BEING AN AMAN RESORT, THE EMPHASIS IS ON EFFORTLESS LUXURY
There are four day beds in my suite at Amanemu – two dark wood platforms swathed in black fabric outside on a wooden deck, and two inside the main living quarters, either side of a king-sized bed. You’d think four day beds would be overkill, but in the course of a few days at this secluded hot spring retreat I manage to spend a great deal of time on each of them. There’s the inside day bed facing a screened garden – perfect for postbreakfast planning sessions poring over maps. The other interior day bed faces the deck, with its sweeping views of Ago Bay, a sheltered body of water dotted with pearl-farming rafts. I spend one morning watching a rainy-season downpour, the view of the bay disappearing behind banks of mist, being lulled into a pleasant torpor by the heavy drops of water cascading off the gutterless tiled roof onto the strip of black stones that surrounds the building. (The guest suites and communal areas were designed by Kerry Hill Architects, the Australian-based firm behind Aman Tokyo, as a contemporary interpretation of the country’s low-slung minka homes.)
Amanemu, which opened in March this year, is approximately 300 kilometres southwest of Tokyo. Extravagantly wealthy guests apparently travel from the capital by taxi, but you can also take the shinkansen bullet train to Nagoya and hop on the express service down to the last station on the line, where you’ll be met by a member of staff for the 10-minute drive to the resort.
Whichever way you get there, on arrival you’ll be greeted at an open-air pavilion looking out over Ago Bay for an introduction to the property over refreshments, before you’re driven to your suite in a buggy. Amanemu is spread out to the extent you’ll find yourself hitching a ride in a buggy when you spot one, especially if you’ve booked a treatment in the resort’s spa and try to walk there in the yukata (a traditional unisex kimono-like casual garment) and stiff sandals provided in your room.
A one-hour body treatment at the very Zen spa complex set well away from the main buildings starts with a foot soak and massage, an echo of the traditional practice of innkeepers caring for guests footsore from their travels. I choose one of the four Aman oil blends dabbed on my hand and settle in for a surprisingly vigorous massage from a tiny Japanese masseuse as I gaze out onto a fenced garden dotted with large black rocks that seemingly emerge from the lush grass. After a massage I’m invited to dip into the onsen (hot spring) at the spa, but I opt to head back to my room and fill my deep charcoalcoloured basalt bath with onsen water for a more leisurely soak.
The resort is set within Ise Shima National Park, with little in the vicinity other than a golf club and an exclusive housing estate, but excursions can be arranged to the nearby Ise grand shrine and one section of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail (see opposite page). For details, go to www.aman.com/resorts/amanemu.