Travel to relax, eat and shop ......: Okinawa (Nov '14)

Traveled to Okinawa from 29 Nov (Sat) to 06 Dec (Sat). Initially planned to travel in 2013 but was delayed due to some unforeseen reasons. One year later in 2014 we finally realized this plan.

As the timing was unfavorable by the direct flight from Singapore to Okinawa, we decided to transit in Taiwan. Thus, this gave us two additional days to explore Taipei, together with the intended five days in Okinawa. We traveled solely within the Okinawa Island and did not adventure out to 'island-hop' between its neighboring islands.

Leisure trip at a glance

Country: Okinawa Prefecture
Period: 29 Nov to 06 Dec 2014
Flight timings:
29 Nov: TZ 202, SIN–TPE, ETD 0055 ETA 0530
01 Dec: BR 112, TPE-OKA, ETD 0645 ETA 0915
06 Dec: BR 113, OKA-TPE, ETD 1015 ETA 1055
06 Dec: TZ 201, TPE–SIN, ETD 1545 ETA 2015
Air tickets:
Return tickets for Scoot at SGD 591.50 (inclusive of airport taxes)
Return tickets for EVA Air at TWD 10,527 (inclusive of airport taxes)
Accommodations:
Just Sleep, Ximending - 捷絲旅台北西門館 (29 to 30 Nov)
Novotel Taoyuan International Airport Hotel - 台北諾富特華航桃園機場飯店 (30 Nov to 01 Dec)
Tokyo Daiichi Hotel Okinawa Grand Mer Resort (01 to 03 Dec)
Hotel Ocean (Kokusai-Dori) Naha (03 to 06 Dec)
Currency exchange rate:
TWD 100 = SGD 4.39 (Nov '14 period)
JPY 1000 = SGD 11.45 (Nov '14 period)

There is one hour time difference between Singapore and Okinawa Prefecture as Okinawa follows Japan in the GMT +9 time zone. Total damage was about SGD 2,200 including flight tickets, transport, food and hotels, excluding personal expenses.

Here's the overview of the trip itinerary:

Day 1 – Midnight flight TZ 202 to Taipei. Boarded shuttle bus at Taoyuan Airport to Taipei Main Train station. Deposited our luggage at Ximending hotel and took breakfast near Longshan Temple metro station. Visited Taipei Zoo and Maokong. Had dinner at Xinyi district and after which checked-in to Just Sleep hotel.

Day 2 – Visited Jiufen and had dinner at Xinyi district. Took shuttle bus to Taoyuan Airport. Checked-in to Novotel Taoyuan International Airport hotel.

Day 3 – Took early flight BR 112 to Okinawa. Went to Outlet Mall Ashibinaa. Took hotel shuttle bus and checked-in to Okinawa Grand Mer Resort. Took hotel shuttle bus to Mihama American Village. Had dinner at American Village and then took taxi back to hotel.

Day 4 – Last minute booking of day tour. Took hotel shuttle bus to pick-up point. First stop to Butterfly Park, then to Churaumi Aquarium. Next stop was Pineapple Farm followed by glass-making factory. Dinner at American Village and took taxi back to hotel.

Day 5 – Took hotel shuttle bus to Naha Airport. Bought Yui Rail Day Pass and deposited our luggage at hotel. Visited Shuri Castle and had lunch near the rail station. Visited Ameku Ryubo Rakuichi. Had dinner at Heiwa-dori Street and shopped along Kokusai-dori Street.

Day 6 – Visited Ryukyu Mura. Walked along Makishi Public Market and had dinner along Kokusai-dori Street.

Day 7 – Took bus from Naha Bus Terminal to Okinawa World Culture Kingdom and Gyojusendo. Went to Naha Wharf for glass-bottom boat ride. Had dinner near Oroku station and then shopped at AEON shopping mall.

Day 8 – Took Yui Rail to Naha Airport. Boarded flight BR 113 to Taiwan and had lunch at Taoyuan Airport. Boarded flight TZ 201 back to Singapore.

Taoyuan International Airport (桃園國際機場)

The Taoyuan International Airport is an international airport serving Taipei and northern Taiwan. The airport is located 40-km west of Taipei city center and it is the largest and busiest airport in Taiwan. The IATA code for this airport is TPE.

Major renovation of Terminal 1 had completed in 2012 and the complex looked spacious and contemporary in design both interiorly (left photo below) and exteriorly (right photo below).

The waiting lounges in Taoyuan Airport are themed and each lounge showcased a single iconic element of Taiwan's cultural aspects, such as Taiwan Aboriginal Arts, Taiwan Alpine, Taiwan Fruit, Taiwan Orchid, Taiwan Opera, Taiwanese Local Cuisine and many more. Among them, probably the cutest one is the Hello Kitty waiting lounge located at Gate C3 in Terminal 2. There is a play area (left photo below), lounge chairs and tables with Hello Kitty theme (right photo below).

