Okinawa : Exploring & Relaxing by the Blue Sea | Beautiful Resort Hotel, Cape, Island | Japan vlog

Okinawa : Exploring & Relaxing by the Blue Sea | Beautiful Resort Hotel, Cape, Island | Japan vlog

Kon’nichiwa! I’m Mari, born and raised in Japan☺️ We’re flying over Okinawa Prefecture
—the southernmost part of Japan. There are 691 islands large and small,
inhabited and uninhabited. Down there is Okinawa’s main island. Okinawa was once the Ryukyu Kingdom (1429–1879),
trading with imperial China, Japan and Southeast Asian countries. Then Okinawa became part of Japan in 1879 , was under U.S. administration after WWII, back to Japan in 1972. This mix of cultures is what makes Okinawa so unique. Orion Beer is a local brand in Okinawa!! Let’s eat Okinawa soba noodles! It’s right inside the airport— delicious and saves time. I love Nankotsu Soki Soba. (top left) The pork soft bone (cartilage) is so tender and melty. Pork soft bone (cartilage) isn’t common in mainland Japan, —so happy to eat it in Okinawa☺️ We rented a car. There are also buses and taxis. We love the countryside with beaches
more than the city, like Naha. Sudden rain! So typical of Okinawa. Now we’re in Yomitan village,
in the middle of the main island. Wow, look—the sea! We’re going to stay at hotel nikko alivila
― a beautiful resort hotel. It’s our favorite hotel
—we’ve probably stayed there about ten times☺️ It’s a one-hour drive from Naha Airport. There’s also a limousine bus from the airport. The lobby is filled with the gentle scent of their original aroma oil♡ All the furnishings, like the custom carpets and lamps, are really gorgeous. The design and view vary by room type This is a premium twin room on the 5th floor. Big twin beds, a big sofa—and still plenty of space. Let’s step out onto the balcony! It’s low tide now, so the sea is shallow and rocky. A nice place for relaxing with a coffee or a beer 😊 A turtle♡ Water, tea, and coffee etc. The bath and vanity area are really spacious. And super clean. Samples of Japanese-brand cosmetics. Let’s have a tea in the cafe! We only had coffee this time, but let me show you cakes I had before☺️ A pudding♡ A little firm and rich☺️ I love this! They make the Mont Blanc right in front of you☺️ The flavor changes from time to time
— like strawberry, matcha, and more. Oh! A sudden downpour again. It happens a lot in Okinawa, But thanks to the rain, the air stays cool. So we welcome it. Some people are still in the pool. They’re getting wet anyway😆 There’s an indoor pool, but we decided to just relax in the room. There’s a mini convinience store in the hotel.
Drinks, snacks, sunscreen, swim gear, and souvenirs…and more. The sun’s out — let’s go for a walk! About 10 minutes on foot from here,
there’s a place called Gala Aoi Umi.
(Or you can take a taxi.) By the way, there’re dangerous snakes called “habu” in Okinawa, so we try not to walk through grassy areas or bushes☺️ There are a burger shop, a pizza place, souvenir stores, a beer pub, Okinawa soba, shaved ice, a diving counter, and even a horse riding club. I didn’t know hamburgers could be so good until I tried this place☺️ It feels very Okinawan to me—with a mix of American culture☺️ Our favorite place “Caprice” has a great selection of drinks Japanese and international craft beers on tap and in cans, plus Okinawan specialties like habu liquor and awamori, and more. This place is loved by a lot of Americans from the nearby U.S. base and by visitors from all over the world☺️ Look! Some people are canoeing. Relaxing while watching the sunset — it’s one of my favorite things to do in this Yomitan village. Alright, let’s head back to the hotel! This is Blue Seal, a well-known ice cream brand in Okinawa.
(available in the konbini of the hotel) It’s flavored with shikuwasa, a citrus fruit special to Okinawa. I usually try not to eat too much 😆 but when I’m traveling, I want to enjoy the local foods😁 Good morning☺ Cicadas. Their sound feels like summer — and I love it! The tide is high now, so the beach looks beautiful. Let’s go for a morning walk! The umbrellas are opened when a lifeguard is there. So beautiful! That blue line in the water is a jellyfish net to keep out dangerous jellyfish, habu kurage. The waves shaped rocks like this—so interesting! In Japan, we have something called “umi-biraki”
— the official start of the swimming season. There’s even a ceremony to pray for safety. Okinawa’s umi-biraki comes early — in March. But honestly, March still feels a bit chilly to swim. so swimming is best from April to October. I heard diving is available year-round — even in winter. Let’s have a breakfast here. The hotel has three restaurants. Since it’s high season in June, we have to wait about 30 minutes. But we picked up our tickets first, and then took a little walk😎
