OkiTravel

For those of you traveling to Okinawa, here are my personal recommendations and tips. 

Location

• Central - Naha - most designed for tourists and ease of access

• South - Closer to the airport and other tourist spots. 

• North - near military bases such as Kadena Air Force base, designed more for english travlers. 

• Very North e.g. Nago, remote parts of the island that usually require rental vehicles or private transportation to access. 

Hotels

• Depending on the part of the year you are traveling, it might be better to book hotels first. 

• A normal Japanese hotel room is 15.24㎡ , pretty small with a tiny bathroom. 

• Compare that to 'apartment' style rooms for rent that come with a bigger bed, bigger fridge, bigger bathroom, its own laundry machine (and possibly dryer), and pretty much more space, for almost the same price. For example, check out the Mr. Kinjo brand across the island. 

Activities

• Castles such as Shuri and Nakagusuku Castle Ruins. 

• Shopping such as big malls e.g. Parco, Aeon Mall Rycom, San-A/Aeon department stores, and the kokusai-dori/heiwa-dori shopping streets. 

• Marine activities such as diving, snorkeling, sea kayaking, etc. 

• Theme parks such as  Okinawa world, Ryukyu-mura, murasaki-mura., Churaumi aquirium theme park, Nago Pineapple Park, Orion Happy Park (for the beer lovers), etc. - note: check each theme park's website for peak seasons as advance tickets may need to be purchased.

• Museums and garden attractions such as the Himeyuri Peace museum, Peace Memorial Park, Southeast Botanical Gardens.

• Hiking and/or checking out the scenic spots such as Camp Hedo.

Getting Around

• Best bet would be to rent a car (need a international driving permit such as the one from AAA). Also be sure to purchase insurance and studying the laws of the Japan roads. 

• Taxis (bit expensive)

• Bus (do your research on routes, location on bus stops, places you want to go, etc.)

• Yui Monorail - limited to Naha area, ticket purchasing is as easy as knowing where you want to go and selecting "English" on the screen of the ticket machine at each monorail station. 

Flights

• Do your research via airline websites and travel sites. 

• July through August is usually peak season.

Okinawan Food

• Soba - "a hot noodle soup consisting of a specific type of chewy noodles made with flour, water, and egg (see more below). The soup is a combination of pork broth and katsuo dashi, filled with stewed pork belly slices, a few slices of fish cake, chopped green onion, and red pickled ginger. "

• Rafute - braised pork belly recipe from Okinawa, Japan. This juicy and tender dish is slow-cooked in awamori (Okinawan distilled liquor), Okinawan black sugar, and soy sauce.

• Taco rice - popular Okinawan dish and a modern fusion of Tex-Mex and Japanese cuisines. Instead of putting taco toppings on a corn shell, toppings are put on a bed of cooked rice.

• Goya chanpuru consists of bitter melon (goya) stir-fried with tofu and pork, and seasoned with bonito flakes and soy sauce. Goya is called the 'king of summer vegetables' – it’s packed with vitamins and its bitterness stimulates the appetite even in the extreme heat of Japan’s summer. 

• Known as umibudo in Okinawa and Kagoshima, sea grapes give a unique popping sensation in the mouth when eaten.

• BLUE SEAL is a specialty ice cream brand that was born in America and raised in Okinawa, more than 30 flavors of ice cream, most of which use Okinawan products that aptly capture the taste of Okinawa.

• SPAM and egg onigiri is very specific to Okinawa. It is a sandwich-type onigiri that contains SPAM meat and fried egg, sometimes omelet, sandwiched between rice and nori seaweed.

• Orion's The Draft, or Orion Draft, is made using a combination of barley malt, rice and corn, which is then brewed with spring water from a local Okinawan mountain nearby the brewery, using German Hallertau and Czech Saaz hops.

• Sata Andagi is often refered to as the Okinawan doughnut. They are small, dense and crunchy deep-fried cake balls. Their texture and flavor is reminiscent of old fashioned doughnuts.