There is even a Sanrio duty free shop (left photo below) offering a variety of Hello Kitty merchandizes that have color overload of 'pink' (right photo below).

Naha Airport (那覇空港)

The Naha Airport is an international airport located 4-km west of the city hall in Naha. It is Japan's seventh busiest airport connecting to major cities in Asia. There are two separate terminals serving both the Domestic and International route. The IATA code for this airport is OKA.

Naha International Terminal

Naha Domestic Terminal

Naha Air Base

Getting out / in of the Airport

Transportation

Okinawa Urban Monorail

The Okinawa Urban Monorail (冲绳都市单轨电车线), also known as Yui Rail, is a monorail line serving the cities of Naha and Urasoe in Okinawa. Operating since 10 Aug 2003, this monorail system has 19 stations, from Naha Airport in the west to Tedako-Uranishi in the east of total length 17-km (photo below).

Train Cars

Purchase of Tickets

Types of Tickets

Station Gantry

Okinawa Local Bus

There are no trains in Okinawa Island, so the only public transportation is either monorail in Naha-City or by local buses. In Okinawa, there are four bus operators and their bus routes run all over the island with six terminals as their starting points. Therefore, it is important to find the closest bus stop to your destination.

Riding the local bus can be easy by following the steps below:


1. Confirm Bus Number and Destination
Confirm the bus number and destination on the top at the front of the bus. The same bus number can also be found below the windshield. Similarly, bus number and waypoint can be found at the left side of the bus. Waypoints are written in smaller font while its final destinatin is written in large font. Do note that the board can be a digital display for some buses.
2. Take a number-printed Ticket
Take a printed ticket from the vending machine next to the front door. The vending machine is marked with bright orange with words "整理券" or "Boarding Vouchers".
3. Keep the number-printed Ticket
The number-printed ticket is the proof of the bus ride. Do not lose this ticket. The large number on the ticket indicates where the bus is boarded. This number will be used as a reference when checking the fare. Other information on the ticket includes ticket name "整理券", date and name of bus operator.
4. Be seated and Press buzzer to alight
Proceed to the back of the bus for a seat. Press the buzzer button after the announcement of the stop if intended to alight. The buzzer is located close to almost every seat. The next alighting stop will be indicated on the LED panel or digital display of the fare indicator located above the windshield.
5. Check fare and Get ready to alight
To find the exact fare, match the number on the printed ticket with the one on the fare indicator that is hanged above the windshield. For example, if the printed number is 8, then the exact fare will be JPY 1110. Get ready for payment before alighting. If there is no exact coins available, do prepare the dollar note for exchange at the fare box. Do note that higher banknotes of JPY 5,000 or JPY 10,000 cannot be exchanged on the bus.
6. Pay the exact fare
Drop the exact fare and the number printed ticket into the fare inlet that is marked with red box with wordings "硬貨\|整理券\|回数券" or "coin\|boarding vouchers\|tickets" on the top of fare box. Do note that the fare box does not return any change. If required, coin or 1000-dollar banknote can be exchanged from the change-maker inlet marked with blue label located at the side of the fare box. These blue labels are indicated with words "硬貨入口" or "insert coins here" and "纸幣入口" or "insert bills here". Exchanged coins will then drop into a outcurved tray below the change-maker inlets.

Naha Bus Terminal

Naha Bus Terminal is the center of bus network where 'Asahibashi Station' (旭橋駅) on the Okinawa Monorail is conveniently located next to it (photos below). The buses from this terminal serve most parts of Okinawa and almost all attractions can be reached from there. Passengers just need to wait for the desired bus at the berth with its associated bright yellow signage where the bus number will be indicated.

Accommodation

Just Sleep - Ximending (捷絲旅台北西門館)

Just Sleep - Ximending is a 4-star hotel located within 2-minute walk from Ximen (西門) Metro Station from Exit 6. However, do note that there is no escalator or lift at this metro exit. Convenient store 7-11 is located beside the hotel entrance. Booked this hotel online for a Superior Twin Room at TWD 3,200 for one night with breakfast.

The room design was simple with modern décor (left photo below) and with wash basin outside the bathroom (right photo below).

Complementary Ice Dispenser (left photo below) and cold drinks vending machine at reasonable price (right photo below) are allocated at each floor next to the lift.

Breakfast was served at its basement furnished with modern vibe (left photo below). Simple selections were available and following were my choices during my stay (right photo below).

