Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The dock for Urauchi River cruises and kayak rentals is at the northern side of the bridge.
Cruising up the Urauchi River, the longest in Okinawa, in a wide, comfortable, open-air boat.
A cruise up the Urauchi is without doubt the most popular excursion available on Irio-
mote. The river's waters are still and the boats are wide and comfortable. They all have sun
roofs. The captains give a guided travelogue as the boat motors upstream, stopping here and
there to point out the mangrove trees or some bird or fish if sighted. Commentary is in Japan-
ese. The cruises cost 1,800 Yen and depart about every 30 minutes during the busy season. In
winter it's less frequent, but there are usually enough people visiting even then that you won't
have to wait more than an hour for a departure. For a more physical experience, without any
guided commentary, you can rent a kayak and paddle on your own.
The navigable section of the river is a little longer than 4 miles (6 kilometers), so the first
part of the tour only takes about 45 minutes. The tour boats and kayaks then tie up at a small
upstream dock lashed on to a large rock (
軍艦岩
; Gunkan-iwa; lit. “Battleship Rock”) where
the cross-island trail begins. This first section of the hiking trail is extremely well-trodden. It
would be just about impossible to get lost. Depending on your hiking speed, in about 20-30
minutes, a little more than three-quarters of a mile (1 kilometer), you'll come to a viewing
platform (
マリユドゥ展望台
; Mariyudotenbōdai) where you'll get your first view of Mariy-
udo Falls (
マリユドゥの滝
; Mariyudono-taki). Many people will be taking photos here. From
the observation deck it will take another 5-10 minutes along the trail to reach the top of the
falls.
