Miyako, Okinawa · Things to do
Things to Do in Miyako Island (Miyakojima): 12 Places with Access, Hours and Fees
12 things to do · checked October 20, 2026
12 things to do on Miyako Island, by area
Hours, prices and access checked against each place's own page on October 20, 2026. They change; check before you go.
1Irabu Bridge伊良部大橋
Bridge to Irabu Island · Irabu Island
A 3,540 m bridge joining Miyako Island and Irabu Island, opened in January 2015. The tourism association calls it the longest bridge in Japan that can be crossed free of charge.
- Access
- About 15 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Address on the tourism association page: 386-1 Kugai, Hirara.
- Price
- Free to cross
217END (Shimoji Island Airport)17END（下地島空港 17側管理用通路）
Runway-end access road and shore · Shimoji Island
The common name for the north end of the 17-side maintenance passage at Shimoji Airport. Okinawa Prefecture built it for airport staff and bans all vehicles except official ones; bicycles and kick scooters may pass only at a speed at which they can stop at once and without hindering pedestrians.
- Access
- At the north end of Shimoji Airport, on Shimoji Island, across Irabu Bridge. The prefecture page gives no route; the airport's public car park is open 7:00–20:30 (299 spaces, often full on weekends, stays limited to 5 days).
- Hours
- Public car park at the airport: 7:00–20:30
- Closed on
- Vehicle barrier at the 17END section; vehicles other than official ones may not enter
3Toori-ike通り池
Twin sinkhole ponds · Shimoji Island
Two ponds 75 m and 55 m across, 45 m and 25 m deep, joined underwater and connected to the open sea. A mermaid legend is attached to them, and they are a prefectural natural monument and a well-known dive site.
- Access
- About 45 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park and toilets on site.
4Ikema Bridge池間大橋
Bridge to Ikema Island · Ikema / Karimata (north)
A 1,425 m bridge joining Miyako Island and Ikema Island, opened in February 1992 at a cost of ¥10 billion. The tourism association says the colour of the sea seen from the bridge is hard to put into words.
- Access
- About 35 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park and toilets; a shop and rest area on the Ikema Island side.
5Nishi-Hennazaki西平安名崎
Cape and lookout · Karimata (north)
The westernmost and northernmost point of the main island, facing Irabu Island, Ikema Island and Ikema Bridge. Wind turbines line the cape, and the tourism association calls the view calm in contrast to Higashi-Hennazaki.
- Access
- About 30 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park, toilets and a vending machine.
6Sunayama Beach砂山ビーチ
Beach · Hirara (Nikadori)
A white-sand beach with a cave in the uplifted coral reef, reached by climbing over a small sand dune. The tourism association warns that waves rise in a west wind, that there are sudden drop-offs offshore, and that the dune on the way back is tiring.
- Access
- About 20 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park, toilets and showers.
7Yonaha Maehama Beach与那覇前浜（前浜ビーチ）
Beach · Shimoji (Yonaha)
A 7 km stretch of white sand facing Kurima Island, with resort hotels next to it. The tourism association lists it as Maehama Beach in Yonaha, Shimoji, and says it is also called the whitest sand beach in the Orient.
- Access
- About 15 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park, toilets, showers and a shop.
8Kurima Bridge来間大橋
Bridge to Kurima Island · Shimoji / Kurima Island
A 1,690 m bridge joining Miyako Island and Kurima Island, opened in March 1995 and described by the tourism association as Japan's longest agricultural road bridge. The Maehama beach can be seen from the bridge.
- Access
- About 15 minutes by car from Miyako Airport.
9Higashi-Hennazaki and the Hennazaki Lighthouse東平安名崎・平安名埼灯台
Cape and climbable lighthouse · Gusukube (east)
The eastern tip of Miyako Island: a cape about 2 km long and roughly 200 m wide, designated a national Place of Scenic Beauty, with the Pacific on one side and the East China Sea on the other. The lighthouse at the tip is open to visitors; a 97-step spiral staircase leads to the top.
The lighthouse is free on 25 October 2026 (9:30–16:00, public opening); otherwise ¥300.
