Yonaguni

The local tourist association has a Japanese-only guide site with integrated Google Translate.

• 🌍 Yonaguni Airport (OGN  ^IATA). Expanded in 1999 to allow jets to land, there are 1-2 flights daily from Ishigaki (30 min) and Naha (1 hour) on JAL subsidiary Ryukyu Air Commuter, which can be booked the JAL website. With the insolvency of TransAsia Airways, Yonaguni has lost its only international flight. 

• Fukuyama Kaiun (福山海運), ☏ + 81 980-87-2555. Runs boats from Ishigaki on Tuesdays and Fridays (departing at 10:00), with return trips on Wednesdays and Saturdays (at 10:00, can change depending on the season). The ship docks at Kubura port on the western end of Yonaguni. The trip takes four hours on a good day and costs ¥3500 one-way, or about ¥6500 round-trip. Most of the journey is across the open sea and people prone to seasickness may wish to steer clear, though it's a large ship and relatively stable. A cargo boat also offers an irregular (unscheduled) service to Naha. (updated Apr 2019)

• 🌍 Cape Irizaki (西崎). Yonaguni's main aboveground sight of any interest is the marker for the westernmost point of Japan (日本最西端の碑) at the westernmost tip of the island, about a kilometer from Kubura (15 minutes on foot). 
• 🌍 Cape Agarizaki (東崎), at the east tip of the island. The kanji mean East Cape, but the reading of the name refers to the rising sun. You can observe it from a cliff. On a clear day, if you're lucky, you can see the coast of Iriomote. Also a grazing area, many Yonaguni horses can be found here. 
• 🌍 Kuburabari (久部良バリ). This cliff near the northern side of Kubura's port offers views of the last sunset in Japan, and on a good day it is possible to see the shadow cast by Taiwan in front of the setting sun from here. This is also the site where, in the rough period when residents of the island were forced to pay an alarmingly expensive head tax after the Ryukyu Kingdom was conquered by the Satsuma clan from the Japanese mainland, pregnant women were sometimes made to jump to their death to avoid an increase in population. 
• Ubudumaihama (ウブドゥマイ浜). From the cliffs here, there's an impressive view of much of Yonaguni's beautiful northern coastline. 
• Hikawa Beach (比川浜 Hikawahama), the southern shore of the island in Hikawa. Shaped like a crescent, it is the island's largest beach. Suitable for swimming. Very quiet, little-to-no waves because of a coral reef. 

• Kuburadake (久部良岳). Kuburadake is a Natural Conservation District in the west of Yonaguni, about 188 m (617 ft) above sealevel. It is valuable because it contains a Chinquapin mountain forest and a lowlands forest, home to such natural monuments as the colorful Emerald Dove (リュウキュウキンバト), Japanese Wood Pidgeon (ヨナグニカラスバト), Ryukyu Robin (ウスアカヒゲ), and others. From about halfway up the mountain to the summit, the trees are mostly date palms. Lower than halfway, you can find Javanese bishopwood trees (アカギ) and other diverse plants which the Atlas moth eats. 
• 🌍 Tindabana (ティンダバナ). Tindabana is a natural rock formation with a nice view. About 70 m (230 ft) tall. From Tindabana, you can see the entire village of Sonai, and Nandahama. According to tradition, the great empress of Yonaguni, Sanai Isoba, resided here. (updated Dec 2015)
• 🌍 Jinmen-iwa (人面岩). Jinmen-iwa is a big rock in the forest that resembles a human face. Requires 12-20 minute hike up the hill by a forest trail. No parking, nearest parking is at Tatigami-iwa. (updated Jul 2019)

The following rock formations are best viewed by boat.

• 🌍 Gunkan-iwa (軍艦岩). The "Battleship Rock", about 2 km (1.2 mi) south of Agarizaki, is a series of peculiarly-shaped reef rock formations. Supposedly, the main rock bears a close resemblance to the shape of a battleship, and that's how it got its name. It can be observed from Sanninudai. 
• 🌍 Sanninudai (サンニヌ台). Believed by some to be an above-water portion of the mysterious undersea ruins (different from the Yonaguni Monument) because it is shaped almost like a sort of stairway. The strangely-shaped rocks of Gunkaniwa can be easily seen from here. Also, there's a rock here with some writing on it which is mysterious. It bears little resemblance to kaida-dii, the island's indigenous writing system, and some have even suggested that it is Phoenecian. 
• 🌍 Tatigamiiwa (立神岩、タティガミイワ). The "Standing God Rock", at the southeast tip of the island, is also noted for the underwater ruins nearby (see Do, some with what appears to be indigenous writing. Also, it's considered a spiritual site for followers of Yonaguni's indigenous traditional religion. 

