Ginowan City
The base's own city, literally — modern apartments, walkable streets, shopping and local restaurants within reach, and the shortest possible drive to the gate.
Commute: 5–15 min
All Installations
U.S. Marine Corps · Ginowan, Okinawa, Japan
Marine Aviation's Okinawa Anchor
MCAS Futenma is the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing's aviation hub on Okinawa — a compact, urban airfield in the middle of Ginowan City, and the installation at the center of a decades-long relocation agreement. An OCONUS PCS runs on different rules; here they are.
The Station
An Airfield in the Middle of a City
MCAS Futenma is home to roughly 3,000 Marines of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing — pilots and aircrew who train here and provide air support to Okinawa-based Marine units across the Asia-Pacific. It's also the most-discussed base on the island: a 1996 U.S.-Japan accord agreed to relocate the airfield out of densely populated Ginowan to a replacement facility integrated into Camp Schwab at Henoko, roughly 30 kilometers north. Construction on that replacement is underway and expected to continue for years — it still makes local news regularly, and you'll hear it come up in conversation on base.
What that means for an incoming family: Futenma itself is a working airfield, not a housing community. Most government family housing for Futenma-assigned Marines sits at the larger Camp Foster / Kadena corridor installations nearby, so budget mentally for that as your likely "on-base" default, with a real host-nation rental market in Ginowan and Chatan as the alternative.
Either way, the Fleet and Family housing office is the mandatory first stop before you sign anything — Okinawa's leasing rules and inspection process aren't optional paperwork, they're how you get your housing allowance sorted correctly.
Where You'll Actually Live
Pick Your Address
Three real choices. One rule applies to all of them: the housing office is your first stop before any lease.
Your PCS Checklist
Get Sorted
From your first orders to closing on a house — sorted by where you actually are.
Your move:
0 of 7 done0%
Read your orders line by line
Report date, gaining command, dependent authorization, and any special instructions — mistakes here cascade into every later step.
Set up your move through the Defense Personal Property System
Schedule your household-goods counseling session and pick a move type (full move, PPM/DITY, or partial DITY).
Schedule your household goods pickup
Book your packout date with your Personal Property Office as early as your report date allows.
Update DEERS and get new dependent ID cards if needed
Confirm every family member's DEERS record is current before you leave — it gates TRICARE, base access, and commissary privileges at the new station.
Check your VA home loan entitlement before you house-hunt
Pull your Certificate of Eligibility now so you know your buying power before you start touring homes.
Confirm TRICARE coverage at your gaining region
TRICARE regions changed in 2024 — confirm your plan and provider network transfer automatically.
Military spouse with a professional license? Check reciprocity in your new state
Many states now have expedited licensure compacts for military spouses — confirm before you arrive so there's no gap in income.
Planning the Stateside Move
What You Can Afford Back Home
Real basic pay and real BAH — sized for what you'll need when orders send you back to the U.S.
On the Map
Where MCAS Futenma Actually Sits
The installation's actual location — pan, zoom, get directions.
Where People Live
Officers, Enlisted, and Where They Land
Real, opt-in reports from people stationed here — never an exact address, just the general area.
Not enough reports yet to show a map for MCAS Futenma.
Every ZIP area needs at least 2 reports before it appears here — that floor keeps any single answer from being identifiable. Be one of the first to help map this base below.
Do you live near MCAS Futenma? Help us improve this.
Four quick questions, no login, completely anonymous. We only ever collect your general ZIP area — never your street address or name.
Local Favorites
Where You'll Actually Hang Out
Real spots around Ginowan City, Okinawa, Japan -- a free waterfront park with a public beach, a Ryukyu Kingdom shrine built beside a limestone cave open for free tours, and a hilltop WWII battlefield park where a bullet-scarred wall still stands.
outdoors
Ginowan Seaside Park
A large free waterfront park on Ginowan's coast with a beach, koi and turtle pond, walking and running trails, a sports field, and an outdoor gym area.
Source: Okinawa Hai -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Futenma Shrine
A Shinto shrine in Ginowan City dating to roughly 1450, one of the historic 'Eight Great Shrines of the Ryukyu Kingdom,' built beside a 280-meter limestone cave designated a national scenic-beauty site in 1991, free cave tours offered roughly every 20 minutes.
Source: Okinawa Island Guide, RHS Japan -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Kakazu Takadai Park
A hilltop park on the former Kakazu Ridge, one of the fiercest Battle of Okinawa battlegrounds in April 1945, visitors can still see a bullet-scarred concrete wall and a Japanese pillbox remnant.
Source: TracesOfWar, Stripes Okinawa -- verified live Jul 19 2026
food
Fukuwarai
A Sichuan restaurant in Ginowan a short drive from MCAS Futenma, known for authentic mapo tofu, ramen, and chilled-noodle dishes.
