Best places: Beaches in Japan

The island's most popular beach with visitors due to its gentle turquoise waters & coral reef.

Picturesque white-sand stretch of shoreline with a cafe & an outpost for water sports rentals.

Sandy beach popular for swimming & snorkeling on a coral reef, with glass-bottom boat rides.

Shallow azure waters lap at this beach that is famous for its gentle slope & fine white sands.

Sprawling destination with a bustling atmosphere featuring white sand & mountain views.

Relaxed ocean retreat offering clear waters with tropical fish & tables with umbrellas.

👍 Good place

Long, undeveloped white-sand beach, a popular destination for surfing.

👍👍 Yonehara Beach is the best beach for beginner-snorkeling as its shallow coral reefs extend throughout the shore. You don’t even need to be fully equipped—dig your head into the water and there are you go, plenty of fish are there to see. Unlike Sukuji Beach, there aren’t much shades, but the campsit...

This white sand beach lined with lush greenery is bathed by a turquoise sea with coral reefs.

Small, sandy beach set near Kouri Bridge offering shallow waters & coral reefs.

Busy seaside destination best known for panoramic water views as well as scuba diving & snorkeling.

👍👍 So worth the drive and time! The beach is beautiful and the parking is free and a breeze to find. My husband and I really enjoyed our visit. It would be a nice place to spend a day as there are lots walking trails and picnic tables to eat. Convenient stores are within a ten minutes drive. Very nice.

👍 Don't follow Google Maps route there, you should go thru the Churaumi Aquarium (you don't need to enter the Aquarium to access the beach, but you cross just around it, as if you're gonna enter the Aquarium). There is a beach house with showers (free) and lockers (¥100), you can rent beach umbrellas...

Scenic cove beach in a secluded area with a sand & rock shore, mountain surrounds & marine life.

👍👍 It is a beach that is shallow, the waves are calm, and the water is beautiful. Even small children and people who are not good at swimming can play with peace of mind, so it gets very crowded on weekends of the season. Outside of the season, it is crowded with surfers and beachcombers. As of May 20...

Shrine-adjacent, sandy beach with nearby amenities, popular for surfing, swimming & sunset viewing.

😐 THIS IS A PRIVATE BEACH. HOTEL GUESTS ONLY. There are claims on the internet that you can pay staff at the hotel to access the beach. We came all the way from Ishigaki as google had the beach listed as a public beach. The staff were inflexible about letting us go there and it was off season. Can’t r...

Sandy strip with tuftlike rock formations, popular for swimming, snorkeling & photo shoots.