• Tunguta (トゥングタ). Tunguta is a rice field in the middle of the island, of historical interest. In the period when a head tax was enforced by the Shimazu clan of modern-day Kagoshima prefecture against the people of the southern islands, causing much pain and suffering, all the inhabitants of the island were suddenly called to this ricefield. Those who did not get there by a certain time were slaughtered. This was one of a few horrific stories of population reduction which was carried out on Yonaguni by the order of the local elders. 
• Yonaguni Ethnographic Museum (与那国民俗資料館 Yonaguni Minzoku Shiryōkan), ☏ +81 90-8292-2515. 10:00-17:00, need reservation by phone. This museum, at No. 49 in the Sonai area, is run by 100+ year-old "island auntie", Ikema Nae. There's a lot of information about the island's history, culture, and even language. If you want information about the island's indigenous writing system, kaida-dii, this is probably the place to go. Their informational pamphlets can also be very enlightening, but they are only occasionally offered in English. The museum also sells the Dictionary of the Yonaguni Tongue (与那国語辞典 Yonaguni kotoba jiten), the only available dictionary of the local language (to and from Standard Japanese), also with a little bit of information about the native writing system. Incidentally, the dictionary is written by Ms Nae, and the entire museum is mostly the result of her work. If you have any questions, she's usually there and is very knowledgeable about the history, culture, language, and traditions of Yonaguni. 
• Bullfights (闘牛)

The island's unique fauna are also of interest.

• Yonaguni horse (ヨナグニウマ yonaguni-uma). Bred in isolation on Yonaguni over hundreds of years, the Yonaguni horse is a very small breed, only about 10 hands high (100 cm/3.5 feet). Nowadays, most are wild, in two free-ranging herds (about 108 horses total). They're generally very tame and gentle, thanks in large part to the kind treatment they receive from the islanders. You'll probably see at least one if you're on the island for very long.
• Atlas moth (ヨナグニサン yonaguni-san). The largest known species of moth in the world. Although it can be found in other parts of Asia (mostly in Taiwan, India, and Malaysia), the first specimen was collected in Yonaguni and they are abundant.
  • Atlas Moth Museum (アヤミハビル館 ayamihabiru-kan) (southeast of Sonai), ☏ +81 980-87-2440. Has live caterpillars in season as well as various displays of local insects and other critters. You won't be able to see the adult moths, though, as the cocoons are returned to the forests. ayamihabiru is the local name for Yonagunisan moth. 
• Geographer Cone (アンボイナ amboina). A very beautiful — but also very poisonous — seashell. See here for more information on how to watch out for them. 

Yonaguni's unique attraction is the mysterious 🌍 "underwater ruins" (海底遺跡 kaitei iseki). Dryly but diplomatically referred to by the government as the "Underwater Landscape Resources" - which lie off the southern coast of the island . A single platform 100 by 50 meters (330 by 160 ft) wide and up to 25 m (82 ft) tall, seeming carved out of solid rock at perfectly right angles and dated by some to be 8000 years old, the technology required to build them here doesn't seem to match any known timeline of human history. Some maintain that they are the product of the lost Continent of Mu or even alien artifacts, though the majority of scientists think they were created by natural geological processes. But the (apparent) hallways and staircases, as well as what appear to be regular rows of holes dug for moving rock and even what some take to be a form of writing on the walls, keep visitors intrigued.

Seeing the ruins, however, takes some time, effort and skill: the area is notorious for its currents and not suitable for beginning divers, although several diving shops run one-day crash courses that culminate in a guided tour of the ruins. For those with the requisite skills (PADI AOWD or more), a day's diving starts at ¥12000. The ruins, some 20 minutes by boat from Kubura, are usually only accessible when they are on the leeward side of a north wind and the currents are not too strong, so you'll also need some luck just to get here.

Wind conditions permitting, SOUWES diving service (ソーウェス) can also arrange glass-bottomed boats to make the trip for ¥5000/head if there are five or more passengers (or you can charter the whole boat yourself). Don't expect to see very much when the weather is bad, as the ruins are at a depth of 5 to 20 meters (16 to 66 ft).

The names of individual features are mostly made up by their original discoverers and researchers. They might not be scientifically correct, but no better names are available for reliable orientation.

