Rosewood Miyakojima, Japan, Lodge Assessment

After a decade of repeat visits to Japan, I‘ve by no means misplaced the sense of awe sparked by Tokyo’s community of sky-scraping buildings and Kyoto’s towering bamboo stalks. I’ve dipped into bubbling onsens in Beppu and prayed at century-old temples in Nikko, however I had by no means made my option to the southern Japanese islands. A 2.5-hour flight from Tokyo to Okinawa’s Miyako Island modified that and marked the start of my first Japanese seaside retreat.

My 15-minute experience from the airport zipped previous fields of bamboo stalks to Rosewood Miyakojima, flanked by an ocean of distinct blues. Flat-roofed lodging claimed their place on a golden shoreline blanketed in dewy vegetation. This setting was fairly a change from Tokyo’s spirited crowds and Sixtieth-floor views.

Opened in March 2025, Rosewood Miyakojima is the Hong Kong-based luxurious hospitality group’s first resort in Japan and one of many most anticipated hotel openings of 2025. The seaside sanctuary is guided by the identical consideration to element and native design touches that I’ve come to like within the firm’s 33 accommodations around the globe.

At Miyakojima, the Japanese design penchant for minimalism fosters a nice stillness. Helmed by Dutch design home Studio by Piet Boon, the resort is framed to attract consideration to the unspoiled land it inhabits. Layers of Ryukyu limestone and wheat-colored pure textures across the property make no try and compete with the ocean. At each flip, the ocean is the star of the present—a lot in order that it has its personal nickname: Miyako blue.

Miyakojima, one in every of 49 inhabited pockets of land in the Ryukyu islands in southern Japan, is basically rural, with a inhabitants of lower than 60,000 folks. Generally known as the Island of Prayers, it’s a spot of non secular significance to its residents, which shapes the resort’s ethos. Even the ceramics and wood sculptures across the resort pay homage to a centuries-old Paantu ritual, wherein locals beautify themselves and their homes with mud and grass for luck.

The resort’s dedication to Okinawan tradition is so necessary that managing director Noriko Nakayama knocked on the doorways of residents on the island to share plans for the resort and ask for his or her blessing for the opening.

Personally, I’m grateful they accepted. My keep made my love of Japan develop far past its cosmopolitan cities.

Learn on for my full evaluate of Rosewood Miyakojima as the primary journalist to remain on the brand-new resort.

The Rooms

Fifty-five villas stretch throughout a non-public peninsula surrounded by vegetation and Miyakojima’s well-known blue waters. The lodging take their names from the Okinawan dialect and mirror the topography of their location—Daya villas sit cliffside; Mui villas are located within the mountains; Miji villas are on the tip of the peninsula; Uru villas are immediately on the sand; and Isu villas stake their place on a rocky seaside. Three massive homes, ranging between 1,614 and a couple of,152 sq. ft, supply sea views, a devoted butler service, and terraces with a barbecue grill and personal pool.

Okinawan craftsmanship shines all through the interiors. Miyako jofu, a fragile textile handwoven from fibers of the ramie plant used for the reason that sixteenth century, is integrated in shiny modern display screen prints inside each room. Geometric wood wall carvings are a nod to the Hachiji tattoo traditions native to Okinawa, worn by ladies as symbols of standing, feminine energy, and safety.

Inside my oceanside villa, I used to be instantly drawn to the ocean foam inexperienced accents and grey textured dressers that saved the addictive Okinawan pineapple cookies and rums produced from the close by sugarcane fields. A few of my favourite brushstroke ceramic items within the house had been by Okinawan artist Kyoji Matsuda, working to protect the thousand-year-old heritage of Ryukyuan pottery. Stroll-in closets offered ample space for storing whereas the lavatory, cloaked in pure gentle and Ryokan stone, featured a freestanding bathtub and moisture-rich cleaning soap constituted of a resident affectionately referred to as the Glycerin Queen. It’s this deliberate resolution to enlist Okinawans to contribute to the resort’s facilities that I appreciated essentially the most.

A spacious lounge with a banquette-style desk massive sufficient for a small household grew to become my favourite nook to spend mornings. Steps away, my non-public pool was flanked by massive creme-hued loungers and crops that offered privateness and shade.

Meals and Drink

4 eating places have a good time the nutrient-rich produce of the area that has contributed to the longevity of so a lot of its residents. Naturally fermented miso, peanut-infused jimami tofu, and contemporary catches of the day handpicked every morning by the resort’s cooks information the varied menus. The all-day eating eatery Nagi provides each Japanese and Italian delicacies. Every morning for breakfast, I ordered slow-cooked onsen-tamago eggs, pickled greens, miso soup, and grilled salmon. Within the night, saffron risotto balls, contemporary focaccia bread, and a marbled Miyako steak make their option to practically each desk.