Novotel Taoyuan International Airport Hotel (台北諾富特華航桃園機場飯店)

Novotel Taoyuan International Airport hotel is a 5-star hotel located near to airport. Reason for switching to this hotel was because we had an early flight the next day. Booked this hotel online for a Standard Twin Room at TWD 3,850 for one night with breakfast.

The room design was in modern décor of moderate size (photos below). As we reached the hotel at night, we did not get to see the view outside the room.

Bathroom was clean (left photo below) and basic amenities were provided by the hotel (right photo below).

As we had to leave in early morning before the opening of the breakfast buffet, we requested with the hotel stuff at the front desk (left photo below) if we could have some packed breakfast. The breakfast box provided was simple and rather pathetic from a 5-star hotel (right photo below).

There was also free shuttle bus to the airport with frequency of every 30-minutes.

Tokyo Daiichi Hotel Okinawa Grand Mer Resort

Okinawa Grand Mer Resort is a 4-star hotel located in the central part of Okinawa Island which allows easy access to the northern and southern parts of the island. Booked this hotel online for a Standard Twin Room at JPY 22,300 for two nights with daily breakfast.

The room was spacious which was much bigger than I expected (left photo below). There was even a living area with 2 two-seater sofas (right photo below).

Bathroom was clean (left photo below) and basic amenities were provided by the hotel (right photo below).

Indoor swimming pools were part of the facilities available where one for adult (left photo below) and the other for children. The souvenir shop located at its ground floor besides the front desk was so well stocked (right photo below) that I even bought a pack of 'Okinawa red taro snack stick' to try back in my hotel room.

Breakfast area was located in a restaurant at its first floor (left photo below). As the hotel is situated on top of a hill, it rendered a good view; overlooking the nearby town and on the further end the east coast of Okinawa Island (right photo below).

The breakfast buffet had a wide selection of Western and Japanese cuisine, as well as hot and cold dishes with fresh fruits. Following were my choices of breakfast during my stay (photos below).

The most iconic feature of this hotel was the wall of 'shisa' located just besides the main hotel entrance (left photo below). Even more impressive that each of the 68 ceramic 'shisa' gotten their santa hat overnight when we were to check out from the hotel (right photo below).

Hotel Ocean (Kokusai-Dori) Naha

A 3-star hotel located right on Kokusai Street within a 3-min walk from Makishi Monorail Station, Hotel Ocean offers both Western style rooms with beds and Japanese style tatami rooms. Booked this hotel online for a Standard Twin Room at SGD 383.72 for three nights with daily breakfast.

Beds were comfortable (left photo below) and bathroom was clean with basic amenities provided (right photo below).

Complementary tea and coffee were available for guests at the hotel lobby 24-hours a day (left photo below). Even more interesting was each guest can select a pillow of choice from five different types (right photo below).

Claim to serve the World's richest Okinawa style breakfast buffet, the Hotel Ocean offers over 100 different dishes at their Sky Lounge Restaurant on its 12th floor (photos below).

There was a noodle section that allowed guests to select two types of broth (left photo below) and three types of yellow noodles (right photo below). Maybe I am not a picky eater, the noodles and broth tasted very similar.

A variety of Okinawa cooked food (left photo below) together with some marinated vegetables and Okinawa Island Tofu (right photo below) were available. I used to dislike bitter gourd but after I had tasted 'Goya Chanpuru' I am able to accept it. 'Goya Chanpuru' is an Okinawan dish comprising of stir-fried bitter gourd with tofu, egg and thinly sliced pork.

Fruit juice can be freshly made from the counter (left photo below). There was even food available for baby and toddler as well (right photo below).

Following were the selections during my first breakfast (photos below).

My choices on my second breakfast (photos below).

And my final breakfast in this hotel (photos below).

This hotel definitely offered the best variety of hotel breakfast buffet I ever had.

Interesting Observations

Although English is their second language, the English orthography in Okinawa can be improved. For example the information on luggage "bags" (left photo below) and the spelling of "please" (right photo below).

Influenced by the Japanese, punctuality in Okinawa is a serious matter (left photo below). Interestingly during our day tour, no one was late during boarding or meetup.

However, it can be fun and creative in Okinawa where shirt promotion is more effective by having "models". Looks real from far, these soft toy dogs are the best promoters for dog T-shirts (right photo below).

There is a local saying that "No part of the pig is thrown away except its grunts", and the skin from a pig's face called "Chiragā" is a traditional delicacy in Okinawa. A raw pig decorated to look more "humane" (left photo below) and packs of 'smoked and seasoned' pig faces (right photo below) were both sold in a local fresh market.

Influenced by the Chinese, shisa can be found in every corner of Okinawa, for example as part of the decorations at a hotel entrance (photos below). Shisa (风狮爷) is traditional Ryukyuan culture artifact derived from the Chinese guardian lions which resembles a hybrid between a dog and a lion.