Kume-jima

Introduction

Kume Island lies a hundred kilometres west of Naha in Kumejima-cho, Shimajiri district, with around 7,000 residents. It is one of those Okinawan islands that wins on position rather than convenience. The signature is Hate no Hama, a seven-kilometre bank of pure white coral sand reached by a fifteen-minute boat from Tonbaru fishing harbour in the east. Three stretches of sand float in water shading from pale green to deep blue, with no tree, shop or scrap of shade, and nothing to hear but the surf, so bring sun cover, water and a firm return time. For swimming, showers and places to stay, head to Eef Beach on the south-east coast, two kilometres of white sand and a quite different outing; older Chinese guides give a garbled transliteration; Eef Beach is the name to use. Elsewhere the island offers Tatami-ishi, a field of pentagonal basalt columns exposed only at low tide like a giant laid-out mat; the five-branched pine Goeda no Matsu; the Uezu family residence of a Ryukyuan scholar-official; the Uegusuku and Gushikami castle sites; and the Kumejima hot spring heated with deep seawater, alongside prawn farms. Hawksbill turtles nest on the northern beaches from May to September. A 30-minute flight from Naha is quickest, the 3-hour Kume Shosen ferry cheapest, and a 92-minute jetfoil launched in May 2026 made day trips practical for the first time; with limited lodgings, two or three days still beat a rushed one.

✨ Highlights

🛈 Practical Info