The large and congested Naha International Airport is the main airport on the island of Okinawa. It is the main gateway for passengers for Naha as well as for the Okinawa prefecture in general.
With well over 15 million passengers a year Naha is the seventh busiest airport in Japan but it still has only one runway. Major construction is underway though; an LCC Terminal opened in 2012 and a new international terminal opened in February 2014 while a second runway will be ready in 2019.
All major airlines offer direct flights to Naha from the main Japanese cities and to a few international destinations, mostly in China and Korea.
Naha Airport is not a large airport so there are not many flights departing here. There are only a few destinations that you can reach from Naha Airport, most of these are operated by All Nippon Airways. Many people take a flight to Tokyo and transfer to another flight there.
The airport is located just four kilometers west of downtown Naha and is connected by monorail to the city.
The Naha Monorail is the easiest and quickest way into the city. The monorail runs from Shuri Castle on the east side of Naha to Naha Airport on the west side of the city with several stops in downtown Naha. Tickets cost JPY 230 to 330 depending on your destination. The trains run from 6 am till 11:30 pm every day and you can access the monorail station from the Departures (second) floor.
Several airport buses operate as well. You can find them outside the Domestic terminal (Building 1F). Bus fare is about JPY 220. Taxis are waiting there as well.
All prices quoted here were found in July 2017
