32nd Army Headquarters Tunnels
第32軍司令部壕MemorialClosed to visitorsDug from December 1944; abandoned and partly destroyed at the end of May 1945
The 32nd Army Headquarters Tunnels run about 1,000 m beneath Shuri Castle, where the Japanese army directed the Battle of Okinawa until it withdrew south at the end of May 1945. The tunnels are closed to the public, and Okinawa Prefecture is working toward preserving them and opening part of the site, with no date set.
Japan formed the 32nd Army in March 1944 to defend the Nansei Islands, and in December that year it began digging a headquarters under Shuri Castle after the soft ground at Tsukazan in Haebaru proved too weak. In January 1945 the command moved into the Okinawa Normal School beside the works. Around 24 March the chief of staff hung a wooden sign at the entrance naming it a battle command post. From here the army fought the war of attrition that held the Americans on the line through Ginowan and Urasoe for more than 40 days.
On 30 May 1945 the command withdrew to Mabuni, and the main parts of the tunnels and their entrances were destroyed as it left. The prefecture estimates the tunnels run about 375 m in a straight line and roughly 1,000 m in total under Shuri Tonokura-cho and Kinjo-cho. Sections blocked by earth have never been dug out or surveyed.
After the fire at Shuri Castle in October 2019, many Okinawans asked for the tunnels to be preserved and opened as a silent witness to the battle. The prefecture set up an expert committee in 2020, began full surveys in fiscal 2021 and adopted its basic plan in March 2025. In November 2024 parts of the tunnels became a prefectural historic site, the first war site of the Battle of Okinawa to be designated that way. For now the place to learn the story is the prefecture's dedicated website and its guide texts.
Where things stand
The prefecture adopted a basic plan for preserving and opening the tunnels in March 2025, and on 29 November 2024 it designated the No. 2 and No. 3 shafts and the No. 5 entrance as a prefectural historic site, and it was the first site of the Battle of Okinawa to be designated that way. Excavation around the No. 1 entrance took place in fiscal 2025, and the prefecture held resident meetings on a planned exhibition facility in December 2025. No opening date has been set.
Visiting with care
The tunnels run beneath Shuri Castle Park and a residential neighbourhood, and the soil is very fragile. The prefecture has to work with the national government and landowners before any opening, and it expects that to take a long time.
- Nobody may enter the tunnels; the prefecture says falls of rock from ceilings and walls make the inside unsafe
- Of the five entrances, only the No. 5 entrance in Shuri Kinjo-cho has been located and its condition confirmed
- The prefecture runs occasional field walks and workshops around the site; places are booked through its dedicated website
- The tunnels lie under people's homes in Shuri; keep to public streets and don't go looking for entrances
- This was the command post that directed the battle in which some 200,000 people died; read the prefecture's information boards with that weight
Worth knowing
- The prefecture's 32nd Army HQ website publishes survey results and a guide text, and the prefecture's own page links to footage from inside the No. 5 shaft.
- The Okinawa Prefectural Peace Memorial Museum at Mabuni covers the battle in full, including the army's last headquarters on the hill there.
- Workshops run at intervals, such as one on 12 July 2026; watch the website for the next.
FAQ
Quick answers about 32nd Army Headquarters Tunnelsよくある質問
Can you visit the 32nd Army Headquarters tunnels under Shuri Castle?
No. The 32nd Army Headquarters tunnels under Shuri Castle are closed because collapsed ceilings and walls make them unsafe. Okinawa Prefecture adopted a plan in March 2025 to preserve and open the site, and no opening date has been set.
How long are the 32nd Army Headquarters tunnels?
Okinawa Prefecture estimates the 32nd Army Headquarters tunnels run about 375 m in a straight line and about 1,000 m in total under Shuri Castle. Only the No. 5 entrance of the original five has been located.
Can you visit 32nd Army Headquarters Tunnels?
Closed to visitors. Nobody may enter the tunnels; the prefecture says falls of rock from ceilings and walls make the inside unsafe. Of the five entrances, only the No. 5 entrance in Shuri Kinjo-cho has been located and its condition confirmed. The prefecture runs occasional field walks and workshops around the site; places are booked through its dedicated website.
How should you behave at 32nd Army Headquarters Tunnels?
At 32nd Army Headquarters Tunnels: The tunnels lie under people's homes in Shuri; keep to public streets and don't go looking for entrances. This was the command post that directed the battle in which some 200,000 people died; read the prefecture's information boards with that weight.