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Yumesenkei Amahara Besso (Awajishima, Japan).

3/27/2017

1 Comment

 
[Access information updated 7/13/17] 
Picture
There's suites at Yumesenkei that has fishing access outside of the rooms.
Awaji Island is home to the world's longest suspension bridge.  

I suppose most tourist that go to Japan don't typically come here as it seems like a weekend getaway for locals.

​But things will probably change once they open up the new Anime/ Manga themed park this summer on the island
.
​
Akashi Kaikyo Suspension Bridge in Kobe (world's longest suspension bridge).
Akashi Kaikyo Suspension Bridge (view near Kosoku-Maiko Bus stop).


​[Hotel New Awaji-- Villa Rakuen] 

I first came across a photo of the Hotel New Awaji (Villa Rakuen) and fell in love.  
It looks so wonderful and luxurious! 

I thought it would be a wonderful (albeit splurge) to end a trip. 
​
I mean how can you not?  Look at how stunning their private outdoor baths in the rooms are! 
Picture
[Source]- Hotel New Awaji.
Picture
[Source]- Hotel New Awaji.
When it came time to finally book our room,
there was no availability at Villa Rakuen
(ok, not the one I had my heart set on anyway
as I was checking the booking sites frequently).   


I was a bit disappointed, so I looked to Amahara
since it's owned by the same hotel group. 


The Hotel New Awaji Group actually owns ~12 resorts on the island.
 Three of which are connected to Amahara.   So you get all the amenities of a larger hotel,
but when you are ready to escape the crowd,
you can retreat back to your private oasis (there's only 18 rooms in Amahara).

OUR ROOM-- VIDEO OVERVIEW

If the gorgeous sea views don't entice you, I don't know what will...
Please see our Youtube Channel for more videos! 

​THE ROOM-- PHOTOS
​
We opted for their middle tier room which is a Japanese Western Style with Private Bath
(all rooms have private outdoor bath and faces the Seto Inland Sea).

If you can help it, stay here on a weekday which is almost half the rate of weekends/ holidays. 
It was ~$900 usd on the day we could fit it in (Saturday).  


- DINNER -


​Of course, no Ryokan stay is complete without sampling their multi-course Kaiseki.
​

Yumesenkei Besso Amahara Awajishima Hyogo (Seasonal Autumn Kaiseki Dinner).
Seasonal Kaiseki. You can actually upgrade your meal to Lobster or their 3-year Fugu (blowfish)-- for more $$$ of course.

From left to right: 
​
  • Amuse Bouse -(Confit with Yuzu Jelly)
  • Appetizers-
    • Raw Tofu with Wasabi Miso
    • Conger Eel Sushi
    • Boiled Fish with Miso
    • Fried Shiitake Mushroom and Minced Shrimp
    • Proscuitto Wrapped Persimmon and Cream Cheese
  • Second Dish- Pumpkin Cream Soup
  • Tsukuri-  Fresh Sashimi from Awaji​
​
Claypot with face.
Even their soup holder has so much character. 
​



​MAIN DISH
Yumesenkei Besso Amahara Awajishima Hyogo (Kaiseki Pike Eel with Yam dinner).
Pike Eel with Yam. Lovely presentation and delicious.

​Up to this point, the food tasted great.  

But my Fiance still wasn't convinced the journey from Kanazawa to Awaji  
​(trains & highway bus) was worth the half day+ journey we had to go through.

I bet he even started to regret letting me plan vacations.
SECOND MAIN DISH
​
Yumesenkei Besso Amahara Awajishima Sumoto (Awaji Beef steak Dinner).
Awaji Beef with Japanese sauce.

However, one bite of the Awaji Beef and he was speechless.  

To better put it, I think he had a foodgasm. 

​Instantly, he was glad we came.  


Picture
I think this photo of my Fiance really captures how good the beef is.

We didn't think it was possible, but the Awaji Beef was even better 
than the Kobe Beef we had a few days prior in Kobe (see our video link). 
Quite hard to believe as Kobe Beef was such a treat. 

