Okinawa kimono experience: Photos at Nakamura House

Photos at Nakamura House after walking there in Okinawan kimono

👋 Haisai! I’m author S.
What comes to mind when you think of a trip to Japan? For me, the first image is a kimono. Today, though, I want to introduce Okinawan kimono, rather than the mainland style. They have a distinctly different feel, and if you enjoy wearing local clothing for photos, this is a slightly special kind of kimono worth trying.

The shop is in central Okinawa, and you can book through the website below before you go. They usually keep bookings simple: one group in the morning and one in the afternoon, so I think it’s best to book ahead. At the time of my visit, the price was 8,800 yen for adults and 5,500 yen for children below elementary school age, with hair styling at 1,100 yen for men and 1,650 yen for women.
It’s a little expensive, perhaps because Okinawan kimono are quite distinctive and made from high-quality fabrics. You can rent one for about 3 hours and go take photos at a nearby Ryukyu Kingdom governor’s house.

You can book kimono rentals through the official OKINAWA KIMONO家 website. The rental prices, closing days and opening hours in this article are from my April 2025 visit and may change, so check the website before you go.

🏠 There’s plenty of parking space. They don’t book lots of groups at once, so it’s very straightforward.
At the time of my visit, they were closed on Sundays and Wednesdays and open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In practice, you can think of around 2 p.m. as the cutoff. If you arrive around 2, get dressed and have your hair styled, then visit Nakamura House, you’ll be back around closing time.

It feels a bit like a country house. You’ll be changing anyway.. so come in comfortable clothes.

Inside the shop, there’s a variety of Okinawan kimono. Even from the side.. they feel different from the usual kimono in Kyoto. When I first lived in Okinawa, I noticed the style was different, but this time I figured out exactly how. How can I put it.. Okinawan kimono feel like a fusion of mainland kimono with subtle touches of hanbok and Chinese clothing.

Just choose the one you like from there.

Men might be fine without one.. but for women, a kimono looks really incomplete without a bag like these. If you’re going for photos, make sure.. please.. to rent a bag too. It’s all included here anyway..
Speaking from my own experience, for women.. unless you’ve done dance or musical theater, or you’re a performer or an actor, please rent a bag.. Figuring out what to do with your hands in photos can be quite a hassle.

With a hat like that too.. you’d really look like someone from a movie..

They said the tea was made from hibiscus grown in Okinawa. It was nice and cold.

There were so many styles. Separate layers for underneath and on top, too.. I imagine it would be a bit hot in summer.

It definitely.. takes longer for women to get ready than men. Well.. just have to sit quietly and wait 😀
Taking photos like this,, it feels like photographing the makeup preparations before a wedding in Korea.
Well.. I did that in Europe too.

They choose what to wear, then go into the changing room to put on the layers worn underneath.

You can wear these too. I like how simple they look.

These are those common flip-flop-like shoes.. What were they called again.. The staff were so busy and focused.. I felt bad interrupting just to ask..

So you wear those layers underneath, then put the familiar Okinawan kimono over them.

No need to worry about getting dressed in an Okinawan kimono: the owner helps you from start to finish.

Just your average Japanese middle school girl.. She graduated a few days ago, so now she’s a high school girl.

This is how it looks with the hair ornament on.
It has that.. early Meiji Restoration feel from Rurouni Kenshin.

This is the men’s kimono. The process is similar. It just takes a lot less time for men to get ready.

Men wear separate inner and outer layers too.
You can skip a layer if it’s too hot.. Ah.. personally, though.. I feel like.. the outfit loses a lot of its elegance that way.
The day before, I saw lots of people walking around town in Okinawa wearing mainland-style 👘 kimono. On the women, the outfits looked so thin, as though they had only underwear beneath their kimono.. The silhouette didn’t look particularly nice to me. Like they’d left something off.. Mainland-style kimono, but.. more like a yukata, a type of kimono..

Well.. I think it looks best if you let the owner dress you as they see fit.. 😲

Now it’s time to head to Nakamura House, so we get directions.
You could use Google Maps, but it gets a bit confused around here because there’s a US military base nearby. I’ve found Google Maps acts strangely whenever I get near a US military base.

It’s an easy walk to Nakamura House and back using the map from the shop. It takes about 10 minutes to get there. Along the way, older locals smile broadly and strike up conversations. I’ve studied a little of the Okinawan dialect, so I could tell.. they were definitely speaking the local dialect..

⚔️ Okinawa was completely devastated during the Pacific War. This is one of the few traditional Okinawan houses that survived. A traditional house + traditional clothing feels like a perfect match, doesn’t it? There’s an admission fee, so pay before going in.

Nakamura House is a traditional Okinawan home designated a national Important Cultural Property, and admission is charged. Check the official Nakamura House website for visitor information.

You can take all sorts of photos like this.. There’s quite a large difference in brightness between the light and dark areas.. I found a good camera essential for nice photos here. By the way, the umbrella.. is included in the rental, so it’s worth bringing along. It gives you something to do with your hands in photos.

Heading back after the Okinawa photo shoot. Everyone’s so excited 😀
I’m glad I got to try something new thanks to them, too.

A 👘 kimono experience in the style of the Ryukyu Kingdom, different from mainland Japan. A little special, isn’t it? It seems like quite a good package, so I’d recommend it.
Mata yasai! 👋

My Okinawa photo shoot rates were 250,000 KRW for 1 hour during the day and 300,000 KRW for 1 hour at sunset or at night, including 20 edited photos and 300 original photos. I’m currently not taking bookings in Okinawa. I may resume someday, but there’s no set date; I’ll make a separate announcement if I do. I’m currently doing shoots in Gyeongju, and my base covers Tongyeong, Geoje, Changwon and western Busan. For booking information and contact details, see the Sarangbi Snap page.