I went to Naha City, Okinawa, for a visa run last year. It was a nice change from the big cities of Hong Kong and Bangkok. Naha is a small, orderly city and you can actually fill your lungs with clean air. The airport is just 10-15 minutes from the city center, and the Taiwan visa-issuing office is only a few minutes’ walk from the main street.
Last time I checked China Airlines had two daily flights from Taipei, 8:15 am and 4:50 pm, return flights from Naha, at 11:00 am and 7:50 pm. The flight takes just over an hour.
Taiwan’s defacto consulate keeps the following office hours; Monday to Friday, 9:00 - 12:00 and 1:00 - 5:00, but applying for a visa is restricted to 9:00 - 12:00 and 1:00 - 3:00. Watch out for holidays - it takes Japanese holidays too. I got caught out (on a bloody Friday) and had to stay an extra two nights!! Ahh!
I stayed at the centrally-located Naha Grand Hotel which cost 6,000 a night for a single room. Can anyone suggest another hotel - cheaper or at least better value?
I stayed at a Youth Hostel in Naha that was quite a bit cheaper than
that, but that was a couple years ago. I will try to find the card for
it and send the information to you tomorrow.
I just headed over to the Japan Youth Hostels website and found this info. It is possible to make reservations online. [note: Okinawa is in the Kyushu section]
Okinawa International Youth Hostel
[post symbol] 900-0026
51 Onoyama, Naha-shi, Okinawa-ken
TEL:098-857-0073 FAX:098-859-3567
3150 yen/night (non Youth Hostel members add 1,000 yen)
breakfast 600 yen
10 minutes from the airport.
There is a map on the web site.
extra note: Although Youth Hostels are not big in Asia it is often worthwhile joining because the membership offers a number of benefits. I am a member of YHA in Australia and it gives me a 25% discount on travel insurance (over one year this saves big bucks). It also gives discounts at various shops and travel operators. Also they provide good budget accommodation in Hong Kong and Japan, where accommodation can be very expensive. And of course if you go to Europe, NZ or Australia then there are hundreds of Youth Hostels you can stay at.
The Youth Hostel mentioned by Game Parlor Gangster is excellent. If
you stay in the hostel, you have to move your stuff out each morning,
but you can rent a locker in the lobby to put it in. If you have two or
three people, you might consider renting a room where you can just
leave your stuff all the time. Also if you stay there more than one day
consider buying a YOUTH HOSTEL CARD - no matter how old you are
as the cost will go down greatly.
Some of the staff there have limited English, but between gestures, my
limited Japanese, and their limited English, we always were able to
communicate. Breakfast is usually worth the price (but you have to
reserve your meals and pay for them ahead of time - night before),
but I would not recommend lunch or dinner unless you do like SPAM.
There were alot of interesting concoctions made from SPAM during
those two meals. If you insist on Western food, there is a KFC near
the entrance of the lane leading to the hostel. Personally, I would
prefer sushi or a hot bowl of Okinawian noodles anytime!
There are many neat places to visit on the island if you are there more
than one day. I also went walking up toward town and then turned
left near a bank on the left corner. In that neighborhood you could find
alot of Mom and Pop type grocery stores with very friendly people if
you are willing to walk a couple blocks down and then turn left. There
is also one in the alleys to the right, but I don’t like it as well.
If you like sushi and go in the morning, you can get a wide variety
of flavors to take with you on day trips. I also love Okinawian Noodles and usually had a bowlful each day at a small restaurant for my dinner.
The staff there can also help you to know where the buses are to
downtown NAHA if you want to take a bus to other places on the island.
I especially liked Moon Beach where I relaxed and also have fun
picking up shells from the bottom which were alive - something I had
never seen before. The first cowrie shell I picked up was a shock, but
then I got used to it. Some people in the neighborhood were also
collecting their supper there. Also the castle and the museum at the
bottom of the hill before you get there are great. Go up to the castle
from that side and go down the other side and see the Kuanyin Temple
(Okinawian version). Also pay attention to the dragons that are part
of the architecture there as they are very different from ones in China,
Taiwan, and other places in Asia.
