Taketomi
Discover Taketomi
Taketomi (竹富) is one of the Yaeyama Islands of Okinawa, Japan. This small island just north of the tropics with its picturesque beaches and architecture is a popular getaway especially for domestic visitors. Far out in the Philippine Sea and part of the Ryukyu Kingdom until the late 19th century, Taketomi offers attractions that you won’t encounter on the Japanese mainland. Tiny even by Yaeyaman standards, Taketomi (population around 300, area 5.4 km²) gets a disproportionate number of visitors because of its convenient location just off Ishigaki, and above all, its carefully preserved Ryūkyū village (集落 shūraku). Many houses in the village have red clay roofs with guardian shisa lions, a low surrounding wall of coral and extensive flower beds, which are particularly pretty in spring. Most roads are unpaved lanes of white sand and ambling water buffalo pull tourist-packed carts through town. While hardly off the tourist trail even before, Taketomi's popularity skyrocketed in 2012 when NHK aired the drama Tsurukame Josan'in (つるかめ助産院), and accommodation prices have soared to match.
Taste of Taketomi...
The island has half a dozen cafes and restaurants, which do a roaring trade at lunchtime and are quiet the rest of the day. Overnight guests typically eat dinner and breakfast at their accommodation. Much of the southern part of the island is taken up by a farm that cultivates kuruma-ebi (車えび), a type of shrimp, so no prizes for guessing what you will find for dinner. Accommodation on the island is limited and expensive, so most visitors choose to day-trip from Ishigaki instead. However, a night on the island is the only way to experience the beauty of the village in peace (after the day-trippers leave) and since the last boat leaves around 5:30PM you also get some deserted beaches to enjoy before sunset. The island has a surprisingly large selection of guesthouses, most all of which charge a uniform ¥5500 for a bed and two meals. Taketomi has no less than 30 on (御嶽), or holy places for venerating the gods, usually marked off with low stone walls and Japanese signage. Don't venture inside.
A Rich Past
Explore the historical roots that shaped Taketomi into what it is today.
This idyllic island has been inhabited for over a thousand years, but it wasn't the easiest place to scrape out a living. Being too dry for rice farming, villagers had to row for several hours across to Iriomote to tend their rice fields, spending nights on nearby Yubu to avoid Iriomote's malarial mosquitoes. Today, malaria has been eradicated, rice is imported, and the island cultivates tourists instead: the entire island is a part of Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park, and the village is carefully preserved as a historical architectural landmark. The few concrete structures you'll see on the island are actually some of the oldest buildings on the island, since all new construction down to electricity substations has to conform to traditional norms. The only way to get to the island is by boat. An-ei Kankō (安栄観光), Yaeyama Kankō Ferry and Ishigaki Dream Tours operate a cozy triopoly with largely indistinguishable high-speed ferries (高速船 kōsokusen) running from Ishigaki every 30 min or so from 07:30 to 17:30 daily. Ferries take 15 min and cost ¥690/1330 one-way/return. Each operator also runs a car ferry (カーフェリー) twice a week, and these are slower but slightly cheaper at ¥530 one-way. These are not listed on the main schedules, so ask locally or check the websites. In addition, each company runs one ferry per day from Kohama to Taketomi and back (¥1,180/2,260), and a one-way service from Iriomote's Uehara or Ōhara ports (¥1,670)....
Essential Information
Getting There
Multiple OptionsThe only way to get to the island is by boat. An-ei Kankō (安栄観光), Yaeyama Kankō Ferry and Ishigaki Dream Tours operate a cozy triopoly with largely indistinguishable high-speed ferries (高速船 kōsokusen) running from Ishigaki every 30 min or so from 07:30 to 17:30 daily. Ferries take 15 min and cost ¥690/1330 one-way/return. Each operator also runs a car ferry (カーフェリー) twice a week, and these are slower but slightly cheaper at ¥530 one-way. These are not listed on the main schedules, so ask locally or check the websites. In addition, each company runs one ferry per day from Kohama to Taketomi and back (¥1,180/2,260), and a one-way service from Iriomote's Uehara or Ōhara ports (¥1,670). These are primarily meant for repositioning ferries, and reservations are mandatory. Packages including water buffalo rides are heavily flogged at the ticket counters, but read up below before you go for this....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting Around
Getting around Taketomi is easy enough. At the north-east corner of the circular island, about 1 km away from the central village, is the ferry terminal. From here, you can rent a bicycle, hop on a shuttle bus or simply walk. Wisely enough, the village does its best to minimize motorized traffic, so rental cars and motorcycles are not available. A loop of paved road (環状線 kanjōsen) runs at a respectful distance around the village, with small Japanese-only markers at most intersections pointing the way to landmarks. Within the village, though, orienting yourself can be a bit of a challenge, since the streets of white sand and the walled-in buildings all look quite similar, and the little signage there is, is mostly in handwritten Japanese. The Nagomi-no-tō viewing tower makes a useful center point. Taketomijima Kōtsū runs shuttle bus services from the port to the village to the beaches and back at least once an hour. Fares ¥200/310 by distance, or ¥1030 for a one-day pass.
Where to Stay
Accommodation on the island is limited and expensive, so most visitors choose to day-trip from Ishigaki instead. However, a night on the island is the only way to experience the beauty of the village in peace (after the day-trippers leave) and since the last boat leaves around 5:30PM you also get some deserted beaches to enjoy before sunset. The island has a surprisingly large selection of guesthouses, most all of which charge a uniform ¥5500 for a bed and two meals. Taketomi has no less than 30 on (御嶽), or holy places for venerating the gods, usually marked off with low stone walls and Japanese signage. Don't venture inside.
Money & Budget
Upmarket handicraft shops discreetly litter the streets of Taketomi. Popular buys include the local minsā cloth, which is very expensive if hand-weaved and hand-dyed with indigo, and star sand, more affordable at around ¥30 per teaspoonful. There are no supermarkets or convenience stores on the island, so stock up before you head over. Souvenir shops do sell beach essentials like sunscreen. The island has half a dozen cafes and restaurants, which do a roaring trade at lunchtime and are quiet the rest of the day. Overnight guests typically eat dinner and breakfast at their accommodation. Much of the southern part of the island is taken up by a farm that cultivates kuruma-ebi (車えび), a type of shrimp, so no prizes for guessing what you will find for dinner.