Okinawa World Tickets

Okinawa World is the south of the island rolled into one stop: a spectacular limestone cave, a preserved Ryukyuan village, craft workshops and one of the liveliest traditional dance performances you will see anywhere in the prefecture. It sits close to Naha, which makes it the easiest big attraction to reach for travellers based in the capital.

Gyokusendo Cave

The headline act is Gyokusendo, a limestone cave system hundreds of thousands of years in the making, with a long boardwalk route open to visitors. The walk passes through chambers crowded with stalactites, underground pools lit in soft colour, and ceilings that drip steadily onto the path. It stays cool and humid year round, a welcome escape in midsummer, and the walkways are well maintained even if there are stairs at either end.

Above ground

Back in the daylight, the Kingdom Village recreates old Okinawa with red tiled houses relocated from around the island, where artisans demonstrate glass blowing, weaving and indigo dyeing, and you can try several crafts yourself. Time your visit around the Eisa dance performance, a drumming and dance show rooted in Okinawan festival tradition that brings the whole park to a standstill. There is also a habu snake exhibit for the curious.

Getting there

Okinawa World is about thirty to forty minutes by car from central Naha. Without a car, local buses run from the Naha Bus Terminal to the Gyokusendo-mae area, and plenty of visitors simply take a taxi or join the island’s hop on sightseeing routes. It pairs well with the nearby war memorial sites of the southern coast.

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