought). We considered getting another rental car since it was initially cheaper but considering the expressway tolls, time, and convenience we just decided not to. We did have a grouchy bus driver though and I thought Okinawa people were supposed to be more sociable? eheh, I should know better by now. Anyway, for this bus you just take a ticket when boarding and then pay when you get off like a normal bus… we didn’t need any advance reservation or anything.
Bus Schedules:
http://oki-park.jp/kaiyohaku/en/acc/147
Once we got to the aqua park, we went straight to the aquarium. The cost was ¥1800/person and we stayed there from about 2 hours (1300-1500)… I think the price has since gone up to ¥1850. We wanted to visit this aquarium because it was supposedly one of the major attractions on the island and very famous throughout Japan. Overall it was a good sized aquarium with a great variety of species covered but I found most of the displays to be on the smaller side. The main attraction (based on all the pictures online) was the whale shark tank and that at least was very impressive in size.
Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium Website:
https://churaumi.okinawa/
It was very crowded throughout the aquarium with so many rude people. I remember one exhibit was celebrating impregnating a manta ray and for some reason (in my head) I compared it to aliens doing the same to humans… weird thought right? The aquarium gift shop was pretty big too…ended up buying another Imabari/Helly Hansen towel (¥2000) for my own souvenir hehe
After the aquarium, we just walked around the rest of the aqua park. There were various attractions but we didn’t have time for everything since it was getting late. The park had shuttles for ¥100 (or ¥200 day pass) that seemed to pass by frequently but the park really wasn’t too big for walking. Seemed like a good place for a family to spend a full day but we still had another long bus ride back to Naha so we didn’t stay much longer. By the way, the food options were terrible in the park (and junk too). The bacon cheese bread I had was such a waste of money.
Going home, we just jumped on the next bus back to the airport (based on the timetable linked below) but come to find out, not all the buses are created equal. Turns out this bus was not stopping for a break on the expressway AND it cost ¥2500 instead of the assumed ¥2000 (which we paid previously). The estimated travel time was not that different from our morning bus and the price difference between buses is not immediately obvious on the bus website so rider beware! Looking more closely now, you have to go to each individual bus company website from the link below to see how much each company charges… it looks like 2 of the 3 companies only charge the ¥2000 but the Okinawa Bus Association charges ¥2500. Was a bit irked by this just because I don’t think tourists should have to dig that deep just to find this out (or me just angry about getting duped). Anyway, if you catch these buses, don’t just rely on the “official” timetable link below like we did… you can also verify prices using google directions (if you have the time to check).
Bus Route Info again:
http://oki-park.jp/kaiyohaku/en/acc/147
The 1622 bus from the aqua park got us back to the airport by 1900 (pau hana traffic) where we got out luggage out of the lockers. Initially we paid the ¥400 to put the bags in, then paid for the additional time (past 6 hours) when retrieving the luggage. Then we made our way to the monorail connected to the airport via a little sky walk. It was relatively easy to figure out since there’s only one line in the city. Tickets were different in that they were QR coded and you scan them yourself vice sticking them in the gate machine sucker thing. When exiting through the gates there are little bins to throw the tickets away. Train cars were very few… maybe just 2-3 cars at a time and trains came maybe every 10-15 minutes so there was never a really long wait. I heard the monorail is relatively new and everything looked/felt that way. I kept thinking about Oahu’s rail and if that’s ever going to finish but also how all these other places just continue to put Hawaii’s tourism services to shame. Just a 20 minute ride to our hotel which was advertised as a 30 second walk from the station (it really was).
Our hotel was the Hotel Azat, which turned out to be much nicer than the Ishigaki Hotel, even if only a one-night stay for us. We put our things down, then walked around the area looking for dinner. Mostly bars/izakaya style restaurants near Asato Station which we didn’t feel like doing at the time. Luckily, there was a 24-hour grocery store right there too so we picked up some bentos, dessert, and breakfast pastries for the next day. Made it back to the hotel just before the rain started to fall. Aside from occasional old fashioned rooftops and house-style graves, this island just seems like another Japanese city… difficult to feel like we’re in Okinawa apart from the weather being warmer.
Final Day 5 - Naha
It’s the last day of our trip unfortunately… our flight wasn’t until 1600 so we had until about 1400 to just wander around. We checked out of our hotel around 0925 and left our baggage at the front desk, deciding to come back for it later. Marie suggested we visit Shuri Castle since it’s a World Heritage site so we caught the monorail to Shuri Station to visit the castle nearby.
Shuri Castle Website:
http://oki-park.jp/shurijo/en/
I have to say it was a very unique castle, all red with a lot of Chinese influence. I especially liked the smooth, curved outer walls. We walked around a little on the outside, then went into the paid area. They make you take your shoes off and don’t allow photo’s in most of the spaces. There was enough English in the brochure for me at least. Interesting to read about the mix of cultural influence over the years in Okinawa. Unfortunately, most of the castle grounds have been remade because of its destruction time and time again. Of course I had mixed feelings about that. Similar to many island nations I guess… even Hawaii has its own conflicts in history so I can understand even if just a little. Can’t even begin to talk about the Okinawa/America relationship here. I just don’t advertise being American if I don’t have to, not just here but all the countries I visit lately.
From Shuri Castle, it was a short walk through the neighborhood to Gibo Station where we waited for the train to take us to the Prefectural Office Station (¥260 one way). We didn’t realize before this but they had day passes for the monorail which could save you some money and I know at least Shuri Castle was offering discounted entry tickets to those day pass holders… maybe other places do this too? Worth considering if you go anyway. Many homes have lions on the roof and some looked so old I thought the roof might just collapse. Mostly unplanned neighborhoods, with the roads just winding through buildings.
Got to the Prefectural Office Station (near some big mall) and proceeded to wander up Naha Kokusai Dori, a popular shopping street (and main street) through the central town area. It was very “Okinawan” here and I mean that it’s a pretty touristy street. I was personally on a mission to get more ice cream and andagi (fresh and hot) but it was hard to find here for some reason. Instead, we had some sea grape samples with a vinegar-like sauce and a hot baked sweet potato… both were nice for snacks.
Stopped in for lunch at a randomly chosen restaurant… I had taco rice just for fun and it really is just what you’d expect it to be… nothing special. They gave a cold andagi with the set meal which still didn’t satisfy my wants but I guess it was kind of a generic restaurant area anyway. Supposedly there’s more to this restaurant at night but that didn’t really matter to us at the time.
Suitenrou:
https://suitenrou.jcc-okinawa.net/
A little further up the street we took a turn into the Don Quijote International Street area. Here was a little more old fashioned but they did have a couple of hot and fresh andagi stands! They had all different sizes and types too… I’d say this was my favorite andagi place of the trip and we were lucky to find it too (Ishigaki Sunday Market one was a close second!). Definitely a better market area than the main street was.
Not too much further from the market was our hotel so we walked back and picked up our luggage by around 1350. Then we hopped back on the monorail one last time to go to the airport. After a quick check-in and browsing some omiyage shops, it was time to say goodbye to Okinawa… but not before one last soft serve cone though!
Overall, a very nice, short trip to Okinawa. I especially enjoyed Ishigaki and hope to go back there, even if just to eat that one meal in Akashi again! Maybe next time we can skip the main island too and explore more of the smaller islands in the chain… until then!