• 🌍 Arch Gate (アーチ門). A passage 1 m (3 ft) in width and 2 m (7 ft) in height that looks like a tunnel. 
• 🌍 Twin Megaliths (二枚岩). Two huge stone slabs standing parallel to each other. 
• 🌍 Main Terrace (メインテラス). Relatively wide flat area with vertical wall. 
• 🌍 Main Terrace Stairs (メインテラス階段). Formation that looks like giant stairs at the Main Terrace. There are some photos of these stairs on the internet, taken here from a specific angle, such that the stairs look like a pyramid going up high. In reality that is not the case. 
• 🌍 Loop Road (ループ道路). A 5 m (16 ft) wide ledge that encircles the base of the formation on three sides. 
• Retaining Wall (石垣). A straight row of huge stones along the south (outer) edge of the "Loop Road". 
• 🌍 Water Trench (排水溝). A long narrow cavity with flat parallel walls that looks like a water trench. 
• 🌍 Triangle Pool (三角プール). A triangular depression with three large holes at its north edge. 
• 🌍 Turtle Monument (亀のモニュメント). A low star-shaped platform. 

These objects are not part of the monument, but are relatively close to it:

• Totem (トーテム). A stone column about 7 m (23 ft) tall, to the south of the monument. 
• Sun Stone (太陽石, Goshintai). An isolated boulder was resting on a low platform to the east of the monument. That boulder has been washed away from the platform. 

In addition to the ruins, Yonaguni is also famous among Japanese divers for its hammerhead sharks, which congregate around the island and can be spotted on most dives in the cooler winter season (December–February). Yonaguni is also pretty much the only spot in Japan where it is possible to spot the giant whale shark, the largest of them all, although sightings are quite rare.

Much of the southern coastline is dotted with caverns, caves and underwater rock formations, which make for spectacular but, again, slightly challenging diving. Daiyati and the Temple of Light are particularly well-known spots that bear more than slight resemblance to Swiss cheese.

Other events of note on Yonaguni include:

• Swordfish Fishing Competition (カジキ釣り大会 Kajiki-tsuri taikai). Yearly in July. 
• Yonaguni Marathon (一周マラソン大会 Isshu Marason Taikai). Every November. Despite the name, the race is either 10 km (6.2 mi) or 24 km (15 mi) (around the island), not a full marathon. 

• Fiesta (フィエスタ), in Sonai, ☏ +81 980-87-2339. Probably the cheapest accommodation on the island. Dormitory rooms separated for men and women, with shower rooms and toilets outside the rooms but also separated between men and women. Its kitchen and laundry machine are available for public use (¥100) to use the laundry machine). Run by very friendly and gregarious woman from Osaka, this is the kind of place where you're immediately treated as a friend. ¥2500 for bunk or futon in dorm. (updated Apr 2019)
• Komine Ryokan (こみね旅館), in Sonai, ☏ +81 980-87-2211. 
• Tabi-no-yado Kafuu (旅の宿かふう), in Sonai, ☏ +81 980-87-2419. No bathrooms in the rooms, as it's a minshuku. You can take a bath between 16:00-20:00, although they'll usually let you take a bath outside of these times if you ask. Private rooms, nice meals also included. Washing machine costs ¥100. No phones in rooms, but there's a green-phone (public telephone) in the lobby you can use. There is a danger of theft because there are no keys to the rooms. ¥5700. (updated Jan 2016)
• Minshuku Sakiharaso (民宿さきはら荘), in Sonai, ☏ +81 980-87-2976. The interior is much better kept than the backpacker-style Kafuu but the food may or may not match up. Amenities include a large television and a small manga library; ideal for elderly visitors not used to roughing it. ¥5800. (updated Jan 2016)
• Yoshimaru-sō (よしまる荘), Kubura, ☏ +81 980-87-2658. Operated by Yonaguni Diving Service, this standard-issue minshuku offers shared lodging in Japanese-style rooms for ¥5000/¥3500 with/without meals, ¥1000 extra if you want your own room. Expect some noise in the evenings from boozing divers, but it's lights-out by 23:00. 

• Ailand Hotel Yonaguni (アイランドホテル与那国), ☏ +81 98-941-2323. "Temporarily" closed from 2021. Pool, bath house, and restaurant. They also have wireless internet in the lobby only along with a computer for those that don't want to bring their laptop with them. Close to the airport. Very attentive staff make it very nice. Without meals it is ¥15000 per night.