After exploring Tokyo, Okayama, Naoshima, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto and eating in Kobe, we wanted some relaxation time. So what better place to do that than in Japan's version of Hawaii, the Okinawa Islands. You can probably guess at how stunning they are with that moniker.
This southernmost part of Japan is actually closer to Taiwan than Japan; the Okinawa Prefecture consists of around 160 islands, though only 49 of them are inhabited. So, which island did we pick? We wanted somewhere that we could fly directly to from Osaka without having to take a flight to Okinawa itself and then another form of transport (another flight or a ferry). And we also wanted somewhere with excellent snorkelling.
With a direct 2.5 hour flight from Osaka, we went for Miyakojima and booked
Miyakojima Tokyu Hotels and Resorts. We were the only Western guests staying at the hotel, which made for an interesting experience! I can only liken it to how I imagine it is for famous people - all the staff knew who we were and which our room was without us ever needing to say. This is the only part of out holiday that we had to use Google Translate to communicate at times with the hotel staff - only once or twice but, like I said, as the only Western guests in the hotel and the questions they asked us about what brought us to Miyakojima, it felt like we were quite unusual guests to the island!
The only point of our stay where that was really an issue is that they refused to let us join a snorkelling trip because they said we needed to speak Japanese. Now, as far as I see it, the signs you make underwater to communicate are universal - so this felt like a strange reason - but it was fine, we just booked in with
Adventure Pipi instead who were brilliant. And we spotted a sea turtle, which is what we were after.
Food-wise we just ate at the hotel - we didn't have transport on the island, but the resort picked us up and dropped us off from/at the airport. Adventure Pipi did the same when we went snorkelling. We ate at the restaurant by the pool for breakfast and lunch and got to sample some local Okinawa dishes. We both had Okinawa pork curry, which is similar to a katsu curry but has a more chunkier sauce, and I also had yakiniku don (a beef and rice dish). Olly's other dish was Miyako noodles (like soba noodles) with pork rafutei (similar to pork belly) - all very yum!
For dinner we did Maipama, their BBQ restaurant, where you cook the food yourself on a hot plate. This was our least favourite. Yaebishi was a mix of Chinese and Okinawa dishes - the tuna there was incredible. And, finally, we had a teppanyaki dinner at Seiga where our chef cooked us multiple courses, ending with Miyako beef and spiny lobster. Very delicious. The bar is also really cool with a pretty impressive shell chandelier, and it's there we gave the local alcohol, Awamori, a go.
Finally, the resort had a small botanical garden which was a quick shuttle ride away, so we explored that one rainy afternoon. The weather was pretty cloudy when we were on Miyakojima with temperatures of around 31°c and a feels like temperature of around 36°c, and we mostly hung around the pool. As with most of Japan, if you do have visible tattoos, you will need to cover them up around the pool area and on the beaches.
And that was our time on Miyakojima. It made for a nice break between all that exploring - we stayed for three nights - and I was pleased we ticked off somewhere that not many tourists go to. x
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