15 caverns · down to 45 m · 15 suitable for an intro team
Cave diving in Miyako
- Caverns15
- Max depth45 m
- Water temperature20–29 °C
- Dive centres2
Diving and fills
Dive here with
Why come here
Around Miyako, Irabu and Shimoji in Okinawa you dive 'topography': caverns, halls and arches in the rocky coast, with daylight in reach. There are no lines and no cave dives in the usual sense; Toriike, a double pond with a halocline, comes closest. You dive guided from a boat with local dive centres, which usually ask for Advanced Open Water and 30–50 or more dives. The water is ~26–29 °C from May to October and ~20–24 °C from November to April, clearest in winter. Swell often makes the sites at Shimoji's cliffs unreachable and typhoons peak in July–October, so Shimoji's west coast is at its best from autumn to early spring.
Don't miss
- Toriike (通り池, Shimoji): a national natural monument where you sink through a cloudy brackish layer into clearer water and the tunnel, where in the Yunaitama legend a great wave swallowed a village.
- Maō no Kyūden (Devil's Palace, Shimoji): one of Shimoji's best-known hall dives, the Devil's Palace.
- 35 Hole (Shimoji): one of the few sites here where you briefly leave the daylight behind.
- Antonio Gaudí (Shimoji): a site named for shapes that recall Gaudí.
On a rest day
- Higashi-hennazaki: A narrow cape of about 2 km at the south-eastern tip of Miyako, with a white lighthouse at the end looking out over the sea.
- Irabu Bridge: Drive across the 3,540 m bridge, opened in 2015, that links Miyako with Irabu.
- Yonaha Maehama Beach: A 7 km stretch of fine sand on the south-west coast, facing Kurima, for swimming and watching the sunset.
All 15 caverns
| Site | Max depth | Type | Certification |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 Hole (Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 35 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Antonio Gaudí (Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 36 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Cross Hall (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 25 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Ichinose Hall (一の瀬ホール, Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 30 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| L-Arch (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 32 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Maō no Kyūden (Devil's Palace, Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 27 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Marine Lake (マリンレイク, Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 13 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Mini Toriike (ミニ通り池, Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 13 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Nakanoshima Hall (Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 28 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Shirotori Dome (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 10 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
| Shirotori Hall (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 10 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Snake Hole (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 15 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Toriike (通り池, Shimoji)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 45 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| Ushisan Kowaiyo (Miyako south coast)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Cavern | 25 m | Backmount | Cavern |
| W-Arch (Irabu)Entry or dive feeBackmount · Open water / no overhead | 18 m | Backmount | Open water / no overhead |
Certification requirements, configurations and trimix depths are estimates for planning. Always check them locally and dive within your training.
Map
Dive centres and fill stations
2 dive centres, fill stations and instructors
BIGHOLIDAY Miyakojima
Tourivar Marina, Hirara, Miyakojima
Guided dives: Toriike (通り池, Shimoji), Maō no Kyūden (Devil's Palace, Shimoji), Antonio Gaudí (Shimoji), Nakanoshima Hall (Shimoji), 35 Hole (Shimoji), Cross Hall (Irabu), L-Arch (Irabu), Ushisan Kowaiyo (Miyako south coast), Ichinose Hall (一の瀬ホール, Shimoji), Marine Lake (マリンレイク, Shimoji), Mini Toriike (ミニ通り池, Shimoji)
Dive centre specialising in caves and underwater landforms; English spoken; at least 30 logged dives.
Sun Island Miyako
Tourivar Marina, Hirara, Miyakojima
Nitrox standard and free for its own guests
With the dives
Guided dives: Toriike (通り池, Shimoji)
PADI Dive Resort with at most 6 guests per boat; dives Toriike without surfacing in the pond. For Toriike: Advanced Open Water and 50+ logged dives, the guide decides on the day.
Order: partners first, clearly marked as partner; then dive centres by distance from Hirara and independent instructors by name. Not a recommendation: check what they offer yourself.
On this list, or should you be? Get a free partner card →Where to stay
Find a place near Hirara
Villages that work well as a base for the caves in this region. Find a place for your team:
- HiraraBooking.com ↗
The links to Booking.com are affiliate links: if you book through one, DiveTripPlanner earns a small commission. You pay the same.
Practical info: rules, fills and emergency numbers
Emergencies
- 119 (ambulance), 118 (coast guard). DAN Japan: +81 3 3812 4999. No chamber confirmed on Miyako: divers with decompression sickness are flown to Okinawa's main island (University of the Ryukyus Hospital among others); don't fly within 18 hours after diving.
Access and rules
- Boats: from Tourivar Marina in Hirara or Sarahama port on Irabu; Shimoji is ~30 minutes by boat. Swell often makes the sites at Shimoji's cliffs unreachable.
Gas and fills
- Gas: air everywhere; nitrox at Sun Island among others. No trimix or CCR support found.
Water and season
- Water: ~26–29 °C from May to October, ~20–24 °C from November to April; clearer in winter. Visibility usually 15–25 m; no rivers on the island.
- Season: Shimoji's west coast is best from autumn to early spring; typhoons in summer (peak July–October).
Getting around
- Travel: Miyako and Shimojishima airports, with flights from Naha and Tokyo; the islands are linked by bridges.
Good to know
- Read this first: around Miyako, Irabu and Shimoji you dive 'topography' (地形ポイント): caverns, halls and arches with daylight in reach, guided from a boat by local dive centres. No lines and no cave dives in the usual sense; Toriike comes closest. The requirements (usually Advanced Open Water and 30–50+ dives) come from the centres; no municipal rules are published.
News
News articles that mention one of the caves in this region, collected automatically and not checked by us.
- Samsung annonce une meilleure détection de l'apnée du sommeil pour la Galaxy Ring et la Galaxy Watch 9 ↗
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- Ucciso con cinque colpi e bruciato nelle grotte nuovo arresto per l'omicidio di Francesco Diviesti ↗
- "Bien sûr qu'ils s'inquiètent" : l'émergence de David Lisnard peut-elle menacer la candidature de Bruno Retailleau à la présidentielle ? ↗
- 500 milliards de capitalisation envolés : la plongée du cours de Google est-elle un accident de parcours ou la fin de l'euphorie sur l'IA ? ↗
- 15'inci yıl dönümlerini kutlamışlardı! Demet Akalın ve Okan Kurt'tan aşk dolu yeni paylaşımlar - Galeri ↗
- Samsung aggiorna Galaxy Ring e Watch con una nuova funzione per l'apnea notturna ↗
- MON: jeszcze w tym roku 17 tys. karabinków Grot trafi do polskiego wojska ↗
Access and rules change: check what applies locally right before your trip. Source: GDELT Project and the news feeds of diving magazines.
Searched automatically, last on 5 Nov 2026.
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