Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
start or end at Okinawa. Most local flights in the islands are handled by Japan Transocean
Air (JTA) and its subsidiary Ryukyu Air Commuter (RAC), both owned by Japan Air Lines
(JAL). All Nippon Airlines (ANA) also has several subsidiary carriers, including Air Next
(AN) and Air Nippon (ANK), which offer flights from Naha out to a number of islands.
Other than from the hubs of Kagoshima and Naha, however, there is very limited (or no)
air service from one island to another. In other words, if you wish to fly, for example, from
Yoron-tō to Amami, you might have to fly first to Naha, then to Amami; or first to Naha,
then to Kagoshima and then to Amami, or maybe even from Yoron to Naha, from there to
Tokyo, then to Amami, direct or through Kagoshima. Similarly, flying from Tokyo to Ishigaki
would usually mean flying from Tokyo to Naha, then taking a local flight to Ishigaki. In fact,
because Ishigaki happens to be a particularly popular place, there are some direct flights to
there from Tokyo but that's not usually the case with most islands.
The “A” Line's Akebono
Both the “A” and “Marix” Lines sail daily from Okinawa's Naha and Motobu ports to the Amami Is-
lands and on to Kagoshima on the Japanese mainland. As it takes twelve hours from Naha to reach
Amami-Ōshima and then another twelve to reach Kagoshima, a total of four ships alternate on the
route so that all islands are served twice daily, one from the north and one from the south. The ser-
vice is 24/7/365 and only interrupted in the event of typhoons or other severe inclement weather.
Why Some Islands Are Uninhabited