- Access
- About 35 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Car park for about 50 cars, toilets, a seasonal shop. The lighthouse operator says there is no route bus, only a seasonal sightseeing bus (to be confirmed).
- Hours
- Lighthouse: 9:30–12:00 every day; afternoon 13:00–16:30 on weekdays and from October to February; 13:00–17:00 from March to September on weekends, holidays, Golden Week, 10–19 August and 29 December–3 January. Last entry 15 minutes before closing. Lunch break 12:00–13:00.
- Price
- Lighthouse: ¥300 donation (junior high school and over); free for elementary school and under, and for holders of a disability certificate plus one companion. Free public opening on Sunday 25 October 2026, 9:30–16:00.
10Painagama Beachパイナガマビーチ
Town beach · Hirara (town centre)
A beach in the middle of Hirara used by local people. A net against box jellyfish is put up in summer; the association says box jellyfish are often found outside the net and that the sea beyond is a shipping lane, so swimmers should not go out.
- Access
- About 10 minutes by car from Miyako Airport. Toilets and showers; a convenience store nearby.
11Miyakojima City Museum宮古島市総合博物館
Municipal museum · Hirara (town centre)
A museum of Miyako's nature, history and customs, with videos, figures and dioramas on its festivals and traditional performing arts, plus limited-run special exhibitions. Free entry for people aged 70 and over, and for school students on Saturdays, Sundays and school holidays.
- Access
- 1166-287 Higashi-Nakasoneazoe, Hirara, Miyakojima City; tel. 0980-73-0567. The official page gives no route.
- Hours
- 9:00–16:30 (last entry 16:00)
- Closed on
- Mondays (Tuesday too when Monday is a national holiday); national holidays; 23 June; 29 December–3 January; other days at the director's discretion
- Price
- Adults ¥300; university and high school ¥200; junior high and elementary ¥100
12Yabiji reef八重干瀬（やびじ）
Coral reef group (seasonal boat trip) · Offshore, north of Ikema Island
Japan's largest reef group: more than 100 reefs scattered over 16.8 km east to west and 14.5 km north to south, a national Place of Scenic Beauty and Natural Monument. Most of it is below the surface; at strong spring-tide lows many large reefs rise above the sea.
Seasonal: not held in winter, and the reef shows itself at strong spring-tide lows.
- Access
- By boat from Ikema Port, about 20 minutes (tourism association). Reached on snorkelling and glass-boat tours.
- Hours
- Tours are not held in winter, when the north wind blows (tourism association page, last updated May 2019)
Good to know
Plan around the car. Miyako Island's sights are spread along the coast, and the tourism association gives every access time as a drive from Miyako Airport: Painagama Beach about 10 minutes; the Irabu and Kurima bridges and Yonaha Maehama Beach about 15; Sunayama Beach about 20; Nishi-Hennazaki about 30; Ikema Bridge and Higashi-Hennazaki about 35; Toori-ike about 45. The lighthouse operator notes that a rental car is the usual way to reach Higashi-Hennazaki and that no route bus runs there.
Three bridges lead off the main island: Irabu Bridge (3,540 m, free to cross) to Irabu and, beyond it, Shimoji Island; Ikema Bridge (1,425 m) to the north; Kurima Bridge (1,690 m) to the south. On Shimoji Island, 17END is a maintenance road at the end of Shimoji Airport, and Okinawa Prefecture bans every vehicle except official ones from it; bicycles and kick scooters may pass slowly.
Things with fixed rules. The Hennazaki lighthouse has a lunch break from 12:00 to 13:00 and charges a ¥300 donation, except on its free public opening on Sunday 25 October 2026. The city museum is closed on Mondays. Yabiji is reached only by boat, and the tourism association says its tours are not held in winter. Sunayama Beach has waves in a west wind and sudden drop-offs, and Painagama Beach has box jellyfish outside its summer net.