Source: Stars and Stripes -- verified live Jul 19 2026
shopping
Tokyu Hands Ginowan Convention City
A shopping complex in Ginowan City anchored by a Tokyu Hands store carrying home goods, hobby and craft supplies, housewares, and stationery -- a genuine everyday shopping destination distinct from Chatan's American Village.
Source: Piratsuka, OIST -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Okinawa Convention Center
Opened in 1987 on Ginowan's coast, the prefecture's largest multi-function venue -- a theater, exhibition hall, and 12 conference rooms -- used for concerts, conventions, and sporting events.
Source: Okinawa Convention Center official site -- verified live Jul 19 2026
Jodi's List
Veteran-Owned Around Futenma
Veteran-owned businesses connected to the Futenma community — verified listings, straight from the directory.
No verified veteran-owned listings near MCAS Futenma yet.
The directory grows daily — browse all of Jodi's List at jodislist.com, or list a business you own.
On-Base Resources
Week-One Essentials
Exchange
Commissary
Fitness Centers
Key Phone Numbers
We only publish numbers we've verified — none are on file for this installation yet. The base operator directory on the official site is the reliable source.
Live From the Installation
What's Happening On Station
Pulled from Futenma's official public channels — updated automatically.
No updates ingested for MCAS Futenma yet.
This feed pulls straight from the installation's official public channels once its news feed is connected — check the base's official site in the meantime.
The Playbook — OCONUS Edition
Your First 30 Days
An overseas PCS front-loads the paperwork. These four eat the most calendar if you start them late.
01
Passports + SOFA status squared away
Every family member needs the no-fee government passport for orders, and your status in Japan runs under the U.S.-Japan Status of Forces Agreement — keep those documents with your orders, not in the household-goods shipment.
02
Housing office before any lease
Ginowan, Chatan, government housing at Camp Lester, or elsewhere on the Kadena corridor — the Okinawa housing office is the mandatory first stop for all of them, and they'll walk you through what a host-nation lease actually looks like.
03
Get your SOFA driver's license
Driving on Okinawa requires a SOFA license, earned through a written test and a road test administered on base — study the signage before you sit for it.
04
Decide on shipping a car vs. buying local
Shipping a POV to Okinawa is slow and expensive; plenty of families buy an inexpensive used car locally instead and sell it at the end of the tour. Decide before the movers show up.
You Can't VA-Loan a House in Japan — Plan the Stateside Move Instead
Straight answer: VA loans finance homes in the U.S. and its territories, not foreign property — so nobody here will pretend otherwise. What this tour is actually good for: keeping the home you already own working for you, and lining up the VA loan for wherever your return orders land. Personal Bankers cover all 50 states from day one, even when you're a day ahead of them on the calendar.
Subject to credit approval and VA eligibility. The Veteran Alliance is a fintech company, not a bank; banking services provided through partner institutions.
Your Next Backyard
Life beyond the gate.
Quick Question
Where are you at with housing near Marine Corps Air Station Futenma?
Local Favorites
Things to Do
outdoors
Ginowan Seaside Park
A large free waterfront park on Ginowan's coast with a beach, koi and turtle pond, walking and running trails, a sports field, and an outdoor gym area.
Source: Okinawa Hai -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Futenma Shrine
A Shinto shrine in Ginowan City dating to roughly 1450, one of the historic 'Eight Great Shrines of the Ryukyu Kingdom,' built beside a 280-meter limestone cave designated a national scenic-beauty site in 1991, free cave tours offered roughly every 20 minutes.
Source: Okinawa Island Guide, RHS Japan -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Kakazu Takadai Park
A hilltop park on the former Kakazu Ridge, one of the fiercest Battle of Okinawa battlegrounds in April 1945, visitors can still see a bullet-scarred concrete wall and a Japanese pillbox remnant.
Source: TracesOfWar, Stripes Okinawa -- verified live Jul 19 2026
food
Fukuwarai
A Sichuan restaurant in Ginowan a short drive from MCAS Futenma, known for authentic mapo tofu, ramen, and chilled-noodle dishes.
Source: Stars and Stripes -- verified live Jul 19 2026
shopping
Tokyu Hands Ginowan Convention City
A shopping complex in Ginowan City anchored by a Tokyu Hands store carrying home goods, hobby and craft supplies, housewares, and stationery -- a genuine everyday shopping destination distinct from Chatan's American Village.
Source: Piratsuka, OIST -- verified live Jul 19 2026
attraction
Okinawa Convention Center
Opened in 1987 on Ginowan's coast, the prefecture's largest multi-function venue -- a theater, exhibition hall, and 12 conference rooms -- used for concerts, conventions, and sporting events.
Source: Okinawa Convention Center official site -- verified live Jul 19 2026