Ishigaki tide times

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived.

Model-derived from a global ocean grid. Useful indication; expect about ±45 minutes on average vs. a local harmonic gauge, individual stations vary widely. See /methodology for per-region detail. Not for navigation.

Conditions as of 13:00 local time. Refreshes daily.

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived. · Not for navigation.

The angler tradition for major/minor fishing windows: major ≈3-hour windows around moon transit and opposition; minor ≈2-hour windows around moonrise and moonset. Times are Asia/Tokyo local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Sun 17 May (range 2.1m). Next neap on Fri 22 May.

Spring tides cluster around new and full moons (biggest swings). Neap tides land on quarter moons (smallest swings). See the spring tide and neap tide glossary entries for the why.

Ishigaki is the main island of the Yaeyama group, the southernmost chain of the Ryukyus, 410 kilometres southwest of Naha and closer to Taiwan (270 km) than to Tokyo (2,050 km). The island sits at the edge of the Philippine Sea where it deepens rapidly offshore — the shelf is narrow and the open ocean approaches from the southeast. The tidal regime is mixed semidiurnal with a mean range of approximately 1.7 metres above MLLW, the largest of the major Ryukyu islands and notably larger than Miyakojima 130 km to the northeast. Spring tide range can reach approximately 2.0 metres above MLLW at Ishigaki. The wider range relative to the northern Ryukyus reflects Ishigaki's position at the outer margin of the chain with more direct exposure to the open Pacific tidal forcing. Kabira Bay on the northwest coast of Ishigaki is the island's most-photographed scene: a shallow bay with water that shifts from turquoise to deep emerald depending on cloud cover and sun angle, with small wooded islands breaking the bay surface. Kabira is a black pearl farming area; the submerged pearl oyster culture systems are the reason swimming is prohibited (entanglement risk, protection of the farming infrastructure). Glass-bottom boat tours (15 to 20 minutes) give access to the bay's underwater visibility without disturbing the pearl lines. The bay is most visited from April through October; outside the typhoon season (September–October) the sea is generally clear and settled. Taketomi Island, 6 kilometres from Ishigaki by ferry (10 minutes), is a flat coral island of about 6 km² with a preserved Ryukyuan village of whitewashed stone walls, red tile roofs, and lion (shisa) figurines — one of the most intact traditional village streetscapes in Japan. Water buffalo cart rides are the main visitor experience; the pace is deliberately slow. Kondoi Beach on Taketomi's west coast has a reef flat that exposes at low water, extending several hundred metres at lower spring tides. The ferry from Ishigaki port to Taketomi runs frequently through the day. Anei Beach (Kabira adjoining coast), Sukuji Beach, and the beaches of the Tōrinoshima uninhabited island to the north of Ishigaki offer dive and snorkel access to the Yaeyama reef system — one of the largest intact coral reef ecosystems in Japan. Manta ray sightings are reliable at the cleaning stations off Kabira and Manta Scramble north of Ishigaki; the best sightings are typically June through October during the warmer-water months. The offshore channel between Ishigaki and Iriomote Island (40 km to the west) is a navigation corridor for pelagic species including whale sharks, sighted with some consistency in the Ishigaki area in June. Ishigaki Airport (opened 2013, replacing the former city-centre airport) handles direct flights from Tokyo (3.5 to 4 hours), Osaka, Nagoya, and Naha. The island functions as the gateway hub for the Yaeyama group: ferries to Taketomi, Iriomote, Kohama, and Hateruma (Japan's southernmost inhabited island) all depart from Ishigaki port. Tide predictions on this page come from Open-Meteo Marine, a gridded global ocean model. Accuracy is typically within plus or minus 45 minutes on timing and 0.2 to 0.3 metres on height — model-derived, not from a local pressure gauge. For authoritative Yaeyama tide data, consult the Japan Meteorological Agency at jma.go.jp.