Zamami Beach

Zamami Beach is the main beach on Zamami Island, one of the jewels of the Kerama Islands National Park, located about 40 kilometres west of Naha in the East China Sea. The beach is an excellent example of Kerama's legendary blue water — a vivid sapphire-turquoise that achieves its extraordinary colour from the pure coral sand seabed and the absence of any river sediment in these isolated ocean islands. The beach stretches about 400 metres between rocky headlands, with pine trees providing natural shade behind the sand.

Snorkeling here is exceptional — the reef directly off the beach is alive with hard and soft corals, and sea turtles are regular and friendly visitors to the feeding grounds around 20–30 metres from shore. Local dive operators have maintained strong turtle conservation practices, meaning the island's turtle population is healthy and accustomed to human presence without being habituated to feeding or handling. This makes for the most natural turtle encounters in Okinawa. The deeper water beyond the lagoon hosts all the diversity of a healthy Indo-Pacific reef ecosystem.

Zamami Island is one of Japan's most celebrated destinations for humpback whale watching. Every year between January and April, hundreds of humpback whales migrate through the Kerama Strait to breed and calve. Whale watching boats depart from Zamami Port and encounters are remarkably reliable — breaching, tail-slapping, and singing whales are all part of the experience. On calm days, whales can be spotted with binoculars directly from hilltop viewpoints above the beach. This winter whale season makes Zamami a remarkable year-round destination, not simply a summer beach escape.