This Amanemu Review is from our recent stay at the newest Aman Resort, in Ise-Shima, Japan, which recently celebrated its one year anniversary. It's perfect paired with the stunning Aman Tokyo, offering the contrast of a tranquil retreat in the Ise-Shima National Park. As one of our Japanese guides commented, the ideal getaway for many Japanese is to go to an onsen (hot spring) resort to relax and savor delicious cuisine, and this is exactly what Amanemu offers, combined with lovely views of Ago Bay.
TravelSort Clients enjoy these Virtuoso benefits,
Amanemu Virtuoso Benefits
- Upgrade on arrival, subject to availability
- Complimentary American or Japanese Breakfast for two daily for duration of the stay
- $100 USD equivalent Food & Beverage credit to be utilized during stay (not combinable, not valid on room rate, no cash value if not redeemed in full)
- Early check-in/late check-out, subject to availability
- Complimentary Wi-Fi
Amanemu Location, Check-in and Lobby
Amanemu is located in the Ise-Shima National Park, by Ago Bay, about a 15 minute drive from the closest train station, Kashikojima Station. We had advised our train's arrival time, and we were met by our driver at Kashikojima Station, then driven to Amanemu. Even though I'd warned my son there might not be any other kids at Amanemu (which tends to be more of a couple's destination than, say, Amanpulo, which attracts both couples and families) he was still excited to be going to another Aman Resort:
Our check-in was at a little pavilion where the SUV was swapped out for golf carts. But not before we'd quickly completed our registration and been given a cool oshibori towel to refresh with, as well as a comforting cup of matcha, potent green tea.
Amanemu Sora Suite
Amanemu offers 24 suites and 8 villas. The suites are identical in design, and differ only in their location and corresponding views. Entry level Mori Suites have garden views, with the vegetation largely obscuring any views of the water. We were in a Sora Suite, which offers partial sea views toward Ago Bay. The highest suite category, Nagi Suites, are situated closest to Ago Bay and have the best water views. These are suites 1-6 in the resort map below.
Here's the view from our Sora Suite veranda:
Each of the suites is very spacious, with 1065 square feet of open plan bedroom and living area space.
All suites come with 1 King bed, but we were able to utilize the day bed, with extra bedding, as an extra bed for our son.
Welcome amenities were simpler than at Aman Tokyo, with 3 oranges, but there were complimentary arare (rice crackers) which helped tide us over until the complimentary afternoon tea (to be covered in a forthcoming post on Amanemu's restaurant and dining).
The large bathroom is closed off from the bedroom by sliding wooden doors, and meant that it was easier at Amanemu than some other Aman Resorts for me to do some work after my family had gone to sleep, without any light disturbance. There are dual vanities opposite each other, with his and hers sinks.
The ofuro soaking tub has a knob that allows you to fill it with natural thermal spring water, which, lives up to the English and Japanese warning of being *very* hot. For this reason, most guests will want to add in some regular (non-spring) cold water, to bring it to more suitable bathing temperature.
There's also a rain shower that should accommodate even professional basketball players, given its height. I loved that the bath products were Aman's own, as at Aman Toky
Here's a quick video of our Sora Suite at Amanemu:
Amanemu Onsen and Spa
Most guests request a buggy to take them to the spa, but it's really only a 15-20 min. or so walk, and we had a nice day, so we walked there. The entrance to the main spa pavilion was flanked by brilliant orange plants of some kind.
Inside the women's changing room were lockers, a bathroom, and sauna, as well as a place to wash before going outside to the public onsen (hot springs). Since the hot spring area is co-ed, you don a bathing suit, in contrast to most Japanese onsens, which are segregated by gender and thus nude.
The onsen pools are of varying depths and temperatures, so we started in the least hot ones and worked up to the hottest. There are day beds as well, and we were provided with refreshing cold bottled water. We were the only ones there the entire time, which made it a very relaxing and private experience.
The Verdict
While we only stayed one night at Amanemu, it would be perfect for a 2-3 night couple's getaway to destress and relax in a tranquil setting, with healing thermal springs and delicious cuisine. Aman's style is minimal yet elegant, and a perfect fit for Japanese aesthetics. While Amanemu tends to focus more on the Japanese market, staff were well-versed in English, and Western-style food, as I'll get to in my future post, was as excellent as Japanese fare.
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Disclosure: I paid for our own stay and breakfast, at a full Virtuoso rate, including Virtuoso benefits
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