Yaeyama Islands what to do?

hello,

me and my best friend will be flying to japan this august and we want to visit yaeyama islands for 3 full days. our hotel will be at ishigaki island and we want to see irimote island and taketomi island.

how can we access the forrests of irimote island and what other great things should we definetely do there?

where are great beaches with white sand and palm tress?

is it difficult to drive with a car there? i have experience from my yakushima trip last year.

thanks
snkfreak

I did a shorter but similar trip once many years ago. So here are a few observations and recommendations:

- I also stayed in Ishigaki. Did an organized tour of Iriomote, which was better than I hoped for. I was not blown away by the jungle, but I highly recommend seeing the mangrove trees from a boat.
- Just found out that Okinawa has native palms. I don't recall seeing once at a natural beach (only at hotel beaches)
- The best sashimi I've ever had was bought from a fisherman at Ishigaki harbor and eaten immediately.
- I did not see Ishigaki island other than the city, but from what I have read and based on your experience, I suggest renting a car to go visit several beaches.
- Beware of jellyfish if you swim.

Have you posted a trip report on Yakushima? I'm very interested.

The easiest in Iriomote is to join the Urauchi River cruise, which can be combined with an easy hike into the jungle and a nice waterfall. I find that already very enjoyable.

The next most easy is to participate in a guided activity tour. There are many companies on Iriomote and Ishigaki that offer various tours, from jungle canoe tours to hiking tours and visits to a small sand bar in the middle of the sea. I believe that many of them can accommodate non-Japanese speakers.

My favorite activity, however, is to explore the jungle by my own with a canoe. But there are only very few companies that rent canoes without a guide. One of them is at the Urauchi River cruise pier, where there is a small, narrow mangrove side river to explore. But my favorite river to explore with a canoe and later on foot on your own is the Shiiragawa (後良川). But it can be challenging to get into contact with the company that rents the canoes, especially in case you do not understand Japanese.

There is also a remote beach on Iriomote that you can only access by an infrequent ferry, but because it is so time-consuming to access, I haven't visited myself yet.

Ishigaki's Yonehara Beach is the best snorkeling beach that I have visited in the Yayeyama Islands so far.

And, of course, there is famous Kabira Bay. While the bay is very beautiful to look at, I encountered an unfriendly, bus tour oriented, tourist-trap atmosphere there on multiple occasions.