Also doing laundry at the coin laundry. This breakfast buffet is really popular. French toast with Alivila’s signature butter, smoothies, Salad, boiled egg, cheese… Sausage, chikenm omlet, curry…and more. There’s so much variety — you can’t try everything in just one breakfast. I’m so full! Time to get moving😆 These e-bikes look great — but my legs aren’t long enough to ride them😆 You can play mini golf, tennis, and even ride a tuk-tuk… There’s plenty of fun here. We rented different type of e-bikes. Alright, let’s go! Near Hotel Nikko Alivila, there’s also Hoshinoya Okinawa —
a more luxurious and quiet place to stay. Oh! A sugarcane field! Okinawa’s brown sugar is pretty famous — it’s full of minerals and really nutritious. The flavor of brown sugar changes depending on which island it comes from I bought some as a souvenir.　”黒糖” means brown sugar. The hotel you see in front is the Grand Mercure Okinawa Cape Zanpa Resort. On the right, you’ll see The Uza Terrace Beach Club Villas —a luxury hotel with private villas and pools. I’d love to stay there someday♡ This is Zanpa Beach — it’s run by Yomitan village It took about 20 minutes by bike from Alivila. It’s 32°C (about 90°F). The sun is really strong, so it’s pretty tough But the view is so worth it. What looks like rock is actually uplifted coral reef. Let’s climb the lighthouse! It’s 31 meters to the top with 99 steps. What a view! Totally out of breath, though😆 We came from over there. Let’s walk around the top of the lighthouse — a full 360°. The wind is strong. My hat’s about to fly off This place is also known as a fishing spot. But I’m too scared to stand there… We’re pretty high up. It might be scary if you’re afraid of heights. My husband already went down leaving me behind 😆 Over there — maybe that’s the north part of this island. That cliff you see stretches for about 2 kilometers. Whew, made it back! Nature’s blue is truly beautiful. Alrigh, let’s head down☺️ The shop uses an old city bus. The soft serve with Yomitan’s specialty — purple sweet potato — is very popular. Blue Seal’s Ice creams, juices, hot dogs and more. We got shaved ice with mango syrup. It’s extremely hot, so we need to cool down from the inside to avoid heatstroke. Let’s head back to Alivila! It’s the same road we took earlier — but on the way back, the view feels different. Let’s stop by for a bit. This spot was once used to cut out sea rocks for things like garden walls. We can only see the unique cut marks when the tide is low. That’s Alivila’s white chapel for weddings. The white chapel really stands out against the deep blue sky and sea. This one’s the other chapel. Now let’s swim at the hotel’s private beach! Rented a float to relax on😆 Strong UV here—make sure to protect your skin. In the afternoon, the water gets a bit cloudy with plankton. Look! A fish! It’s a bit of a shame that this hotel doesn’t serve cocktails by the pool or beach😢 Probably for safety reasons?! Let’s go eat some Okinawan food! It’s a tofu made from peanuts, with sweet sauce. So jiggly! I love this soft texture☺️ Pork spare ribs with soft cartilage, simmered until tender Okinawan seaweed tempura Okinawan stir-fry with gluten cake(fu), veggies, and egg Okinawan stir-fry with sōmen noodles and veggies Good morning☺️ Today, we’re going on a drive to Kouri Island known as its beautiful sea. Here is OIST —Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology
—a graduate university. Visitors can take a tour. I went too! The sea looks like two shades of blue—bright and deep. Oh! We see the bridge to the island. A 1,960-meter bridge connecting to Kouri Island Let’s park here. A popular spot for international travelers too. That rock in front of us is called “Frog Island.” Can you see the frog shape? I couldn’t fully capture the beautiful blue😂 It was even more stunning in real life. It’s a small island, but there are around 35 places to stay. You’ll also find restaurants and beautiful beaches on this island. But it’s way too hot for walking around today😢 So let’s cool down! Just sitting in the car feels like I might get heatstroke. This place was used in a commercial
and is now a romantic spot for many couples. Yeah, it really looks like a heart. Nature is amazing. Such a beautiful beach Beautiful color Sudden rain again😆 Extra scenes from another Okinawa trip☺️ Visiting Ryukyu Kingdom castle sites is fascinating and if you start with the prefectural museum in Naha City, learning the background will make everything even more interesting. This place is near hotel nikko alivila. The “Ultra Boomerang” — a giant waterslide Free shuttle buses run from Hotel Alivila. It felt like flying over the sea! Be sure to check the hours and safety information with the facility beforehand. Thank you for watching♡ I hope you enjoyed this video☺ Please subscribe to my channel♡ See you in my next video!

