I haven't visited Okinawa and I did look into it as a first-in-line option, but I have to admit that I just wasn't all that inspired by anything I saw. Hotels are fairly generic and low-end and/or of the sprawling family golf type resorts which really aren't our thing. Beaches look okay but not an equal to the more obvious SE Asian tropical destinations. Culture and nightlife appears to be extremely limited. I really think we're going to stick to Tokyo and a ryokan in nearby Izu because I haven't come across anywhere else in the country that really excites me. I'd gladly visit Okinawa at a different time of year if I were exploring the southern peninsula and islands, but it feels like a stretch to fly out from Tokyo just because we want a change of pace. It doesn't feel like a destination I'd look to plan for if I were anywhere else and quite frankly, I'd sooner stop at one of the Hawaiian Islands for several nights on the return trip as I think that'd be more rewarding. That seems to be the problem that I'm running into as I continue to explore options, and it's a problem that I welcome, as it goes to show how much ground we covered on our last trip! We really took in a lot and I'm very grateful that we had that opportunity. I think future trips to Japan will probably look much like this one -- a visit to Tokyo (always!) for a week or more, and a couple of nights in a smaller onsen town. Maybe a return to Kyoto for Sakura. Perhaps a couple of nights in Osaka for the food. I just don't feel the need to board a flight to any of the islands based on what I've seen and read. I worry that we'd get bored and wish we were back in Tokyo.