Trip Planner: Asia / Japan / Okinawa Prefecture / Yaeyama-gun / Taketomi-cho / Kaiji Beach

Kaiji Beach, Taketomi-jima

3.8

#3 of 28 in Beaches in Taketomi-cho

Beach · Outdoor Activity

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Head to Kaiji Beach, a small beach located on the northern tip of the island. With its name translating as "Star Sand Beach," the stretch of coastline has become known for its many tiny, star-shaped forms, which look like sand. In fact, those forms are the exoskeletons of one-celled organisms called Baclogypsina sphaerulata, a kind of coral that lives in sea grass. Washed up in large numbers onto the beach, the strikingly shaped forms have long been the subject of myths among the local populace, who believe the star shells to be the tiny children of the Southern Cross and the North Star, slain by a serpent offshore. Use our Taketomi-jima trip planner to add Kaiji Beach and other attractions to your Taketomi-jima vacation plans.

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Kaiji Beach reviews

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TripAdvisor traveler rating

511 reviews

Google

4.2

By g0_f0r_it

This is the famous beach with the star-shaped sand. They are really tiny and it takes good eyesight and fine motor dexterity of the fingers to pick up. But there are plenty of them. Fun to try to...

This is the famous beach with the star-shaped sand. They are really tiny and it takes good eyesight and fine motor dexterity of the fingers to pick up. But there are plenty of them. Fun to try to... more »
By geelongexpat

This is an ok beach. Not too crowded. But you can’t really swim here. It’s known for star-shaped sand. I didn’t find any but I didn’t look very hard. There are several swing sets around and a vendor..... more

This is an ok beach. Not too crowded. But you can’t really swim here. It’s known for star-shaped sand. I didn’t find any but I didn’t look very hard. There are several swing sets around and a vendor..... more »

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Google

By Carolina Calvo

This beach is beautiful. I suggest you rent a bicycle and hop around different beaches. This is not a good place for swimming.

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By Yuuki AsunaYui

A place to dig for star sand, it's not as easy as it looks to get some! There is a small local stand that sells it too on the beach! Support local!! Low tide allows you to walk out far and can look at sea life. There are fun swings on the beach to take photos on! Free. Has a bathroom on site.

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