What can you see at Shuri Castle after the 2019 fire?

When does the Seiden open, and how do you get inside?

The whole park closes on 22 November 2026 for the completion ceremony, and on 23 November the free area opens at 11:15 and the paid area at 12:00, with the Seiden open from noon (park notice). The hall then runs on timed tickets. You choose a dated 30-minute slot online and can buy up to nine tickets at a time. If slots remain on the day, you can buy one online until 15 minutes before it starts or at the Kofukumon ticket counter. Children below school age need no reservation.

For dates from 1 January 2027, Seiden tickets go on sale online at 13:00 on the first day of the month two months before your visit (fees and reservations). A February 2027 visit means logging on at 13:00 on 1 December 2026. Book the hall when the tickets for your month go on sale, and leave the rest of Shuri to the day itself. In winter the last slot runs 17:00–17:29, and you need to be through the Hoshinmon gate by 17:30 (ticket guide). Shoes come off inside the hall.

How much does it cost, and what are the hours?

	Until 21 November 2026	From 23 November 2026
Adult	¥400	¥1,000
High school student	¥300	¥760
Elementary and junior high pupil	¥160	¥370
Under 6	Free	Free
Seiden interior	Seen from outside	Free timed reservation

Area	April–November	December–March
Free area (Kankaimon, Kyukeimon, Keiseimon)	8:00–19:30	8:00–18:30
Paid area (Hoshinmon, Yohokoriden, East Azana)	8:30–19:00, last entry 18:30	8:30–18:00, last entry 17:30

Sources: Shurijo Castle Park's fee page and hours page, read October 2026. The park lists no regular closing day. An adult annual pass costs ¥2,000 from 23 November.

What did the fire destroy, and what is still to come back?

The fire started before dawn on 31 October 2019 and burned for about 11 hours. It took nine facilities, and investigators could not find a cause (park, the fire). The fire department's list, as Japanese Wikipedia sets it out, has the Seiden and the Hokuden (north hall) burned out completely. The Nanden (south hall) lost about three quarters of its floor area, and the Ogane Goten and Nikai Goten residences behind the courtyard burned too. The Hoshinmon gate burned in part (Japanese Wikipedia).

The Seiden is the first building back. Temple carpenters worked on it from fiscal 2022 and finished the woodwork in May 2026. Crews began setting the great dragon pillars at the front on 24 July, and the last coat of lacquer went on on 17 September (park, the rebuilding). The government planned to start on the Nanden and Hokuden in fiscal 2026 or later, once the Seiden was done, Ryukyu Shimpo reported (Ryukyu Shimpo). No completion dates for the other halls have been published, so the courtyard will hold a finished Seiden with work to come on either side of it.

Can you still watch the rebuilding?

Partly. The covered viewing gallery inside the work shelter closed in June 2025, and crews began taking the shelter down on 29 July 2025 (park highlights). The park opened an elevated viewing deck on 1 May 2026 that looks straight at the hall. The reconstruction exhibition room in the paid area shows roof lions damaged in the fire alongside prototypes of the new decoration. In the Yohokoriden a touch-panel guide sets out how the Reiwa rebuild differs from the one finished in 1992. From 23 November the finished hall takes over from the building site, and in October 2026 the park had not said whether the deck stays.

Which walls and gates came through?

The stone walls and the outer gates came through the 2019 fire, which burned the halls around the inner courtyard and part of the Hoshinmon gate that leads into it. Most of what you walk through is itself a rebuild. Shureimon went back up in wood in 1958. Kankaimon and the walls around it followed after the castle became a national historic site in 1972, and by the time the park opened on 2 November 1992 the main halls and their gates stood again inside rebuilt walls (Japanese Wikipedia). Low courses of the original walls survive near the ground. The park keeps the stone foundations of earlier halls on show beneath the Seiden, and from the East Azana in the paid area you look out over Naha and, on a clear day, toward Kudaka.

Between Shureimon and Kankaimon stands the Sonohyan-utaki Stone Gate of 1519, where the kings prayed before leaving the castle (Naha City). People still pray there. If someone is praying, wait until they finish before you lift a camera, and keep off the stonework. Under the castle run the tunnels of the 32nd Army Headquarters, where the Japanese army directed the Battle of Okinawa. They are closed and unsafe, and they lie under people's homes, so keep to the public streets and leave the entrances alone.

What else should you see around Shuri?

Tamaudun lies a short walk west of the castle gates. King Sho Shin built the royal mausoleum in 1501, and it opens 9:00–18:00 every day with last entry at 17:30 (OCVB, updated September 2026). It's a grave, so keep your voice low in the courtyard. Naha City closes it while a storm warning is in force. The Shuri Kinjo-cho Stone-paved Road drops 238 m down the south slope between stone walls and red-tiled houses. Walk it downhill from the castle side, because the stones get slick and the climb back is steep.

Shikinaen sits farther out, so plan it as its own stop. The royal garden villa opens 9:00–17:30 from October to March with last entry at 17:00, and it closes on Wednesdays (OCVB). The Shikinaen-mae bus stop is about five minutes from the gate, and the OCVB puts the taxi ride from Shuri Station at about 15 minutes. For lunch, Shuri Soba serves one house bowl from 11:00 until the noodles run out, except on Thursdays and Sundays. Zuisen Distillery keeps its tasting counter two minutes from the castle's Keiseimon gate.

How do you get there by monorail?

Ride the Yui Rail to Shuri Station, which costs an adult ¥360 from Naha Airport, and walk about 15 minutes to the castle (Yui Rail fares). Gibo Station sits about the same distance from Tamaudun. A one-day pass costs ¥1,000 and runs for 24 hours from when you buy it. Shuri stands on a plateau about 100 m above central Naha, so riding up from Kokusai-dori means a steady climb on city roads. The monorail and a walk save your legs for the stone road.

Quick answers

When does Shuri Castle's Seiden reopen?

Shuri Castle's rebuilt Seiden opens to the public at noon on 23 November 2026. The park closes all day on 22 November 2026 for the completion ceremony, and on 23 November the free area opens at 11:15 and the paid area at 12:00.

How much is Shuri Castle admission?

An adult ticket to Shuri Castle's paid area costs ¥400 until 21 November 2026 and ¥1,000 from 23 November 2026. High school students then pay ¥760 and elementary and junior high pupils ¥370, and children under six enter free.

Do you need a reservation for Shuri Castle?

Yes, for the inside of the Seiden from 23 November 2026. Shuri Castle sells free 30-minute slots online, and for dates from January 2027 they go on sale at 13:00 on the first of the month two months ahead. The rest of the paid area needs no reservation.

What burned in the Shuri Castle fire?

The fire of 31 October 2019 burned nine facilities at Shuri Castle over about 11 hours. The Seiden and the Hokuden burned out, and the Nanden and the residences behind the courtyard were badly damaged. The cause was never determined.

How do you get to Shuri Castle by monorail?

Take the Yui Rail to Shuri Station and walk about 15 minutes to Shuri Castle. The adult fare from Naha Airport is ¥360. Gibo Station is about 15 minutes on foot from the nearby Tamaudun mausoleum.