The colourful three-dimensional GINOZA WELCOME sign at Michi-no-Eki Ginoza

Stations #10

Ginoza,
the reset button

A free water playground, big climbing frames, hot showers and a view over Kin Bay — the east coast's answer to a car full of restless children.

Ginoza VillageRenewed 2018Free playgroundFact-checked Aug 2026

Water play: free10:00–17:00 weekdays · check winter closure

Plan the stop

In short

three things to know before you let the kids out

A water playground that costs nothing

Ankle-deep water, shade, hot coin showers, changing rooms and lockers. Free, and about five minutes off the expressway. There is no better mid-drive reset in Okinawa.

Check the season first

The water play area closes for winter — roughly 1 December to 31 March — and typhoons shut the whole site several times a summer. Always check before you build a day around it.

Potato noodles, and the Tigers

Ginoza grows potatoes, so the local soba noodles have potato worked into them. The village also hosts the Hanshin Tigers' spring training — there's a shop for that.

Somewhere around hour three of an Okinawan road trip, the back seat stops cooperating. Ginoza is the fix: free water, free climbing frames, a hot shower afterwards, and a bowl of noodles for whoever is driving.

The family case

Wet, dry,
and under a roof

The 2018 renewal turned an ordinary roadside station into the best-equipped family stop on the east coast. Everything below is on one site, and the two big draws cost nothing.

Water play & Gi-no-kun Land

Free

Water 10:00–17:00 weekdays, to 16:00 weekends · closed 12:00–13:30 for water treatment

Climbing frames

9:00–18:00Gi-no-kun Land, the big play structure, plus a 1,560 m² lawn with a stage.

Hot showers

¥200 / 3 minFive each for men and women, with changing rooms and coin lockers. The detail that makes the water playground actually usable.

Indoor kids' room

¥660 / hourAges 0–3, staffed, 10:00–12:00 and 13:30–16:00. Not free, despite what some guides say.

Rainy-day crafts

From ¥1,650

Photo frames ¥1,650, shīsā painting ¥2,500 (take it home the same day), island-sandal carving ¥2,420 with two days' notice. All indoors.

Barbecue on the river terrace

¥6,600 + foodA pitch for up to ten, gear included, bring your own food and drink. Book three days ahead; adults must be present.

Views, free

2F & 3FA 600 m² terrace and a third-floor deck over Kin Bay — the east coast does sunrise, not sunset.

! Check before you go. The water play area shuts for winter — roughly December to March, with the reopening date moving year to year — and in summer typhoons close the site outright. In 2026 the station closed several times in June and July for storms. The official site and Instagram post updates.

Eating here

Noodles with
potato in them

Ginoza is one of Okinawa's potato-growing villages, and someone had the good idea of working that potato into soba noodles. Jagamen is now the thing people drive here for — served cold in summer at the station's own canteen.

The Mirai Ginoza farm shop and its car park at Michi-no-Eki Ginoza — Mirai Ginoza, the farm shop: 9:30–18:00.

The main building at Michi-no-Eki Ginoza with its burger and cafe signage — Burgers and a café upstairs, with the sea through the window.

Tenpusu Shokudo

The station's own — cold churu-churu jagamen, mozuku-and-chicken fritters, sweet-and-spicy pig's trotters. Weekdays 12:00–16:00, weekends from 11:30.

Ginoza Farm Lab, upstairs

The Ginoza Classic Burger and a bacon cheeseburger, eaten looking at the water. 11:00–17:00, closed Wednesdays.

Taiya-maru

Seafood bowls from the east coast — the house bowl, a mixed sashimi bowl, tuna with grated yam. 12:00–19:00, closed Wednesdays.

Chura-ten & Manjiro

Okinawan tempura, taco rice and soba at Chura-ten (until sold out); Ginoza soba, fried chicken sets and bone soup at Manjiro, open daily.

Strawberries in winter

Ginoza grows them, the shop sells them, and from January to May you can go and pick them — book at the information center inside.

Organic village produce

Ginoza declared itself an "organic village" and certifies produce with its own eco mark. Also on the shelf: pure brown sugar and village-fruit jams.

A baseball town, in February

Ginoza hosts the Hanshin Tigers for spring training, which is a much bigger deal than it sounds — Hanshin's supporters are the loudest in Japanese baseball. The station has a Tigers shop with official goods plus collaboration items sold nowhere else, and the ground-floor exhibition room covers the camp along with the village's canoeing, cycling and karate.

If you're here in February, the training camp itself is open to watch. It's one of the most enjoyable ways to meet Japanese sports culture as a visitor.

Collector's corner

Japan has a quiet obsession with roadside-station collectibles, and Ginoza plays along: a commemorative ticket at ¥200 with a serial number on the back (there's a secret version), a free Okinawa tourism infrastructure card, a manhole card while stocks last, plus straps, keyrings, stickers and magnets from ¥300.

A market — "Ginoza Marche" — takes over the lawn on the third Sunday of odd-numbered months.

Getting there —
2 km off the expressway

By car

Ginoza IC is 2 km away — about 5 minutes — on Route 329 heading toward Naha. That makes this one of the easiest detours on the whole expressway.

