A beach for people who come to swim
A beach inside Hotel Moon Beach where you can swim year-round. The colour of the water is lovely, and the swimming area is wide enough to use even at low tide.
What is remarkable about this beach is that the swimming area is very wide and can be swum in even at low tide. It is marked out with blue floats and yellow floats. At low tide many beaches are left with water only knee-deep, but at Moon Beach the yellow floats are moved further out to sea, so the depth is always right.
At the right time of year and the right hour, the gradation of the sea is very beautiful. From the transparent blue shimmering over the white sand at the water's edge it shifts gradually into a distinct emerald green, and then on into the deep blue of the reef edge.
Swimming at this beautiful beach can be enjoyed all year round, and the showers, changing rooms and other facilities are open all year too. From December to February, when there are no jellyfish, the jellyfish net is taken away and only the buoys marking the swimming area remain. The lifeguards go as well, so it is at your own risk, but you can swim as much as you like on a beach with a great sense of openness.
This photograph was taken around noon on a clear summer's day, when the sea looks its best in the whole year. The clarity is about average compared with other beaches, and the gradation is better than average.
There is almost no shade beside the beach, so for a long stay it is best to hire a parasol. Some people bring a two- or three-person sun tent. The only natural shade is behind the rock on the right of the beach, seen in the first photograph on this page, and it is barely wide enough to sit against.
The sand here is fine and soft, so you can swim without water shoes. At its deepest the swimming area comes up to an adult's chest, so adults as well as children can enjoy swimming. As at other beaches, snorkels may not be used.
In the foreground of the photograph are the outdoor showers and the foot rinse. Behind them are the indoor showers, the coin lockers and the changing rooms. Being hotel facilities, they felt clean inside. The separate men's and women's toilets are clean too.
You can have a light meal in this lovely spot. The view of the beach goes without saying, and the many potted plants make it a relaxed place to sit. It is a luxurious terrace of the kind only a beach inside a hotel can offer.
Okinawa soba, curry rice and taco rice are ¥800 each, a cheeseburger ¥450 and takoyaki ¥350. Soft drinks are ¥300 and alcoholic drinks ¥600–800. * The photograph can be enlarged.
It stocks everything you need for a day in the sea, including swim nappies for children still in nappies.
The menu of water sports and hire equipment. The range of water sports is very good, and the prices are not high. Among the hire items, a parasol and chair set is ¥2,500 a day (before tax), a few hundred yen cheaper than the going rate around here. * The photograph can be enlarged.
As this is a beach inside a hotel, camping and barbecues are not possible. The beachside restaurant at Hotel Moon Beach is here. A lovely setting.
We do not run beach yoga at Moon Beach. The nearest beaches where we do are Nabee Beach and Zanpa Beach, 15–20 minutes away by car.
It is a superb beach with no faults. If one has to be named, it is only that snorkelling is not allowed in summer, when the swimming area is set up.
In Japanese (for maps, taxis and car navigation): ムーンビーチ 沖縄県国頭郡恩納村前兼久１２０３
We run beach yoga here too. Check availability and book in a few steps.