Okinawa luxury hotel to be modeled on ancient fortress

Apr 17, 2019 | News On Japan

Apr 17, 2019 (Nikkei) - Japan's Hoshino Resorts will open a luxury hotel in Okinawa next year based on the ancient fortresses that dotted the subtropical islands.

The Hoshinoya-branded resort hotel will be built in Yomitan, a village on Okinawa's main island. It will be modeled on the Okinawan gusuku castles, which began to be built around the 12th century. A wall replicating the stone barricade of the fortresses will encircle the resort. Each of the 100 rooms will have an ocean view, with 200-sq.-meter suites featuring their own pools.

Though Hoshino runs one other Okinawa location farther south on Taketomi Island, the company has never opened a facility on the prefecture's biggest island.

"The fact that we have not opened in the famous tourist spot had been an issue," CEO Yoshiharu Hoshino said Tuesday.

This hotel will be priced at the high end of Hoshino's luxury portfolio. A room will cost 80,000 yen to 300,000 yen ($715 to $2,700) per night, compared with the average of 50,000 yen to 80,000 yen for the company's premium offerings. The location will target tourists from home and abroad.

Hoshino has contended with a rush of foreign competitors building luxury hotels domestically. Both Marriott and Hyatt of the U.S. opened resort offerings last year. Hawaiian rival Halekulani will open a new destination in Okinawa later this year, and Hilton has brand-new facilities in the works.

Hoshino plans to differentiate itself by providing a unique cultural experience found only in Japan.

Meanwhile, the company this year will open a hotel north of Tokyo remodeled from a defunct rustic resort. The site will include farming grounds so that visitors can experience the agricultural lifestyle of harvesting and cooking fresh produce.

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