This Island has been a boy's club for so many years. Okinoshima is officially an Unesco world heritage site but tradition bans women from its shores. It is a very small island off of Kyushu’s northwestern coast in the Fukuoka Prefecture and can only be set foot on by men.
This Island is rich archaeological and religious heritage and over the years many people have visited and left an estimated 80,000 votive offerings of things like beads, weapons, mirrors and swords there.
There are varying explanations as to why women are banned from the island. Some say "it is because menstruation would defile it". Men, too, must get naked and undergo a purification ritual before they go to the island. As a result, it’s rarely visited.
For now, there are no plans to make it accessible to women. Unesco designates cultural heritage sites, but doesn’t set local laws or customs. So until traditions change or relax, women will have to s