But this Awaji beef is on another level with it's intense flavor. 
No wonder they say Kobe Beef actually came from cows from Awaji.  



STEAM RICE
(Grown by famous local rice field). 


Steam rice in Clay pot (Awaji famous rice).

 PICKLED VEGETABLES
​(
HOME MADE)
​
Pickled Vegetables and Miso Soup (Awajishima, Japan).
Yumesenkei Besso Amahara (Awajishima, Sumoto) Kaiseki Dinner, Unagi.
Unagi.

​DESSERT

Dessert (Fig Mousse) with colorful fruits.
Fig Mousse with fruits.
Tea and Sugar Cubes.
Sugar & Tea. They make a delicious coffee too!

Locally brewed Sake
(​Awaji Miyakobijin)
Awaji Miyakobijin Sake.
I highly recommend this Sake if you ever come across it. Very delicate, refreshing and clean. Not included in the meal of course (separate charge).


LOVELY SAKE CUPS
​

Beautiful Glass Sake Cup (Awaji Island, Hyogo Japan).
 Awaji Island, Hyogo Japan- Red and Gold Sake Cup

We didn't finish our bottle of sake at dinner,
​so they lent us other sake cups to
take back to the room to enjoy. 

​
Blue and Clear Sake Glass cups.

- FREE Drinks-
​

Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Happy Hour Cart).
Free Happy Hour after dinner. Manned by the staff who will serve you.

On the way back to the room, we noticed their free happy hour at the lounge has started.
It's immediately outside of the restaurant and next to the staff desk since 
the lounge area is really small and intimate. 

They serve soft drinks and coffee all day long, but after dinner there's free alcohol.

​
Highball drink and nuts.
Highball and nuts.
Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Happy Hour drink).
Remy Martin V.S.O.P.
Water, Juice, Etc.
At night, it seems like they offer more soft drinks and etc.

​
Hawaiian Water in Awaji.
Day time drink selection.

​They have Hawaiian water??
No way!
​
It's something we see at home all the time, but it's here-- in Awaji of all places. 
​

Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Lounge area).

This is their lounge which doubles as
Check-in and Check-out area.

They sit you down and give you sweets and tea at Check-in. 
​

Mini Tart and Tea (Yumesenkei Amahara Ryokan Check-in).
Sweets offered at Check-in.
Fancy Hot drink dispenser.
Self-serve Coffee and hot drinks. Free of course.


​- Breakfast - 
​

Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Sumoto), view from downstairs restaurant for dinner and breakfast.
Breakfast is a buffet served at the restaurant once again.

Like traditional Ryokans, they will ask you when you plan to eat breakfast 
as they reserve the same table for you from dinner. 

It was a good spread
(though mostly skewed towards fish...but it is Japan after all).
​
Breakfast Specials (Yumesenkei Amahara Awaji Island, Hyogo).
Special of the day.
Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Breakfast buffet 1).
Their onion soup is quite delicious! The island is known for onions so sweet, you can eat them raw. You can also buy some Onions at their giftshop.

More fish items​
​

Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima (Breakfast buffet 2; fish items).
Amahara Yumesenkei Awajishima, Sumoto. (Grill your own fish).
Cook your own fish!

I get the fish...but can someone please explain why there's
​Chicken Nuggets and Spaghetti for breakfast?? 


Chicken Nuggets and Spaghetti.


Overall, we highly recommend Amahara and look forward to revisiting in the future.

The service was exceptional and food incredible.   
Special thanks to Miss. Kaori Inaba who was super kind and made our stay so memorable
She really went out of her way to answer our every question and request. 


From the moment we stepped into Amahara/ Yumesenkei,
to them bidding us farewell,
we felt pampered all the way.


When we first arrived at the  Sumoto bus terminal (we took the highway bus),
the shuttle driver from another Hotel New Awaji branch came over to  
help us with our luggage and directed us to the right shuttle driver.
We didn't catch his name but we are really grateful. 


