The northern half of Okinawa Island is where the resort strips and military bases of the centre give way to forested hills, quiet beaches, and one of Japan's genuinely wild corners. The star attraction is the Churaumi Aquarium on the Motobu peninsula — one of the largest in the world, built around a colossal tank of whale sharks and manta rays — paired with the reconstructed Ryukyuan castle of Nakijin on a ridge above the sea.
The Onna coast, running up the west side, is Okinawa's main resort belt: Cape Manzamo's elephant-trunk cliff, Manza Beach, and dive sites in clear water. Further north, beyond Nago, the Yambaru forest — a UNESCO World Heritage site — shelters endemic species found nowhere else on earth, including the flightless Okinawa rail, and hides waterfalls like Hiji Falls. Renting a car is the only practical way to explore this end of the island.