If you can stay a few days there, it is much better than just going there
and leaving - but I do not know how much time you have.
Also, if you want to go to another hostel elsewhere on the island, the
people at the Naha Youth Hostel can help you make arrangements.
Has anyone stayed at the hostel recommended by “wix” (Okinawa International Youth Hostel)? I have never stayed in a hostel in my life but, given the price of accomodation in Okinawa, I am considering it.
I’d also appreciate any other suggestions on things to do in Okinawa for 2 days (I already checked the archives and came up with very little). I plan to go to see the WWII ruins in the south and some of the other WWII sites. Any cultural suggestions? I heard Okinawa is famous for ceramics. Any good restaurants?
You can save a little more money by buying your Hostelling International card in Taiwan. You can get one at the Youth Hostel Association on the 12th floor of the Asiaworld building, between the Shinkong Mitsukoshi Building and the Caesar Park Hotel (formerly the Hilton) on Zhongxiao West Road, opposite Taibei Railway Station. You can also make hostel bookings from there, and buy a ticket from the travel agent next door - We Can Travel.
EDIT SEPTEMBER 2007 - THE ABOVE INFORMATION IS OUT OF DATE - SEE BELOW
I’m going Okinawa next week, will be in Naha for a couple of days. I’d planned on just walking around and taking pictures; any interesting parts of the city, like downtown, I should pay particular attention to?
There’s an arcade downtown that had some funky store fronts when I was there a few years ago. Some weird restaurant (?) set up like a giant tree house hit just the right ‘freaky Japanese tourist note’.
Lots of nice scenery, particularly along the canals. Oh! I know… You might get some great night traffic shots at the foot of the bridge by the harbour (long, curved structure: you’ll know it when you see it).
The ocean and beaches were the most striking… aside from the blond woman and fellow Canuck fan I bumped into on the street. That, and the remarkable number of homeless men camped out around the prefectural building: not what you’d expect.
You can save a little more money by buying your Hostelling International card in Taiwan. You can get one at the Youth Hostel Association on the 12th floor of the Asiaworld building, between the Shinkong Mitsukoshi Building and the Caesar Park Hotel (formerly the Hilton) on Zhongxiao West Road, opposite Taibei Railway Station. You can also make hostel bookings from there, and buy a ticket from the travel agent next door - We Can Travel.[/quote]
The above information is out of date. To get your Hostelling International card, go to the hostel on the 13th floor of the same building, or to the Youth Hostels Association which is on the 3rd floor of the Taibei Railway Station. You can’t get to it from the station foyer - You have to go in through the separate entrance on the west side of the building and take the elevator.
[quote=“Jaboney”]There’s an arcade downtown that had some funky store fronts when I was there a few years ago. Some weird restaurant (?) set up like a giant tree house hit just the right ‘freaky Japanese tourist note’.
Lots of nice scenery, particularly along the canals. Oh! I know… You might get some great night traffic shots at the foot of the bridge by the harbour (long, curved structure: you’ll know it when you see it).
The ocean and beaches were the most striking… aside from the blond woman and fellow Canuck fan I bumped into on the street. That, and the remarkable number of homeless men camped out around the prefectural building: not what you’d expect.[/quote]
I’m a big fan of canals. Hopefully the harbor where the ship I’m taking there docks is the harbor you’re talking about.
It’s the Tomari Ohashi Bridge, on the Naha Harborside roadway, at the mouth of the harbor at Tomari Wharf. I made a visa run there once upon a time and slept on the beach insight of the bridge.
The view from the Taiwanese gov’t office was pretty decent.
[quote=“Jaboney”]It’s the Tomari Ohashi Bridge, on the Naha Harborside roadway, at the mouth of the harbor at Tomari Wharf. I made a visa run there once upon a time and slept on the beach insight of the bridge.
The view from the Taiwanese gov’t office was pretty decent.[/quote]
Do you know the characters? The google maps are in Japanese. Or a google map location would do.
Sorry, I’ve been looking at Google Maps, and my hiragana’s too far gone to make it out.
Here are a few links that might help. Seriously, I think you’d have to try to miss it.