Ao no Yukuru-kan Visitor Center was added to Your Favorites!
Keramashoto NP, Okinawa
Claim this place to tell your story your way.
The eaves hide tiny animal carvings, including bonito—a nod to Zamami’s first fishery in 1901. The island’s dried bonito, Kerama-bushi, became so prized it was known in Naha as a byword for quality.
The center’s underwater film uses 12K 360-degree footage on a 120-inch vertical screen. Visitors steer the view with a touch panel, so exploring reef scenery feels like looking around during an actual dive.
One wildlife model is the Kerama ground gecko, found only on nearby Tokashiki and Aka—not Zamami. Because its shape resembles an ordinary lizard, makers painstakingly copied its distinctive skin pattern and texture.
A handmade tribute-ship model recalls Zamami’s past as a shelter for Ryukyu-era vessels waiting for favorable winds at Ago-no-ura. Makers copied even the rigging and stern details from historical photos and models.
One exhibit pairs island nature with seasonal festivals. Zamami still follows the old lunar calendar for monthly rites, including autumn’s Umi-ugan, a community prayer to the sea.
The west entrance faces Ibinume, a local sea-deity worship site. Designers left a plaza in front and placed the building to its east, so the national-park gateway sits alongside village spiritual life.
The planted grounds were designed to avoid importing organisms: soil and plants came from Zamami, islanders donated greenery, and cleaned coral fragments left from the soil were reused as mulch.
The center’s round turtle-and-coral emblem has an intentionally crooked eye—a tiny design choice meant to make it lovable yet strong. The coral represents the living reef ecosystem behind Kerama Blue.
The red-and-white roof uses newly developed Chura Kawara, or “beautiful tiles.” They imitate Ryukyu roof tiles and plaster, with a glazed white finish; each tile is bonded with polyfoam to withstand strong winds.
In the name, Ao points to the blue of Kerama Blue; Yukuru expresses the hope that visitors will relax and let island time slow down. The café name, Yukuruya, carries the same spirit.
