OL Okinawa Lovers
The white and red-tiled building of Minami-no-Eki Yaese with terrace seating and shop banners
Farm Markets #20

Yaese,
the breathing space

A town-run farm stand in the southern hills — and the one stop on the war-memorial route where the subject is dinner.

Yaese TownOpened 20179:00–18:0035 min from the airport
On the Himeyuri bus lineroute 82 links the memorials to this door
Why that matters

In short

three things to know before you head south
01

Not a michi-no-eki, despite the name

Minami-no-eki means south station, but this isn't part of the national roadside-station scheme — it's Yaese Town's own tourism hub and farm stand, opened in 2017 on the site of the old village office.

02

On the memorial bus route

Bus 82 runs Himeyuri Monument → Peace Memorial Hall → here → Gyokusendo caves. One line links the heaviest sites in Okinawa to a shop selling eggs and mangoes.

03

And a supermarket till nine

A Maxvalu Express opened on site in October 2025, open 9:00–21:00 — three hours later than the station itself, and the only late shop for miles.

The southern tip of Okinawa is where the 1945 battle ended, and most visitors drive it in a single sombre loop. Yaese is the pause in the middle: a working village shop where the day goes back to being about vegetables.

The case for stopping

A living village,
between the memorials

Nothing here is built for tourists. That's the point. Local people come for eggs, greens and lunch, and the visitor traffic streaming past to Himeyuri and the Peace Memorial Park mostly doesn't stop.

The V-shaped banyan

Good luckThe big gajumaru on the site splits into a V, and locals treat it as a victory charm. It's the landmark the tourism office gives for finding the place.

22,000 years ago

80 metersMinatogawa Man — among Japan's oldest known human remains — was found in this village. The museum displaying him is 80 m from the car park: ¥200 adults, ¥100 school age, closed at 16:30.

Typhoon rules

Storm = closedA storm warning closes the site, and a power cut closes it for the day. It happened several times in June and July 2026 alone.

Within walking distance of the same junction: the fukugi tree avenue at Gushichan, the natural rock arch called Hananda, and the Horohoro forest — 600 m of path that comes out at the sea.

Five kitchens

and one unit still empty
01

Bananama · closed Tuesdays

Smoothies from the owner's own pesticide-free island bananas, fried bread, and a taco rice piled with Yaese vegetables that regulars order more than anything else. 11:00–17:00 or until sold out.

02

Dolly Donuts · closed Mondays

The dough changes daily — wholemeal, tofu-and-banana, plain tofu, rice-flour tofu — fried in low-trans-fat oil. Some are meant to be eaten chilled.

03

HaluHalu

Purple sweet potato, specialized: soft serve, zenzai, and a chewy beni-imotchi. 10:00–18:00 in summer, from 11:00 in winter.

04

Tree Coffee Roasters · closed Mondays

Roasted in house, with a different single-origin hand drip each day. 11:00–16:00.

05

Kitchen Yukkuru · closed Tuesdays

Baked curry, taco rice and Okinawa soba, plus a daily bento. 10:00–18:00 — the longest hours of the five.

06

What's on the shelves

Vegetables and fruit from local farms, the town's hand-made sata andagi, additive-free jam, cookies, and eggs people come specifically for. Craft too: pottery, weaving and woodwork by makers in the town.

! Older guides list a flying-fish soba and goat soup here. Those belonged to the tenants before the 2023 refit and aren't on the current line-up. If you've come for a specific dish, ring first on 098-851-3824.

Tropical fruit season

From early summer the shelves carry mango, watermelon, pineapple, dragon fruit and island bananas. Okinawan mango runs June to September, peaking in July, and the prefecture grows nearly half of Japan's crop.

To be accurate about it: Yaese is a mango-growing town with several farms, but it isn't one of the prefecture's biggest producers — Miyakojima is far larger. Come for the freshness and the price, not for a record.

Around the town

Gushichan Castle Park on the cliff, Gushichan Beach with its boulder formations and turtle nesting, and Giza Banta, where a waterfall drops straight into the sea.

Inland: Yaese Park, with about 500 cherry trees that flower in January and February and a view to Kerama, and the stone lion of Tomori, carved in 1689 and the oldest and largest in the prefecture.

Getting there —
35 minutes south

By car

About 35 minutes from Naha Airport. Take the Naha Airport Expressway to Haebaru-Minami IC, then Route 507 south and across to Route 331.

Parking: 60 cars plus 4 coach bays — coaches by phone reservation. The site doesn't publish a parking charge.

By bus — genuinely useful

The stop is Gushichan, right outside. Route 50 reaches it from Naha Bus Terminal in about 53 minutes.

