Cape Manzamo
licensed photographCEphoto, Uwe Aranas / CC BY-SA 3.0

Okinawa West Coast · OnnaNo.676★★★Open in map →

Cape Manzamo

— Onna's clifftop lawn above the East China Sea

natureThe classic — done right

A shelf of Ryukyu limestone on the west coast of Okinawa's main island, where natural turf runs right to the edge of a sea cliff. A loop path circles the rim, and one weathered outcrop is widely read as an elephant's trunk.

  1. FromNaha Bus Terminal
  2. ~2 hrRoute 58 bus, few services
  3. Get off atOnna Village Office (Bus 20, Nago-Nishi Line)
  4. On foot
  5. Cape Manzamo
Directions ↗

Where it is

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What to look for — in walking order

Cape Manzamo clifftop lawnそらみみ / CC BY-SA 4.0
  1. The visitor complexshops, a food court and the ticket gate, passed before the lawn begins
  2. The clifftop lawnnatural turf spreading to the edge of the limestone shelf
  3. The elephant-trunk rockthe weathered outcrop that gives the cape its best-known silhouette
  4. The limestone plant communitysalt-tolerant growth rooted in bare rock, a prefectural natural monument
  5. The Manza headland viewthe resort coast of Onna and the reef line seen north from the rim

How to actually get there

  1. Naha Bus Terminal → Onna Village Office (Bus 20, Nago-Nishi Line, or Bus 120, Nago-Nishi Airport Line).
  2. Onna Village Office → the access road climbing to Cape Manzamo (on foot, along Route 58).
  3. Buy the entry ticket at the visitor complex, then take the loop path around the clifftop.
  4. Walk back down to Route 58 for the southbound bus, using the departure time you checked on arrival.
Route 58 bus from Naha
From Naha Bus Terminal take Bus 20 on the Nago-Nishi Line, or Bus 120 on the Nago-Nishi Airport Line, north along Route 58 and get off at Onna Village Office. Allow around two hours. Services are not frequent, so check departures on the Okinawa bus navigation service before setting out. Bus 120 also starts from Naha Airport.
Return from Onna Village Office
The same Bus 20 and Bus 120 run back south to Naha along Route 58. Evening departures thin out, so fix your return time before you walk up to the cape rather than after. If the connection is missed, a taxi toward Onna or Nago is the practical fallback.
Directions from my location (Google Maps) ↗

About the place

Cape Manzamo sits near the middle of Onna Village, on the stretch of coast that Route 58 follows north. The cliff is Ryukyu limestone and stands roughly 20 metres above the East China Sea. Its top is a broad natural lawn rather than bare rock, and the headland as a whole carries prefectural designation as a scenic site. A paved loop and a viewing deck run along the rim, so the cape can be walked end to end without leaving the path. The water below is clear enough that the reef edge reads as a change of colour.

How to enjoy it

The loop is short and level, so most of a visit is spent standing still and looking rather than walking. Late afternoon is the stronger slot, because the cape faces the East China Sea and the light comes in low across the water. Viewing of the cape closes at sunset, so aim to be on the path well before the light goes.

Background & history

The name uses the Okinawan word moo, an open field of grass. It is credited to Sho Kei, king of the Ryukyus, who visited Onna in 1726 and is said to have praised the headland as a field wide enough for ten thousand people to sit. The lawn and the plant community rooted in the bare limestone were later protected under prefectural designation. A visitor complex with shops and a food court opened at the entrance in 2020, and the cape has been ticketed since.

Before you go

Cash
Entry to the cape is 100 yen per person, the same rate for adults and children, and free for children below elementary-school age. The gate sits inside the visitor complex at the entrance, so carry small change. Bus fares on Route 58 are paid on board.
Before you go
The headland is open to the wind and there is no shade on the lawn. Viewing of the cape closes at sunset and the clifftop is unlit after dark. Hours at the visitor complex shift with the season, and the cape can close at short notice during Okinawa's typhoon season, which runs from summer into autumn.
Another way
From the north, Bus 20 and Bus 120 also run south from Nago Bus Terminal along Route 58 to the same Onna Village Office stop. Drivers leave the Okinawa Expressway at Yaka and join Route 58 from there.
After you get off
From the Onna Village Office stop, walk north along Route 58 for about fifteen minutes, then turn onto the signed access road that climbs to the cape entrance and car park.