North, south, east or town: where each place is
Drive times are from Miyako Airport, as given on the tourism association's pages; Shimoji Island and Yabiji are described by their own access.
| Area | Places | Drive from Miyako Airport | Entry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irabu and Shimoji Islands | Irabu Bridge, Toori-ike, 17END | Irabu Bridge about 15 min; Toori-ike about 45 min; 17END: no time given | Irabu Bridge free to cross; others not stated |
| North: Ikema and Karimata | Ikema Bridge, Nishi-Hennazaki, Sunayama Beach | Sunayama about 20 min; Nishi-Hennazaki about 30 min; Ikema Bridge about 35 min | Not stated |
| Offshore, north of Ikema | Yabiji reef | Boat from Ikema Port, about 20 min | Tour price not checked here |
| South: Shimoji coast | Kurima Bridge, Yonaha Maehama Beach | About 15 min each | Not stated |
| East: Gusukube | Higashi-Hennazaki and lighthouse | About 35 min | Lighthouse ¥300 (junior high and over) |
| Hirara town | Painagama Beach, Miyakojima City Museum | Painagama about 10 min; museum: no time given | Museum ¥300 adult, ¥200 university and high school, ¥100 junior high and elementary |
By kind of trip
Driving over the bridges
Irabu Bridge is 3,540 m and free to cross, Ikema Bridge is 1,425 m, and Kurima Bridge is 1,690 m. From Nishi-Hennazaki you can see Irabu, Ikema and Ikema Bridge together.
Irabu Bridge · Ikema Bridge · Kurima Bridge · Nishi-Hennazaki
Beaches
Maehama is a 7 km stretch with showers and a shop. Sunayama has a cave in the coral and a dune to climb, and waves rise in a west wind. Painagama is in the town, with a jellyfish net in summer.
Capes and lookouts
Higashi-Hennazaki is a national Place of Scenic Beauty about 2 km long, with a lighthouse you can climb. Nishi-Hennazaki, at the north-west, faces the Ikema bridge and the wind turbines.
Higashi-Hennazaki and the Hennazaki Lighthouse · Nishi-Hennazaki
Shimoji Island, across Irabu Bridge
Toori-ike is a pair of sinkhole ponds and a prefectural natural monument. 17END is closed to vehicles, so allow for the walk or a bicycle.
Set hours, set seasons
The museum is open 9:00–16:30 and closed Mondays. The lighthouse has a lunch break. Yabiji tours are not held in winter.
Miyakojima City Museum · Higashi-Hennazaki and the Hennazaki Lighthouse · Yabiji reef
Questions
Do I need a car to see Miyako Island?
The tourism association gives every access time as a drive from Miyako Airport, and the Hennazaki lighthouse operator says a rental car is the usual way to reach Higashi-Hennazaki, with no route bus there (only a seasonal sightseeing bus, to be confirmed). Painagama Beach and the city museum are in the town of Hirara.
Is Irabu Bridge free, and how long are the three bridges?
Irabu Bridge (3,540 m, opened January 2015) is free to cross, and the tourism association calls it the longest free bridge in Japan. Ikema Bridge is 1,425 m (opened February 1992) and Kurima Bridge is 1,690 m (opened March 1995).
Can I drive to 17END on Shimoji Island?
No. Okinawa Prefecture bans all vehicles except official ones from the 17END section, after frequent accidents and damage to the airport fence once Irabu Bridge opened. Bicycles and kick scooters may pass only at a speed at which they can stop at once and without hindering pedestrians. The surface has steps and wind-blown sand.
When can I visit Yabiji reef?
Yabiji lies north of Ikema Island and is reached by boat, about 20 minutes from Ikema Port. The tourism association says tours are not held in winter, when the north wind blows. Most of the reef is below the surface; at strong spring-tide lows many large reefs rise above the sea.
What are the opening hours of the Hennazaki lighthouse and the city museum?
The lighthouse is open 9:30–12:00 every day and again in the afternoon (13:00–16:30, or to 17:00 from March to September on weekends and holidays), with a ¥300 donation from junior high age. The Miyakojima City Museum is open 9:00–16:30 (last entry 16:00), closed Mondays, national holidays, 23 June and 29 December–3 January.