I had contacted Amahara's staff through e-mail months prior to our visit,
and their staff always
responded quickly to help me with access information.  


While it's pricey, it definitely lives up to it's accolades (highest honor in the Michelin Guide).
​​

​If you need to get away from the touristy areas,
here's another reason you should visit Awaji. 


Though next time, we are definitely hunting down some Awaji Beef Burgers and staying here for longer! 

Yumesenkei Besso Amahara Awaji (room key)
The room key is an actual key!

​Yumesenkei
​Besso Amahara


​​
夢泉景別荘 天原

​1052-2 Orodani, Sumoto-shi, Hyōgo-ken 〒656-0023, Japan

E-mail contact
(English ok!) 

+81 - (0)799-23-0335


​- ACCESS OPTIONS -
​

When I first started planning this visit, I got a bit confused as there's not a whole lot of information in English and there's more than one bus station near the Ryokan.
​
  • LIMO BUS
    • 1.  From Kansai International Airport OR Kobe Airport, take Limo Bus to Sumoto Bus Interchange (IC).
    • 2.   Take Taxi to Amahara. 
  • You can also take Limo Bus straight back to the KIX airport via KATE (see Timetable).  Bus company requires that you make a seat reservation but for some reason when I called them, they didn't have anyone that spoke English. Somehow they understood my lacking Japanese anyway and I got a confirmation number.    
    • Amahara --> KIX Airport. 
    • 1.  Have Ryokan arrange a Taxi for you to Sumoto Bus Interchange (IC).                 Taxi Ride is ~2580 Y from Amahara (what we paid).
    • 2.  Take Limo bus straight to KIX Airport. 
      • ​3,100 Y pp. one-way from Sumoto IC to KIX Airport  
      • You need exact change in YEN!
​
  • HIGHWAY BUS (Awaji Kotsu or Shinki Bus).  
  • Seating on the left side has the best scenic views!
    • Take bus from Umeda or Sannomiya to Sumoto Highway Bus Center​ (洲本高速BC / (洲本バスセンター ) .  
      • 1A.   Umeda (Hankyu Sanbangai).    2,350 Y each way. 
      • OR
      • 1 B.   Kobe (Sannomiya).    1,850 Y each way. 
      • 2.  Request free shuttle pick-up from Amahara (arrange prior to arrival). 
      • Awaji Kotsu has timetables (in Japanese).  Be aware of holiday schedule too.   Certain scheduled buses by-pass stops as well, making it slightly faster. 
      • These highway buses don't take reservations, same day bus ticket purchase only (both companies's ticket are interchangeable). 
​​
  • TAXI (chartered).  
    • MK Taxi charges about ~ 25,000Y each way to/ from Sannomiya (Kobe). 
    • You can ask Amahara to book Taxi for you. 
​​
  • DRIVE
    • Easiest method is probably to drive since the Island is somewhat spread apart. 
​
  • BY BOAT (From Kansai International Airport [KIX] )--> Sumoto Port (65 mins).
    • ​Newly announced route from July 9, 2017 with 5 trips per day.  
    • Right now reservations are by phone only but it looks like once their website is fixed, they will take online reservations. 
    • Adults: 2,800 Yen   Children/ people with disability: 1,400 Yen One-way.
    • Round Trip Tickets are offered at a discount.​
Picture
[Screenshot Courtesy of Awaji Yumesenkei] and translated via Google Translate. Click for original link (in Japanese).
  • Route information from Awaji Kanku Line (boat operator). 
  • Sumoto Port to Amahara is about 7 minutes by car: 

1 Comment
kodi.software link
10/6/2022 06:48:12 am

hanks for sharing the article, and more importantly, your personal experience mindfully using our emotions as data about our inner state and knowing when it’s better to de-escalate by taking a time out are great tools. Appreciate you reading and sharing your story since I can certainly relate and I think others can to

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