Hi there!
So you are arriving to Naha airport!
As with much of public transportation in Japan, once you take the Okinawa monorail once or twice, you will be a pro at riding it!
There is a monorail station located within walking distance of the airport.
This means that if you’re staying in a main part of Naha, it’ll likely be pretty convenient to get to your hotel from the airport by taking the Okinawa monorail aka Yui Rail.
And, the monorail from the airport only goes in one direction, so you don’t even need to make sure you are taking the monorail that’s going in the correct direction!
More below with the visual of what it can be like to take public transportation from Naha airport!
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So…
How to get to the Naha airport monorail station
In short…
Follow the signs!
After you’ve collected your baggage…
You’ll leave the secure area…
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And then you can look for the signs pointing to the monorail!
And then you will make your way to the monorail airport station.
You will see the station almost immediately upon exiting the airport, and it will be a walk of a few minutes.
How to buy a monorail ticket
You need a ticket before you board the monorail, and you can buy this when you get to the monorail station.
You’ll find the ticket machines right next to the ticket gates.
Before you make your way directly in front of the ticket machine though, you will want to know:
- What monorail station you are getting off at
Google Maps can be a reliable way to figure out which monorail station is closest to your destination.
So you can input your destination as your hotel, and it’ll likely tell you the station you’ll be looking to go to.
Then, once you know which station you want to go to, have a look at the route map above the ticket machines.
You can locate your station to figure out the cost of your train ticket. (This will also show up on display on the ticket machine too for confirmation.)
So the ticket cost for the monorail from the Naha airport will be around 200-300 yen (US$2-3)
Now that you know the cost of the ticket, you can head to the ticket machine.
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Then click on how many adults and children you’re buying the ticket for.
If you’re just buying for yourself, you don’t have to do anything, as 1 adult is the default.
And from there, you’ll click on the “monorail ticket” option, and then basically just follow the prompts!
There is an English version that you can switch over to, so first look for that button.
OR…
Instead of buying an individual train ticket each time you want to take the monorail…
Okica card: Okinawa’s IC card
There are also IC cards in Okinawa.
An okica card is Okinawa’s version of a suica card or pasmo card that you would get in Tokyo, an icoca card that you would get in Kyoto, or a kitaca card that you would get in Hokkaido.
There’s really no cost benefit in getting an okica card, but it will make traveling on the Okinawa monorail much easier and more convenient.
Instead of having to buy a monorail ticket every time you want to ride one, you can instead have your okica card loaded up with cash, and then swipe through the ticket gate without stopping by the ticket machine each time.
So this is something to consider getting if you’ll be taking the monorail around Naha a few times. There is an extra fee (well, “deposit”) of 500 yen (US$5) to buy this.
Can you use your suica card or icoca card in Okinawa?
Typically, you can use various IC cards like suica, pasmo, and icoca across different regions of Japan that accept IC cards.
But these IC cards that you buy in Tokyo or Kyoto…
You will NOT be able to use in Okinawa. (As of the time I went in 2019!)
So this means that if you want the ease of using public transportation in Naha, you’ll need to get the okica card.
How to buy the okica card
It’s pretty easy to get an okica card, and you can do this at the same ticket machine that you would buy a monorail ticket.
So once you arrive at the monorail airport station, you would go over to the ticket machine, similar to if you were to buy an individual ticket.
Once again…
Basically just follow the prompts!
For this, you will click on the button for “IC card.”
You can go for “personal” with your name and info on the card in case you lose the card, or you can go for the regular “general” okica card.
Since you need to pay the deposit of 500 yen, if you select 1,000 yen option, consider that it only leaves you with 500 yen on the card.
It’ll probably take you around 300 yen to get to your hotel.
So it would probably be best to load the card with the 2,000 yen option.
Then pay…
Then you get your Okinawa okica card!
Monorail pass
Another option as you may have seen in the prompts above is the monorail pass.
There is a “1 day monorail pass” and “2 day monorail pass” that you can get as well.
How much does the monorail pass cost?
- 1-day pass – 800 yen (US$8)
- 2-day pass – 1,400 yen (US$14)
These are valid for 24-hours and 48-hours from the time you buy the pass.
Check hereΒ to confirm the current price of the monorail pass.
Once again, you can buy the monorail pass in the same way that you buy the individual ticket or okica card.
Just follow the prompts!
So you have an okica card, monorail ticket, or monorail pass!
Next, you will go through the ticket gate!
Whether you have a card, ticket, or pass, you will swipe to get through the ticket gate.
With an okica card, you tap the indicated area with your card.
With a ticket or pass, you’ll place the bar code side down to get through the ticket gate.
Then you can take the elevator, escalator, or stairs to get up to the platform.
Then…
Wait for the next train to arrive!
Then once the monorail arrives…
Off to Naha city you go!
Luggage on the monorail?!
No problem!
You won’t be alone!
What are the monorail timings from Naha airport?!
In short, they are pretty frequent so you likely won’t have to wait long for the next monorail to come.
Below are the listed timings at the monorail airport station.
Photos taken April 2019
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday, holidays
HAPPY OKINAWA MONORAIL RIDE FROM NAHA AIRPORT!
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Is a JR pass worth it?!
- Google maps can make it easy to figure out whether or not you should get a JR pass!
- In google maps, type in your departure and arrival city, and choose the transit icon. The route will come up, and so will the estimated cost at the bottom!
- Here is an example of a train route with cost on google maps.
- So do that for all of your long distance routes to figure out how much it might cost.
- Next, go here to see how much a JR pass costs.
- And compare!
- Not all forms of public transportation are JR, but long distance shinkansen bullet trains are, and that's where the most cost savings will come.
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