Ilmare Unarizaki

The Ilmare has one of the best views of any of the Iriomote hotels. There are a number of nearby restaurants to choose from. The staff helped us out a couple of times and the transfers to a from the ferry terminal worked well.

The evening meal was only so/so and many guests ate elsewhere. The hotel could use an exterior paint job and our screen door didn’t work well. But we would still stay there again.

The reception staff were very friendly & helpful. They helped us organise alternative kayak & snorkeling trip. When our kayak trip was cancelled due to bad weather and booked some nice local restaurants for us.

The views were spectacular. The beach in front of the hotel was lovely to swim at and the water was nice and warm (May). The beach around the corner by the view point was gorgeous.The staff were extremely helpful. They gave us great recommendations for snorkelling and kayaking tours, advice on restaurants, directions, bus service and booked our reservations. Free pick up service from/to ferry. They spoke limited English and we spoke no Japanese (just a few pleasantries) but they used a translator on their phone to work out what we wanted. Nothing was too hard.There is a dive shop there which does boat tours out to the dive spots. You can also hire an SUP.

The hot water took a while to come through - be patient and only turn on the hot tap until the water heats up. There is no conditioner for your hair in the bathroom. They did have shampoo and bodywash.

Some of the personnel was good at English and tried to help us.

There was a lot of things, that we would have liked to know before coming here. We were the only ones in the ferry terminal that was not picked up by their hotel, because we had to figure out ourselves to arrange that beforehand. They did not tell us in advance, and there is no taxi on the island. The hotel does not really outline that if you don’t have a diving license, then they actually have no activities on the hotel for you. They only offer diving for people who already have a license. There is no beach within 5 minute of walking, we had to walk 25 minutes to a good beach. The breakfast did the job, but not something to remember. The hotel rooms was very outdated and not so comfy as the pictures show.

Amazing view from the window on the sea, which was one of the main reason for me to stay in that hotel. I love that area. The building is a bit old and far away from the port (Uehara) (45 min walk) and restaurants. There is a bus running 4 times a day; otherwise the best option is to rent a car, there is no place to rent a bicycle, the closest in Uehara, no electric bicycles; no stores around to buy food. Wonderful park nearby to watch sunsets and a beach with star-shape sand (hoshizuna beach). Very nice staff.

Location and stunning views

Outdated rooms and dilapidated building

The hotel is a big one with rooms having terraces and a beautiful view. The rooms are simple but very clean. The room for breakfast is pleasant and I liked the shared lounge.Bus stops nearby, a few restaurants too.

I contacted the hotel after my booking and then again a day before checking in but never got a reply. They advertise a pick up from the ferry but as they never replied, I had to wait for the bus 2.5 hours.The staff at the reception did not really seem to care much, but not getting a reply at all is rather odd.

The view from the room was beautiful. The beach is very near the beach.

A bit isolated. The building is very old. Not much variety for breakfast.

Very nice location

Good

Good