More useful for visitors: route 82 (Gyokusendo–Itoman) stops here too, and runs via Himeyuri-no-Tō and Heiwa Kinen-dō Iriguchi to Gyokusendo-mae. One bus links the southern memorials, this shop and the caves.

659 Gushichan, Yaese
Okinawa 901-0512

9:00–18:00 · closed 3rd Tuesday, old Bon and New Year · supermarket on site until 21:00

Open in Google Maps →

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

Southern Okinawa's villages are quiet and taxis don't cruise. Three ways to get one:

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

Yaese is deep in the south, where the roads are narrow and the sights are memorials. The two nearest stations are both on the way back toward the airport.

See the whole series →

5.9 km · ~10 minMichi-no-Eki Itoman, Itoman — Japan's southernmost station, and a co-op fish counter.
9.8 km · ~15 minMichi-no-Eki Toyosaki, Tomigusuku — Fifteen minutes from the airport, with the departure board inside.
26 km · ~45 minHappy More Ichiba, Ginowan — Tropical fruit and smoothies, in the middle of the city.
37 km · ~65 minMichi-no-Eki Kadena, Kadena — A free deck over the air base, and an award-winning exhibit.

Practical information

Address659 Gushichan, Yaese Town, Shimajiri District, Okinawa 901-0512
Phone098-851-3824, 9:00–18:00 (from abroad: +81 98-851-3824)
Hours9:00–18:00. Individual kitchens vary — see above. Maxvalu Express on site: 9:00–21:00.
ClosedThird Tuesday of each month, old Bon (the date moves each year) and New Year. Also closed during storm warnings, and all day if the power goes out.
Parking60 cars plus 4 coach bays; coaches by phone reservation. No parking charge is published.
PaymentNot published — carry cash
UpstairsThree meeting rooms and a kitchen studio for hire, ¥500 an hour plus ¥500 for power, 9:00–18:00, by phone booking
TypeNot a nationally registered michi-no-eki — Yaese Town's own tourism hub facility, run by the town tourism and products association since 2023.
Officialyaese-kankou.com · Instagram @minaminoeki.yaese

Questions, answered

Is Minami-no-Eki Yaese a michi-no-eki?+

No. Despite the name — minami-no-eki means south station — it isn't one of Okinawa's ten registered roadside stations. It's a tourism hub and farm stand run by Yaese Town, opened in 2017 on the site of the old village office.

Can I get there on the memorial bus route?+

Yes, and it's the best reason to know about the place. Route 82 runs from Himeyuri Monument via the Peace Memorial Hall entrance to the Gushichan stop outside the door, and on to Gyokusendo. Route 50 also comes from Naha Bus Terminal in about 53 minutes.

What days is it closed?+

The third Tuesday of each month, old Bon, and New Year — plus any day with a storm warning. Individual kitchens have their own days off: Bananama and Kitchen Yukkuru on Tuesdays, Dolly Donuts and Tree Coffee on Mondays.

Is there still flying-fish soba or goat soup?+

Not on the current line-up. Those tenants predate the 2023 refit and appear only in older guides. Today there are five kitchens: bananas and taco rice, donuts, purple sweet potato, coffee, and a curry and soba counter.

Sources

Yaese Town Tourism and Products Association for hours, closing days, tenants and parking, checked August 2026 · MLIT's national roadside-station list, which confirms Yaese is not among Okinawa's ten · Aeon Ryukyu on the October 2025 supermarket opening · Yaese Town official pages for the museum and local sights · 南の駅やえせ（おきなわLovers 日本語版）. We corrected the parking figures and the closing days, replaced the restaurant line-up, and swapped the "nearby" list for places actually in this part of the south.

Every station

nearest first, from where you are now
Michi-no-Eki ItomanItoman · 5.9 km Michi-no-Eki ToyosakiTomigusuku · 9.8 km Happy More IchibaGinowan · 26 km Michi-no-Eki KadenaKadena · 37 km Michi-no-Eki Kina BanjoYomitan · 42 km Uru MarcheUruma · 42 km Umi-no-Eki AyahashikanUruma · 47 km Onna-no-Eki NakayukuiOnna · 50 km Michi-no-Eki KyodaNago · 70 km Michi-no-Eki GinozaGinoza · 71 km Wansaka Oura ParkNago · 78 km Haneji-no-EkiNago · 84 km Nakijin no Eki So-reNakijin · 89 km Michi-no-Eki Sunrise HigashiHigashi · 91 km Rikarika WarumiNakijin · 92 km Kouri SorahashiKouri · 97 km Michi-no-Eki OgimiOgimi · 102 km Michi-no-Eki Yui-Yui KunigamiKunigami · 113 km Yanbaru Pineapple HillKunigami · 115 km