Keramashoto National Park

The Kerama Islands, located approximately 40 km west of Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture, is an island grouping of more than 30 large and small islands and numerous reefs, and was designated as the 31st national park on March 5, 2014 (Coral Day). The park has a variety of land and sea landscapes, including highly transparent marine landscapes, coral reefs densely populated with a variety of corals, breeding grounds for humpback whales, a multi-island seascape, white sand beaches, sea cliffs, and vegetation unique to windswept areas developed on the sea cliffs. The majority of the park area is marine area. It is easily accessible from the main island of Okinawa (Tomari Port in Naha City) by high-speed boat, which takes about 35 to 50 minutes. Visitors can enjoy diving and snorkeling in the beautiful sea, known as Kerama blue, and whale watching in winter. (Source: Ministry of the Environment website https://www.env.go.jp/nature/nationalparks/list/)