Japan
Thirty-five kilometres west of Okinawa's bustling capital Naha, the Kerama Islands emerge from the East China Sea like scattered emeralds set in waters of almost absurd clarity. This archipelago of some twenty islands — only four permanently inhabited — was designated a national park in 2014, protecting marine waters so transparent that visibility regularly exceeds fifty metres, earning them the poetic Japanese designation "Kerama Blue." For snorkellers, divers, and lovers of unspoiled island beauty, the Keramas represent one of Asia's most accessible yet genuinely pristine marine environments.
The islands' human history reflects their position on the ancient maritime crossroads between Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. The Ryukyu Kingdom, which ruled Okinawa and its surrounding islands for centuries before Japanese annexation in 1879, used the Keramas as navigational waypoints and fishing grounds. During the Battle of Okinawa in 1945, American forces seized the islands as staging areas for the main invasion, and memorials on Zamami and Tokashiki bear witness to the devastating civilian casualties of that campaign. Today, the islands have found peace, their tiny communities sustained by fishing, tourism, and the rhythms of a subtropical climate.
The underwater world is the Keramas' supreme attraction. More than two hundred and fifty species of coral create reef systems of extraordinary complexity, sheltering hawksbill and green sea turtles, manta rays, and over a thousand species of fish. The winter months bring one of Japan's most remarkable wildlife spectacles: humpback whales migrate to the warm Kerama waters to calve and nurse their young, their breaches and tail slaps visible from shore. Whale watching boats from Zamami offer intimate encounters with these magnificent animals from January through March.
Above water, the islands offer dazzling beaches and a pace of life that makes mainland Japan feel like another planet. Furuzamami Beach on Zamami Island consistently ranks among Japan's finest — a crescent of white coral sand lapped by waters that shift from pale aquamarine to deep sapphire. Tokashiki, the largest island, offers hiking trails through subtropical forest to clifftop viewpoints overlooking the entire archipelago. The tiny island of Aka, connected to Geruma and Fukaji by bridges, hosts a resident population of Kerama deer and some of the archipelago's most spectacular dive sites.
The Kerama Islands are reached by high-speed ferry from Naha's Tomari Port in approximately fifty minutes, or by expedition cruise ship anchoring offshore. The islands have small guesthouses and minshuku (family-run inns) but no resort-scale development, preserving their intimate character. The best visiting season extends from March through November, with summer (June-September) offering the warmest waters for swimming and diving, and winter (January-March) providing whale watching opportunities. The Keramas reward travellers who seek beauty without spectacle — a place where the extraordinary is found simply by looking into the water.