Michi no Eki Kadena

photo by そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

photo by そらみみ · CC BY-SA 4.0

It is the only michi-no-eki in Japan from which you can see the runway of an American base.

It is a roadside station with a viewpoint on top, and the viewpoint juts out over Kadena. You go up, lean on the railing and wait: there is no board and there is no timetable, you see whatever comes along (the manager says there is more flying on weekdays). Tripods have been banned since January 2022, by decision of the municipality, after very long stays were taking the space away from others. On the ground floor there are nine outlets, including a drive-in that makes hamburgers.

Registered as a roadside station in August 2003 and extended in 2022 with a separate building that houses the viewpoint and an education room. It looks out on Kadena Air Base, the largest American air installation in the Far East, which takes up much of the territory of the town that gives it its name.

ℹ️ Viewpoint open 8:30–22:00, all year round; education room 9:00–18:00, shops 9:00–19:00, restaurant 11:00–18:00 and until 21:00 at weekends. No ticket stated. ⚠️ Tripods banned on the viewpoint; they are allowed on the third floor, set up specifically for them. Fifty-four parking spaces, two of them for disabled drivers, and ten for coaches, with booking via the website. Fifteen minutes by car from the Okinawa-kita interchange.

🚉 嘉手納町運動公園入口 · in front of the station

Sources: michinoeki-kadena.jp · town.kadena.okinawa.jp · ryukyushimpo.jp

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