Miyakojima Itinerary: How We Spent 4 Days on Miyako Island
Last Updated on September 29, 2026 by Kay
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If you’re planning a trip to Miyakojima (Miyako Island) in Japan and wondering how to plan your trip, here’s exactly what we did.
We spent four days on Miyakojima and didn’t try to cram in every sightseeing spot on the island. Instead, we focused mostly on beaches, snorkeling, good food, and making sure we had plenty of time to relax at our hotel. We also changed our plans a few times depending on the weather, tides, and what we felt like doing that day.
Four days ended up being enough for us to have an amazing trip, although by the end, I definitely wished we had stayed longer.
Below, I’ll share our complete four-day Miyakojima itinerary, including where we went each day, what we thought was worth doing, and what I would change next time.
Day 1:
Arrive in Miyakojima, Lunch at Blue Turtle, and Toguchi Beach
We arrived in Miyakojima from Osaka at around 10 AM. The rental car company picked us up from the airport. After we filled out the paperwork, we were good to go!
We first drove to Blue Turtle, a restaurant that has a terrace from which you can see the ocean. We arrived right when it opened at 11, so we were able to choose whichever seat we wanted. It was quite packed by noon, and this was a weekday!
From the cocktails to the Miyako beef hamburg steak, everything was really delicious.
Blue Turtle is right next to Toguchi Beach, so after having lunch, my daughter and I played in the ocean.
The water at this beach is crystal-clear and quite shallow for several metres, making it the perfect depth for those who want to splash around but not necessarily swim (although you can go deeper further out if you like).
Note that this isn’t a good beach for snorkeling as there isn’t much coral (although this means the sand feels really soft and nice… but will also get everywhere; I was shocked at how much sand made its way into my bikini bottom!).
Afterwards, we checked into our hotel, the Canopy by Hilton Miyako Island. They let us check in early at 2 PM. We enjoyed the pool and then went out for dinner in the city. You can read my full review here.
Once in the city, we ate at a taco restaurant called BOB’S RYUKYU TEPPAN, which is famous for its Miyako gyu (beef) tacos. My husband and I shared, while our daughter got taco rice.
It was okay, but we found the taco a little too heavy and a little wet for our liking. The taco rice was a bit bland since they removed the chili so our daughter could eat it.
After eating, we walked around a bit and took a look at some of the souvenir stores in the area before going back to the hotel.
Day 2:
Snorkeling, Shigira Beach, Aragusuku Beach, and Sugarcane Juice
We had reserved a private snorkeling trip with Ocean King on this day, and we needed to be there by 7:20 AM.
We ate a light breakfast quickly at 6:30 AM, right when the hotel buffet breakfast opened, and then headed out at 7 AM.
After being given an explanation of the tour and our snorkeling gear, we headed to Waiwai Beach, which is apparently a popular spot for sea turtles. It was a bit of a walk, about ten minutes, and then we spent about 40 minutes in the water.
The waves were a little strong that day, and unfortunately, we were unable to see turtles, as the typhoon that had hit a few days prior had wiped out all their food.
But we were so proud of our daughter as this was her second time snorkeling, and this time straight from the beach! And she got to see some fish, so for her, that was a win.
It was 10 AM at this point, and I was determined for my daughter to experience snorkeling with turtles, though, so we went to the guide’s recommendation, Shigira Beach.
You can rent snorkel equipment from here, or purchase it if you like. There are tours available as well.
We weren’t that impressed with the water clarity, though, and the only tour available was three hours later (which is why it’s important to book in advance), so we went to Aragusuku Beach.
It was nearing low tide when we arrived at around 11 AM. We were lucky to get a free parking spot as well, since there are only a few city-owned spots. Otherwise, you need to pay 2000 yen for a spot (!).
I headed to the left side of the beach to try to see the sea turtles. My husband rented a table and lounger so that he and our kid could enjoy some lunch (curry rice, which was actually quite good) that they bought from a vendor the beach.
I didn’t see any turtles, probably because the tide was too low, but I did come across a very affordable tour company.
We booked a tour with them for the next morning as there would be a higher chance of seeing a turtle then.
After that, we spent part of the afternoon in the ocean looking at the fish. There were so many, and actually, low tide worked out perfectly for our daughter. However, just be careful of the coral, as you don’t want to damage it (or be damaged by it!).