🌍️Kon’nichiwa! I’m Mari, born and raised in Japan☺️
Today, I’ll share our slow stay in Yomitan Village, a rural area on Okinawa’s main island.We also visited Kouri Island, famous for its breathtaking blue sea.
Okinawa is one of our favorite places in Japan. There’s so much more to enjoy, and I’d love to share other spots with you another time.
I hope this video helps you relax and feel the gentle Okinawan breeze.

💡Two ways to enjoy this video:
-With subtitles on: Guided tour with me
-Without subtitles: Just for relaxing

⏰️Time Stamps
00:00 Intro
00:37 Okinawa from the Plane
01:44 Okinawa Soba Noodles　沖縄そば そば処 琉風
02:11 Times Rental Car & Drive タイムズレンタカー
03:12 hotel nikko alivila ホテル日航アリビラ
06:49 Gala Aoi Umi, atabii’s Yomitan burger & Coffee, beer pub caprice
08:18 hotel nikko alivila terrace, beach, morning buffe, rental e-bikes
11:38 E-bike from hikko alivila to Cape Zampa
12:53 Cape Zampa & Kinjo Parlor 残波岬＆金城パーラー
17:03 Historic Stone Quarry Site 宇座海岸 石切場跡
17:50 nikko alivila private beach
18:37 Okinawa Cusine Hanagasa 沖縄料理 花笠
19:25 Drive to Kouri Island
20:01 Kouri Bridge South End Observation Point 古宇利大橋 南詰展望所
20:42 Kouri Island 古宇利島
21:09 Heart Rock ハートロック
21:19 Kouri Bridge 古宇利大橋
ーーーーー
22:15 Shuri Castle Park 首里城公園
22:22 Nakijin Castle Ruins 今帰仁城跡
22:38 Zakimi Castle Ruins 座喜味城跡
22:49 Grand Mercure Okinawa Cape Zampa Resort Pool
23:03 PANZA Okinawa
22:32 Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium 美ら海水族館

🗺️Map of the spots we visited in this video:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1wBymXkfNloHwm_6sDIkNwDddZjL0xPw&usp=sharing

🗺️If you want to watch more, here’s the map of all the places we’ve featured on my channel:
Click on a location to watch the corresponding video!
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1GtOjDKotUubWTWIMNIF5x3KYDn-ixFg&usp=sharing

💡Some of you might know this, but in Okinawa, a new attraction called Janguria Okinawa opened in July 2025! ジャングリア沖縄
It’s a hot new spot right now, so be sure to check it out☺
https://junglia.jp/

☺️If you liked my video, please subscribe to my channel✨️
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXOMW6afu_UAVFtY9155lbg

📝I’m learning English and Chinese, and I’m trying my best to write English subtitles. I hope they make sense to you!
If you’re learning Japanese, try writing something in Japanese in the comments—I’d love to read it!

🖊️Feel free to share any thoughts or feedback in the comments. I’d really appreciate it.

Thank you for your warm messages and support ♡
With lots of love,
Arigato from Mari

#japantravel #japanvlog #ruraljapan #okinawa #okinawavlog #4k #okinawanfood #yomitan
#hotelnikkoalivila #alivila