Sefa-utaki

斎場御嶽（せーふぁうたき）

A forest sacred site where a rock cleft frames the island of the gods

⚠ Closed on lunar rest days

Hours

Mar–Oct 9am–6pm (last entry 5:30pm), Nov–Feb 9am–5:30pm (last entry 5pm); closed the lunar 1st–3rd of the 5th and 10th months

Tickets

Adults ¥300, children ¥150 (per 2026 travel listings; confirm on site). Buy at the Nanjo products centre ticket office

Address

Kudeken, Chinen, Nanjo; buy tickets at the Nanjo City regional products centre below and walk up

This was the Ryukyu kingdom's holiest site, and people still come here to pray. A stone path leads into the forest to Sangui, where two huge rocks lean together to form a triangular passage. Step through to the far end and you can see Kudaka Island across the water between the trees, the island where the gods first came down, in local myth. There are no buildings, just rock and forest, yet the air feels oddly heavy. It became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2000.