When snorkeling was done, we wanted to have a little more to eat at HARRY’S Shrimp Truck. It was a bit of a drive from Aragusuku Beach but we enjoyed the coast along the way. I recommend stopping by Higa Roadpark, which has a beautiful view of the ocean.
If you like horses, you might also want to make a reservation for this ranch that has Miyako Horses, which can only be found on this island.
We didn’t stop by the ranch since we didn’t have a reservation and instead headed straight for Harry’s Shrimp Truck, and arrived a little before 3 PM. Although it was well past lunch, many of the tables under the shade were already full! (There is also plenty of seating on the second floor, which has a stunning view, but no shade.)
I definitely recommend this place if you like garlic shrimp. The view is great, as is the food. But if you’ve had garlic shrimp from a truck in Oahu, Hawaii (like we did), you might be a tiny bit disappointed.
After lunch, we drove to a nearby sugarcane factory to make our own sugarcane juice.
You can feed a piece of sugarcane into a machine to make your own fresh sugarcane juice, which tastes so refreshing. And you get a piece of sugarcane to chew on as well! My husband got some sugarcane coffee (pictured below), which I liked as well, but the sugarcane juice is where it’s at.
You can also reserve an experience where you cut your own sugarcane, although this wasn’t available when we visited.
We tried to go to the Miyako Island Underwater Park afterwards, but the water clarity wasn’t good (there’s a sign at the entrance, so make sure to read it before paying!), so we gave up and just went back to the hotel to enjoy the pool.
After the pool, we had dinner at an izakaya called Shimauta Izakaya Kiyama.
Here we could listen to traditional Okinawan music while enjoying Okinawa specialties with a Miyakojima twist, like goya chanpuru.
Note that there is a 330 yen per person otoshi (table/appetizer charge), which is for guests ages 3 and up, plus a 660 yen live music charge (330 yen for children 15 and under).
Day 3:
Snorkeling With Turtles, Underwater Boat Tour, Beaches
We were able to spend some more time enjoying breakfast on this day and then headed out to Aragusuku Beach for our snorkeling tour.
Although we arrived before 9 AM, the free parking lot was completely full, and we ended up having to pay 2000 yen for the other lot.
The snorkeling tour was wonderful, though, and we saw two turtles!
If you want to go snorkeling in Miyakojima, joining a tour is a good option, especially if you’re hoping to see sea turtles or would prefer to snorkel with a guide. The tours below are available in English.
Aragusuku Beach: If you want to snorkel at Aragusuku Beach, you can book a snorkeling tour in advance here.Shigira: If you want to do a snorkeling tour around Shigira, I recommend Sunshine Marin. We’re considering doing a tour with them the next time we’re in Miyakojima. Make sure you book in advance because availability is limited.For the best conditions that day: I would look at SUGAR3 Miyakojima Marine. They choose the snorkeling location depending on the conditions that day, which can give you a better chance of seeing sea turtles. I’m considering trying this tour the next time we visit Miyakojima.
The nice thing is that pretty much all snorkeling with turtles experiences are from the beach and last about an hour, which means it’s not overwhelming for those who don’t have much experience with snorkeling (aka very beginner-friendly!).
My only complaint is that it was a little crowded, probably because it was a weekend, so we needed to wait a bit to see one of the turtles, as many people were already there. When my husband spotted another turtle, another tourist followed us, and they were in all of our pictures, which was disappointing.
After snorkeling, we went on an underwater boat tour, which we booked the day before.
I highly recommend doing this because you’ll see much larger species of fish. My daughter was so happy doing this tour, and we got to see more turtles! And we liked it because we were tired from snorkeling in the morning.
The boat tour lasted about 45 minutes.
If you’re prone to seasickness, make sure to take some meds beforehand because we saw a few passengers looking pretty miserable and rushing up to the deck.
When we were done, we decided to visit Yonaha Beach. This is another great beach for swimming, but not necessarily snorkeling as there isn’t much coral.
We only took a look instead of going in because my daughter was a little sick of the ocean at this point.
We decided to cross Kurima Bridge, pictured above, to reach Kurima Island, but I don’t really recommend doing this if you’re short on time unless it’s sunset. We ate lunch at a small restaurant called Hanafuu, which was run by the cutest old lady ever, but the food we had (Okinawa soba, taco rice, and curry rice) was rather bland.
We then went to Nagamahama Beach, which only had two or three parking spots (I couldn’t exactly tell) and was quite wild. We had to go through a little path that was overgrown with plants, and the beach itself was quite rocky and definitely not for swimming.
