Road trip around Okinawa reveals rich history and culture of island that ‘isn’t real Japan’

Never mind its sandy beaches and military base, Okinawa has a rich history and cuisine that is well worth exploring – as we did by car

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Cape Hedo is the northernmost tip of Okinawa. A road trip around the Japanese island reveals why locals consider themselves apart from the rest of Japan. Photo: Fiona Ching

Cameron Dueck

Published: 12:45pm, 5 Jul 2024Updated: 3:46pm, 7 Jul 2024

I arrived in Okinawa knowing only that the island hosts a large United States military base and that tourists flock to its white-sand beaches.

A closer look at my map reveals museums, national parks and traditional villages, all spread out on an island that is more than 100km (62 miles) from end to end. Okinawa, I decide, is the perfect place for a road trip.

Okinawa is the largest of more than 150 islands in a prefecture of the same name, located far to the south of Japan’s main islands.

We begin our two-day trip at the airport in Naha, the rather worn-looking capital city.

Tomari Iyumachi, on Naha’s harbourfront, is a small wholesale seafood market stocked with everything from tuna eyeballs to horse sashimi as well as local delicacies. Photo: Fiona Ching

After figuring out how to change the navigation system on our rented kei car to English, we set off with a long list of potential destinations in hand.

Kei cars – the smallest category of expressway-legal motor vehicle in Japan – are tiny, but the interior space is maximised to accommodate several adults and their luggage with ease.