【Tried It】The library located in Yomitan Village, Okinawa, is said to be a place you should definitely check out

Is this really a library!? This facility in Yomitan Village, Okinawa, might be so comfortable that you won’t want to leave if you visit it while sightseeing or on a workcation. Here’s a close-up of the trending new spot.

If you're going to Okinawa, how about visiting "Yun Labo Future Hall" and "Yomitan Village Library"?

The Yomitan Village Comprehensive Information Center "Yun Labo Future Hall," operated by Culture Convenience Club (CCC), which runs Tsutaya bookstores and SHARE LOUNGE, is responsible for spatial design and library management and will open in October 2025. Its main facility, the "Yomitan Village Library," is also being renovated at the same time, creating a cozy space like a home for the villagers of Yomitan, known as a venue for reading and gathering.

This latest facility seems to be quite different from a regular information center or library. What is the interior like?

As soon as you step inside from the entrance, a spacious area features a POPUP selling local products mainly focused on traditional crafts from Okinawa. If you enter thinking it's just a library, you'll first be surprised by how unique the space is.

Items displayed in the POPUP can also be purchased as souvenirs. It features famous Okinawan products, making it feel somewhat like a select shop.

Since such POPUPs are popular among tourists from outside the village and prefecture, it has become a unique facility where local people use the library and tourists interact within the same space. For people from outside the region like the author, it's easy to enter, and the feeling of closeness to the locals is stronger than in a regular souvenir shop. It creates a strange sensation.

Moreover, in Yomitan Village, where there are no new bookstores, there is a rich collection of books conveying local culture. This area collaborates with second-hand bookstores in Okinawa Prefecture, focusing on books related to Okinawa and lifestyle. As they are also for sale, you can even buy old books related to Okinawa as souvenirs to take home.

While sipping coffee in a large library and indulging in books, it's also possible to work.

Okinawa has many tourist attractions and points of interest, making it popular among people doing workations. Here, there is a Starbucks inside the facility, allowing you to read books while drinking coffee, and it seems like you could work without being cooped up in a hotel.

In urban areas like T-SITE, Starbucks has already been introduced, and it might be nice that in Yomitan Village, you can read or work in a spacious environment without worrying about time.

By the way, the library boasts a collection of 130,000 books (as of May 2026) spread across an area of 570 tsubo. It is planned to be open for 364 days a year, excluding Memorial Day, with long opening hours from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM. It's almost open year-round until late at night.

I was curious if the library could be used by people who are not locals, so I asked, and apparently, anyone living in the country can use it.

They also hold about 170 events a year, such as local markets, so it seems it could definitely be enjoyed as part of a tourist experience.

Of course, there is free Wi-Fi in the facility. Since I want to make the most of my stay in Okinawa and Yomitan Village, I thought it would be nice to work here not only on weekends but also on weekdays, which made me want to try telework (workation) surrounded by the sea and nature in Yomitan Village.

In the library, you can discover the uniqueness of Okinawa and Yomitan Village in detail. The partition board in the study room shown in the image above is actually made from Okinawa's traditional craft "Yomitan-yama Hanaori." It is handmade by people from the Yomitan Village Hanaori Cooperative, which is very close to the library. The delicate patterns created by the combination of threads evoke a warmth one wouldn't expect from a public library.

The "Children's Library" is a place you would want to take your children.

The "Children's Library," which stimulates children's creativity, allows them to interact with books while playing in a spacious area. This space features around 15,000 children's books, the loan of educational toys, and a workshop space called "Tsukurana-" that utilizes waste materials from local businesses. There are indoor play equipment, creating opportunities for children to enjoy reading while having fun.

It seems that bringing children to the library won't lead to boredom.

And there’s "learning" too. To the left of the library counter, the OIST (Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology) Science Studio, a science experience facility, is also open to the public. Here, there are exhibits introducing OIST's research and initiatives, an experience space where you can explore the forests of Yanbaru using VR, and areas for hands-on experiences.

It has become a space where both adults and children can see, experience, and have fun together.

If you write your questions about natural science on sticky notes and stick them up, it seems that an OIST professor will answer them. There were many other exhibits that children could enjoy together.

This is a place that stimulates creativity and curiosity

I returned to the entrance POPUP and browsed through used books. Not only were there items related to Okinawa and Yomitan Village, but there was also a wide selection of used books on art, architecture, and culture. Just being here makes you feel like you are in a secondhand bookstore in Kanda. This search for used books is quite enjoyable.

Then, before I knew it, I was searching for "Yachimun." Yachimun is the Okinawan word for pottery, referring mainly to traditional vessels and jars made in Okinawa. I bought a practical and sophisticated plate from Mr. Kyoshi Matsuda as a souvenir.

The newly renovated "Yomitan Village Library" serves as a base to create the new culture and values of the next generation of Yomitan Village, open 364 days a year, from 10 AM to 10 PM. This place, which welcomes visitors at any time, is worth a stop in Yomitan Village when you visit Okinawa.

Yomitan Village Library
Address: 2901-1 Zakimi, Yomitan Village, Nakagami District, Okinawa
Closed on: Memorial Day (June 23)
Opening Hours: 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM, 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM

Photography/Reporting: Masashi Kakino

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