On the poolside bar Yukku, tapas-style dishes of wagyu burgers and crudités are served alongside a cocktail menu with brightly-colored punch cocktails that remember the island’s wealthy rum historical past. The eye to element of every drink, overseen by bar supervisor Utaro Izaki, is a picture-worthy voyage into the area’s contemporary fruits and historic awamori, a mellow, caramel-tinged spirit constituted of fermented lengthy grain rice that’s solely produced in Okinawa.

On the oceanside Maas, chef Tokijiro Namada’s menu and vibrant character give guests greater than sufficient purpose to tug up barside and watch his meticulous slices of sashimi and preparation of grouper that’s speared every evening by fishermen within the close by bay. Cocktails listed below are additionally spectacular; my favourite is the briny and shiny Maas bitter, made with awamori, home salt inventory, and shikuwasa, a small, bitter citrus fruit native to Okinawa. Later this 12 months, a fourth eating idea, Chuma, will debut in a pavilion overlooking the ocean. The menu will deliver collectively 4 distinct areas of washoku (Japanese delicacies): sushi, tempura, teppanyaki, and yakitori.

Actions and Experiences

Dive into the dazzlingly blue waters of Miyako with experiences that embody snorkeling over coral reefs and studying concerning the historic and sustainable apply of spearfishing. Rosewood Miyakojima holds a privileged place amongst a shoreline teeming with sea turtles. Managing director Noriko Nakayama (who additionally has a grasp’s diploma in environmental science) leads a program targeted on elevating consciousness about these sea creatures and gives one-on-one discussions concerning the lifespan of the area’s three turtle species and the way they thrive of their habitats. An unique diving concierge program is headed by bi-lingual guides who can tailor itineraries to swimsuit ranges of expertise and curiosity.

Off-site actions are additionally ample. “Martial arts classes and calligraphy workshops supply deeper insights into Okinawan heritage. Moreover, guided excursions of Miyakojima’s pristine seashores, lush landscapes, and historic websites present a complete understanding of the island’s distinctive appeal,” mentioned Schreiner.

Visitors may also go to a pottery studio for an expertise that faucets into the 300-year-old Ryukyu custom of Tsuboya pottery. A spotlight of my journey was a SUP and kayak expertise by Miyakokima’s shaded mangroves with Zumisup. Coasting by jungly pockets over water on this uncommon ecosystem was a chilled option to finish a visit and get a peek into Okinawa’s numerous topography.

The Spa

Okinawa is residence to some of the world’s longest-living people due partly to weight loss plan, robust neighborhood, and bodily exercise. Asaya Spa faucets into this legacy of wellness with Okinawan therapeutic rituals that embody an natural compress manufactured from Miyako Island sea salt to advertise leisure. I used to be pleasantly stunned to search out two of my favourite Japanese magnificence manufacturers, Lapidem Tokyo and EviDenS De Beauté, used within the spa’s remedies.

Asaya’s design is impressed by the legendary story of the Okinawan goddess Amamikyu, who created the Ryukyu Islands from three parts: grass, timber, and stone. Six secluded particular person bungalows sit behind a community of thriving greenery meant to evoke Miyakojima’s inland primeval forests.

Hydrotherapy amenities, an outside vitality pool, a yoga studio, and a completely outfitted gymnasium spherical out the resort’s wellness choices. Later this 12 months, a martial arts program beneath the steerage of a Miyakojima karate grasp might be obtainable, too.

Accessibility and Sustainability

The resort contains one accessible ocean-view villa, and all areas of the property are accessible for wheelchair customers.

In-room automation and occupancy sensors are a few of the energy-saving strategies carried out in every room. As a part of Rosewood’s Companions in Provenance program, native farmers are tapped to produce native delicacies like Okinawan pork, sea grapes, and candy potatoes.

The Location

Sluggish and regular is the Okinawan lifestyle, and you’ll expertise this tempo first-hand with visits to the towering stone arches of Sunayama seaside and lighthouses at Cape Higashi-Hennazaki (a nationally designated “Place of Scenic Magnificence”). The resort’s concierge companies deliver you nearer to Okinawan customs, delicacies, and craftsmanship.

You possibly can attain Miyako airport in about 2.5 hours by aircraft from Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. When you’re trying to expertise a city-to-sea journey like me, Japan Airways’ Japan Explorer Pass provides discounted home flights all through Japan, making it simple to journey on nonstop flights from main cities like Tokyo and Kyoto to Okinawa.  What I like about this go is that it encourages worldwide vacationers to go to lesser-explored locations in Japan and may be bought with any worldwide airline’s air ticket originating exterior of Japan.

Get the Most Out of Your Keep

Visitors can e book by the American Fine Hotels & Resorts program to take pleasure in unique advantages. Or, think about reserving by a Rosewood Elite journey company to unlock particular perks resembling resort credit and upgrades.

Nightly charges at Rosewood Miyakojima begin from $1,400.

Each T+L resort evaluate is written by an editor or reporter who has stayed on the property, and every resort chosen aligns with our core values.