Amanemu Review: A Study in Japanese Minimalism and Quiet Luxury

Deep in the forested hills of Mie Prefecture, where the Pacific Ocean carves a jagged coastline of hidden coves and pearl farms, Amanemu emerges as an exercise in restraint. The resort, part of Aman’s carefully curated portfolio, occupies a privileged position within Ise-Shima National Park, a region revered for its spiritual significance and unspoiled landscapes. Here, the boundary between architecture and nature dissolves, wood, stone, and glass are arranged with such precision that the buildings seem to have grown from the earth itself.

Arrival: A Deliberate Transition

The journey begins at Kashikojima Station, where guests are met by a driver for the short, winding ride to the resort. The road traces the edge of Ago Bay, its waters stippled with oyster rafts, before climbing into dense forest. There is no grand entrance, no sweeping driveway, just a hushed reception pavilion where the first glimpse of Amanemu’s aesthetic philosophy becomes clear: space, silence, and an almost monastic focus on harmony.

The Architecture: Kerry Hill’s Vision Realized

The late Australian architect Kerry Hill, known for his ability to distill regional design languages into contemporary forms, conceived Amanemu as a modern interpretation of the traditional ryokan. The structures, low-slung, with deep eaves and cedar-shingled roofs, reference the nearby Ise Jingu, Shinto’s most sacred shrine. Inside, the effect is one of quiet drama: tatami-inspired flooring, sliding shoji screens that diffuse light like rice paper, and vast windows that turn the surrounding landscape into a living mural.

The Suites: A Lesson in Spatial Poetry

At 1,065 square feet, the suites are studies in considered minimalism. Each features:

• A private onsen, fed by the region’s mineral-rich hot springs, positioned to frame views of forest or sea.

• A deep soaking tub carved from hinoki cypress, its citrus-tinged scent merging with the steam.

• A sunken lounge area where the only sound is the whisper of wind through the trees.The effect is not so much a room as a carefully composed environment, one that compels stillness.

Dining: The Sea and the Soil

The restaurant’s menu is a reflection of Ise-Shima’s bounty, seaweed harvested from the bay, wild mushrooms foraged from the hills, and rice grown in nearby paddies. Plant-based dishes are not an afterthought but a deliberate thread in the culinary narrative. Breakfast might include silken tofu adorned with freshly grated wasabi, or a delicate porridge of seasonal grains. At dinner, the kitchen delivers a kaiseki-style procession of small plates, each a miniature landscape in itself.

The Spa: Water as a Healing Force

Aman’s spas are invariably highlights, and here, the focus is on the therapeutic properties of water. The centerpiece is a sprawling thermal pool, its milky waters drawn from local springs. Treatments incorporate traditional Japanese modalities, shiatsu, watsu, but the real luxury is the absence of urgency. Time, like the heat of the onsen, lingers.

The Contradictions

For all its polish, Amanemu is not without friction. There is a certain rigidity in the service, a formality that stops short of warmth. Moreover, the resort’s very serenity, the lack of music, the near-empty common spaces, can be disquieting. And then there is the matter of cost: activities, from pearl farm visits to guided shrine tours, carry prices that can verge on the prohibitive.

Who Belongs Here?

This is not a place for those seeking spectacle. It is, instead, for travelers who find luxury in absence of noise, of excess, of distraction. For those who wish to sit on their terrace at dusk and watch the light fade over Ago Bay without another soul in sight.

The Final Word

Amanemu is less a resort than a meditation on space, light, and the Japanese concept of ma, the beauty of negative space. It demands a certain temperament, one attuned to subtlety. For the right guest, it is nothing short of transformative.