Musunun Beach is nice to visit for the sunset, and we found some pretty cool seashells there.
However, this is another beach where I wouldn’t recommend swimming unless you’re a very confident swimmer. I can see someone being easily whisked off by the waves, and since it’s quite remote, there aren’t many people.
Here is the warning sign showing you what to be aware of before you get in the water:
We left Kurima Island and then decided to eat something sweet from the Blue Turtle Farm Mango Cafe. I loved the entrance to it!
We got the Mango parfait and the mango juice to go, as there was a wait for a table. I liked both but next time, I will just wait for a table so I can try their frozen mango, which you can only get if you dine in.
Before dinner, we took our daughter to the playground near the hotel, Painagama Umisora Sukoyaka Park. This is a super cute playground right next to the Hilton. It takes about 15 minutes to walk there, but they have free parking, too.
I love that the playground is ocean-themed, with fish and boat decor at the top.
Then we had dinner at Miru Taiyo (美琉太陽). This was our favorite restaurant in Miyakojima. Every single food item we ordered was fantastic, but if I had to choose just one item to recommend, it would be the fruit salad.
What really made the evening memorable, though, was the atmosphere. The staff joined in with the live music and brought so much energy to the room that it was impossible not to love every moment.
At one point, they passed instruments around to the diners so everyone could join in. Our daughter was given a drum and happily played along with the music, which was adorable. (And if you’re a party without kids, don’t worry, adults get instruments and can join in, too!)
Note that there is a 450 yen per person otoshi (table/appetizer charge), plus a 500 yen live music charge (600 yen for children age 6 and under).
Day 4:
Hotel Morning, Souvenir Shopping, and Going Home
This was our last day in Miyakojima.
We had a leisurely breakfast at the hotel, enjoyed the pool right when it opened at 8 AM, and then checked out an hour later.
We shopped at Don Quijote for souvenirs before heading to the airport and going home. Notably, we noticed that some of the food souvenirs at Don Quijote were more expensive than at the airport. My friend recommended going to AEON Mall for souvenirs, so we might do that next time.
How Many Days Do You Need in Miyakojima?
How long you need in Miyakojima really depends on how much you want to see and how much time you want to spend relaxing.
Four days worked well for us, but I would probably stay for five days next time. That would have given us enough time to visit a few more places without sacrificing our afternoons at the hotel.
My friend S spent a full week in Miyakojima with her family and friends, and felt that was just right for them.
Do You Need a Rental Car in Miyakojima?
We rented a car for our time in Miyakojima, and I highly recommend all visitors do the same.
You could easily spend most of your trip enjoying a beachside resort, but I think you would miss out on a lot of Miyakojima by staying in one place the entire time.
This way, you can not only see the diversity of the beaches and aquatic life here, but you’ll also be able to experience Miyakojima culture, especially at restaurants. You can find car rental options here.
Where We Stayed in Miyakojima
We stayed at the Canopy by Hilton Miyako Island, which is a new hotel that has a stunning rooftop pool that overlooks the ocean.
We loved coming back here in the afternoon and just relaxing by the rooftop pool. And if you don’t have kids, you might like that kiddos are not allowed in the pool area after 5 PM.
Overall, we had a wonderful stay here, so much so that I wrote an article about it!
What I Would Do Differently Next Time
Four days in Miyakojima was wonderful, but next time I would stay longer.
There were several places we wanted to visit but didn’t have time for, including Miyako Island Underwater Park, Miyakojima City Tropical Plant Garden, and Miyakojima Taiken Craft Village.
We actually tried to visit Miyako Island Underwater Park, but when we arrived, there was a sign saying that water visibility was quite poor, so we decided against it.
For our next trip, I think five days would give us a little more time to see these places while still leaving plenty of time to enjoy the beaches and hotel.
Is Miyakojima Kid-Friendly?
Yes, it’s absolutely kid-friendly! I covered what my family did in this piece, but if you want additional suggestions (recommended by my friend), read my Miyakojima with kids article.
Is Four Days in Miyakojima Worth It?
Four days in Miyakojima went by so fast, so it was absolutely worth it for us. We loved our time in Miyakojima so much that we think we will try to visit every year!
For us, it was the perfect balance of swimming, snorkeling, exploring, eating good food, and relaxing at the hotel.