Okinawa Prefectural Museum & Art Museum

Museum

Prefecture

Okinawa

Type

Museum

N/A

0 reviews

¥530

Entry Fee

Train Access Cafe

About This Destination

Okinawa's prefectural museum and art museum share one building in Omoromachi, Naha, opened in 2007. The museum covers the islands' nature, archaeology, Ryukyu history and folk culture; the art museum shows modern and contemporary work by Okinawan artists. The museum's permanent exhibition is 530 yen.

Locals call it OkiMu. A museum and an art museum under one roof is unusual in Japan, and the pale, fortress-like building in Naha's Omoromachi district opened in November 2007. The museum's roots go back to 1946, when a museum was set up at Higashionna right after the battle. Its permanent exhibition, on the theme of living on the sea and islands, runs from the formation of the islands through the Ryukyu Kingdom to the present, and five smaller galleries cover nature, archaeology, arts and crafts, history and folk culture, with displays changed regularly. The art museum's collection exhibition focuses on modern and contemporary work by artists from or linked to Okinawa. Children make for the hands-on room, where you can try on a bashofu banana-fibre kimono or play a sanshin. An audio guide for the permanent exhibition, in Japanese, English, Chinese, Korean and Spanish, runs on your own phone via a QR code. Tickets are separate for each part, and special exhibitions cost extra. The galleries are kept cool and dim to protect the objects, so bring a layer; umbrellas, food and large bags go in the lockers (the 100-yen coin comes back). Parking for 158 cars is free.

Location

Prefecture: Okinawa

Address: Naha, Okinawa, Japan

Nearest Station: Omoromachi Station

Opening hours: Tue–Thu, Sun 09:00–18:00 / Fri, Sat 09:00–20:00

Closed: Mondays (when Monday is a national holiday, a substitute holiday or Irei no Hi on 23 June, it opens and closes the next weekday instead), 29 December to 3 January, and short maintenance closures announced on the official site. It also closes when a typhoon stops the Naha buses.

Hours note: Last entry 30 minutes before closing. The museum shop closes at 18:00 every day.

Best time to visit: Year-round, and a good choice on rainy or very hot days; open until 20:00 on Fridays and Saturdays

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Visitor Information

Credit Cards: Unknown

Official Website

Frequently Asked Questions

How much are tickets?

The museum's permanent exhibition is 530 yen for adults and the art museum's collection exhibition 400 yen; tickets are sold separately, and special exhibitions cost extra. Visitors aged 70 and over are free, and cash, credit cards and e-money are accepted.

What are the opening hours, and when is it closed?

9:00 to 18:00 on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and 9:00 to 20:00 on Friday and Saturday, with last entry 30 minutes before closing. It is closed on Mondays (the next weekday if Monday is a holiday) and from 29 December to 3 January.

Can I take photos inside?

Rules differ by exhibition, so follow the signs in each gallery. Tripods and selfie sticks are never allowed.

Is there somewhere to eat?

The museum café, Kame Kame Kitchen, is open 10:00 to 18:00 with lunch from 11:00 (last order 15:00), using Okinawan island vegetables, and closes with the museum on Mondays.