Free parking, 153 spaces across three lots, plus two accessible bays. Coaches should call ahead. There's a 7-Eleven next door, and an ATM there — the station itself has none.

By bus — the stop is named after it

Okinawa Bus route 77 stops at a stop literally called Michi-no-Eki Ginoza, right by the site on the sea side.

By express bus, take route 111 and get off at Ginoza IC, then about 20 minutes from the Ginoza Chuo Kominkan-mae stop. There's a taxi rank at the site, and the information desk will call one for you.

1633 Kanna, Ginoza
Okinawa 904-1304

Playground 9:00–18:00 · farm shop 9:30–18:00 · 153 free spaces · 5 min from Ginoza IC

Open in Google Maps →

Need a taxi? Here's how it works in Okinawa

There's a taxi rank on site and the information desk will call one for you — but if you'd rather do it yourself, here are three ways that work:

Use an app. GO — Japan's main taxi app — works in Okinawa with an English interface. DiDi and Uber cover parts of the island. Install before your trip.

Dial with +81. From a foreign phone, replace the leading 0: 098-XXX-XXXX → +81 98-XXX-XXXX. Wi-Fi calling works too.

Ask the staff — show them this:

タクシーを呼んでください

Takushī o yonde kudasai

Nearest stations from here

Ginoza is on the quiet side of the island, where the coast faces sunrise instead of sunset. It's the natural break on the eastern route north.

See the whole series →

11 km · ~20 minWansaka Oura Park, Nago — A quiet community park on the bay, on the east coast road.

13 km · ~20 minMichi-no-Eki Kyoda, Nago — Okinawa's first station, and discount attraction tickets from 8:30.

20 km · ~35 minMichi-no-Eki Sunrise Higashi, Higashi — Sunrise, pineapples and mangrove country on the east coast.

23 km · ~40 minHaneji-no-Eki, Nago — Local chicken and eggs, and a free view over the inland sea.

Practical information

Address1633 Kanna, Ginoza Village, Kunigami District, Okinawa 904-1304

Phone098-968-8787 (from abroad: +81 98-968-8787). Farm shop: 098-968-4520

HoursPlayground 9:00–18:00 · tourist information 9:15–17:30 · halls, terraces and showers 9:15–18:00 · farm shop 9:30–18:00. Restaurants vary — see above.

Water playWeekdays 10:00–17:00, weekends and holidays 10:00–16:00, closed 12:00–13:30. Closed for winter, roughly 1 December – 31 March.

ClosedGenerally open year-round; closes for maintenance and typhoons

ParkingFree, 153 spaces across three lots plus 2 accessible bays

PaymentMost shops take cards and electronic money. No ATM on site — use the 7-Eleven next door.

PetsWelcome outdoors, but not in the water play area or indoor spaces (assistance dogs excepted)

AccessibilityAccessible toilet inside the 24-hour block, wheelchair loan, tactile paving

Questions, answered

Is the water playground free?+

Yes — and so are the climbing frames and the viewing terraces. What you pay for is the indoor kids' room (¥660 an hour, ages 0–3), the hot showers (¥200 for 3 minutes) and the craft workshops.

When is the water play area open?+

Weekdays 10:00–17:00 and weekends 10:00–16:00, with a break from 12:00 to 13:30 for water treatment. It closes over winter — roughly December to March — and the reopening date shifts each year, so check the official site first.

What should I eat?+

Jagamen — Okinawa soba noodles with local potato worked into them, served cold in summer at Tenpusu Shokudo. Upstairs, the Ginoza Classic Burger comes with a sea view.

Can I get there by bus?+

Yes. Okinawa Bus route 77 stops at a stop named 'Michi-no-Eki Ginoza' beside the site. Express route 111 also stops at Ginoza IC, about 20 minutes away by local connection.

Sources

Michi-no-Eki Ginoza official site for hours, prices, facilities and closure notices, checked August 2026 · Okinawa General Bureau roadside-station listing · 道の駅ぎのざ（おきなわLovers 日本語版）. We corrected the street address, the opening hours and the interchange distance against the official site, and dropped a reference to "Ginoza beef", which we could not verify.

Every station

nearest first, from where you are now

Wansaka Oura ParkNago · 11 km Michi-no-Eki KyodaNago · 13 km Michi-no-Eki Sunrise HigashiHigashi · 20 km Haneji-no-EkiNago · 23 km Umi-no-Eki AyahashikanUruma · 25 km Nakijin no Eki So-reNakijin · 29 km Uru MarcheUruma · 30 km Rikarika WarumiNakijin · 30 km Michi-no-Eki OgimiOgimi · 33 km Kouri SorahashiKouri · 34 km Onna-no-Eki NakayukuiOnna · 34 km Michi-no-Eki Kina BanjoYomitan · 43 km Michi-no-Eki KadenaKadena · 43 km Michi-no-Eki Yui-Yui KunigamiKunigami · 43 km Yanbaru Pineapple HillKunigami · 45 km Happy More IchibaGinowan · 49 km Minami-no-Eki YaeseYaese · 71 km Michi-no-Eki ToyosakiTomigusuku · 71 km Michi-no-Eki ItomanItoman · 73 km

Ginoza,the reset button