Miyako (Okinawa) see · Miyako (Okinawa) attractions
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Miyako (Okinawa) attractions
Miyako (Okinawa) attractions
Beaches clockwise from Hirara Port:
Sunayama is nice place to take a photo but not a particularly good place to swim. Drive 30 minutes north on Rt. 83 to Rt.230 and cross the bridge to Ikema. Get a drink at the tourist trap, climb up and look at the view. Continue clockwise around the island just to say you did it, and less than a kilometer from the tourist trap you will find two excellent beaches named after their prominent features, one called Rope and one called Block. There are no signs, but maybe a car or two parked beside the road. Block has some nice coral, just be careful of the currents.
Next head way back south and east on Rt. 83 in the direction of Gusukube. On the way you will find Aragusuku, a great shallow beach with lots more fish and coral. Two groups rent stuff and sell refreshments during the summer months. Go to the left side and feel free to sit at the tables. The proprietress is the chamisen playing, occasionaly booze drinking, beach loving Yasuyo-san. She also runs a nearby pension. Yoshino is another decent place a couple kilometers down the road. They've turned into devils though, charging ￥500 for parking.
Though it's not technically a beach, follow the signs to Higashihenazaki is a picturesque point with a lighthouse. As it's the easternmost point on the island, it is a popular place to watch the sun rise.
Head back to Rt. 83 was in the direction of Bora and the very commercial Bora Beach Park. Stop in or continue west on Rt. 235 to Shigira a once wild place that has been taken over by mercenaries from Tokyo. The rocky beach is now manicured but still open to the public so you can bring your cooler and chill at their expense. The cove is fairly well protected, so a good option for kids or when the weather is bad. Swim out to the middle and just before the rock formation there are some anonome fish.
Continue west on Rt. 235, cross the bridge to Kurima. Park in the lot on the left just after you cross and take the stone path 10 minutes to Tako. There are fish in the tide pool and lots more to see on the other side of the rocks, but be careful. Next stop Nagamahama. Follow the signs to 長間浜, look for a couple cows tied to a tree. Park in the lot and walk to the ocean.
Head back across the bridge, turn left and proceed to Maebama, Miyako's most popular beach. Locals tend to hang out near the boat launch on the bridge side, though they also frequent Windy, a beach house serving Miyako-soba (�500) and other very reasonably priced food. Maebama continues for almost 10K somewhere turning into the secluded kite-board spot Nishi-hama and then the slightly odd Sanitsu-hama. During low tides you can walk the beach from Maebama to Sanitsu-hama (just sneak through the Tokyu Hotel's bogus private area) but there are also paved jogging trails on land.
After leaving Sanitsu-hama take Rt. 390 from Shimoji back toward Hirara and Painagama Beach just before Hirara Port. Paiangama isn't a particularly good beach by day, but convenient after a night on the piss. Just be safe!
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Miyako (Okinawa) Travel Guide from Wikitravel. Many thanks to all Wikitravel contributors. Text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0, images are available under various licenses, see each image for details.