E-bike tour to zodiac shrines: Routes from Ryukyu era in Okinawa

【Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the tour】 Discover a little-known side of Okinawan culture on this E-bike tour through Naha and Shuri. Together with a local guide, you will cycle through quiet backstreets and visit temples and sacred sites connected to the Chinese zodiac. Along the way, you will see how Okinawans continue to practice worship traditions that date back to the Ryukyu Kingdom era. This tour offers a rare opportunity to experience Okinawa’s spiritual culture up close — including temples, sacred springs, royal mausoleums, guardian deities, and traditional Ryukyuan beliefs that are still alive today. With a little luck, the gods, bodhisattvas, and ancestors may even smile upon you and your loved ones. ※If the precipitation probability exceeds 70% or in case of severe weather, we may change plans. In this case, we will contact you the day before.

Itinerary

1. Please meet at the store near Makishi Monorail Station. 1 minute walk from Makishi Monorail Station. We will pick up our electric bicycles and give a brief information session so that everyone can enjoy a safe ride. (20 min)
2. You can see Kannon Bodhisattva, the guardian deity of the Ryukyu Kingdom, as well as beautiful carvings and ornaments. You can look over the cityscape of Shuri from the bright vermilion temple. (20 min)
3. Pass through the local area of Naha where several traditional houses remain. When you arrive at the temple, which has been practicing Okinawan Buddhism for over 500 years, you will be greeted by an ancient gate and a large banyan tree. ◎Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan (20 min)
4. This is the special ceremonial gate that symbolizes Okinawa. You can take a photo with your bicycle in front of the gate, which has an eye-catching vermilion color and well-balanced design. (20 min)
5. This temple is visited by many devotees who make pilgrimages to pray for good health and pregnancy while giving thanks for their current life. It’s a must-see temple given the bright red daruma dolls and captivating beauty of the torii gates. ◎Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan (20 min)
6. Cross the main street and pass through the monorail that runs above you in mid-air, and you will suddenly arrive at a temple with a sacred atmosphere. Next to the new temple, rebuilt after the war, an ancient Japanese Jizo statue stands warmly greeting visitors. (20 min)
7. This is a miraculous spring where water was discovered deep in the forest after an Okinawan princess noticed waterfowl were nearby. You can feel a historical connection that exists to this day in the water that continues to flow. ◎Naha City, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan (15 min)
8. Enjoy a thrilling downhill ride to the sacred place where successive kings of the Ryukyu Kingdom were entombed. Although it is now a park in the city with refreshing, clean air, the stone gate and banyan tree that stretches straight out towards the sky convey the feeling of a place lost in time to the Ryukyu Kingdom. (15 min)
9. The tour ends at our shop where you will return your bicycle. Afterwards, please enjoy the city of Naha on your own.

Meeting & end point