A small luxury hotel with 14 rooms opens in Minamiawaji, Hyogo Prefecture, on Tuesday, December 1, 2026. BE WANDERLUST HOTEL (ビーワンダラスト ホテル) stands on a hilltop in Ama, the southernmost part of Awaji Island, with views of the sea and mountains. Its ring-shaped building follows the contours of the land, and the hotel has a 12-seat restaurant for hotel guests only, a panoramic sauna, and a pool. Guests can also visit fishing ports and fields and learn about the local plants and the way people live here, which makes it a stay built around the nature and food culture of Minamiawaji. The hotel is produced by Balnibarbi Co., Ltd., which is headquartered in Nishi Ward, Osaka.
A Ring Along the Mountain Ridge: Architecture That Changes the View With Every Step
Ama, at the southern end of Awaji Island, is an area where the sea spreads out beyond gentle mountain ranges, and where satoyama (village-edge woodland), fields, and fishing ports lie scattered across the land. Beyond the mountain road and the trees along it, the ring-shaped building comes into view.
The architecture was designed by ADX, which pursues architecture in harmony with nature under the philosophy "Living with the Forest" (「森と生きる。」). STUDIO DIG., which reads the climate and culture of the land closely, worked on the design, Yard Works, which links people and nature through plants, handled the landscape design, and Plus y took part in the lighting plan. Balnibarbi was in charge of the overall production, from the concept of the hotel to the food, the spaces, and the connection with the local community. The hotel was planned as a whole, from the building to the stay programs, together with specialists from each field.
Walking the slope that runs around the outside of the building, the sea that was straight ahead moves behind the building, and a new view appears between the trees. The light, the wind, and the scenery change with each step. The guest rooms, restaurant, sauna, and pool are also laid out so that they connect with the landscape of the hilltop.
Planning, design, and production team
- General production: Balnibarbi Co., Ltd.
- Architectural design: ADX (https://adx.jp/)
- Design (意匠設計): STUDIO DIG. (https://studio-dig.com/)
- Landscape design: Yard Works (https://www.yardworks-web.com/)
- Lighting plan: Plus y
14 Rooms With Different Views of the Sea and the Mountains
The site covers about 2,640 tsubo (8,724 square meters), and only 14 guest rooms are built on it: 7 "Setouchi Ocean View" rooms facing the horizon and the sunset, and 7 "Mountain View" rooms surrounded by the quiet of the trees.
Every room has a terrace, and the interiors are based on earth colors. The rooms have no television, so that the view outside the window becomes part of the space. The rooms are meant for a slow stay, with the soft morning light, the clear afternoon sky, and the mountain colors that deepen at dusk.
On the sea side, the Seto Inland Sea spreads out beyond the terrace, and guests can watch the sun set on the horizon. Four of the Mountain View rooms have a terrace bath, available 24 hours a day, with a view of the forest. The bath amenities are "LE LABO HINOKI."
A Panoramic Sauna and a Pool Overlooking the Sea and the Greenery
The hotel has a panoramic sauna made of hinoki cypress, with a view over the sea and the greenery. Through the large windows, the green of the mountains and the sea beyond can be seen, and guests can warm up slowly while watching the changing scenery.
The room is heated to about 95°C with a MISA stove from Finland. For self-löyly (pouring water over heated stones), the sauna uses aroma water distilled from plants that grow wild around the hotel. When water is poured on the heated stones, the scent of the plants spreads with the rising steam and blends with the scent of hinoki.
After warming up, guests can move to a cold plunge of about 13°C. Then, in the outdoor cooling area facing the sea, the wind cools the body, and the horizon spreads out ahead.
A pool is placed in the center of the ring, and a fire pit is lit after sunset. The day on the hilltop moves from an afternoon looking at the sea to a night around the flickering flames, changing slowly with the color of the sky.
Restaurant UZU: Traveling Through Awaji Island and the Seto Inland Sea, One Plate at a Time
In the evening, when the color of the sky starts to change, guests head to "Restaurant UZU" inside the hotel. It is a 12-seat counter restaurant created only for hotel guests.
Awaji Island is one of the "Miketsukuni" (御食国), the regions that since ancient times offered food to the imperial court. Surrounded by the sea and also blessed with mountains and fields, the island has been supported by a wide range of ingredients, including seafood from rich fishing grounds, vegetables grown in the mild climate, and livestock products. On the other hand, high-quality fish, meat, and vegetables are often shipped to cities, and some of them are hard to find on the island itself. The restaurant's idea is to enjoy what is produced on this land, on this land.
At Restaurant UZU, the kitchen values its relationships with producers such as fishermen and farmers, and brings the island's ingredients to the plate as fresh as possible. Based on French cooking, it adds cooking on a teppan (iron griddle) and over charcoal, and delicate Japanese techniques, to bring out the character of the ingredients that arrive each day.
The course is called "Ichie" (一会). Using ingredients raised by the different climates of the island, namely the sea, the mountains, the soil, and the water, the course is structured like a journey through Awaji Island, one plate at a time. The sea and fields seen during the day appear on the table as dishes at night, and a single plate can also bring to mind scenery of places not yet visited. The content of the course changes with the ingredients delivered that day and with the seasons. The tableware includes one-of-a-kind pieces by local ceramic artists, so guests can enjoy the food together with the island's handcrafts.
Executive Chef: Tomoya Konishi (小西智也)
Konishi gained experience at restaurants in and around Paris, and after working at places such as Jean-Georges Tokyo (ジャン・ジョルジュ東京) and Dominique Bouchet (ドミニク・ブシェ), moved into the world of wagyu cooking. In 2025, he moved his base to the Awaji and Tokushima area, which is close to his roots, and became executive chef of BE WANDERLUST HOTEL. He works with ingredients from the sea and fields of Awaji Island, and meetings with producers and the changing seasons gradually change the look of his dishes.
Restaurant UZU information
- Seats: 12 counter seats, for hotel guests only
- Course: "Ichie" (一会), ¥25,000 per person (tax included, service charge not included)
- Seatings: Two seatings, at 5:00 PM and 7:45 PM
- Pairing: Wine ¥12,000 / Alcohol ¥8,000 / Non-alcohol ¥8,000
- Non-guest use: Not available
Experiencing Minamiawaji: Wind, Soil, and People
A trekking course of about 30 minutes is set up around the hotel. Guests can walk toward a bench with a view of the sea, join yoga in the clear morning air, or make their own aroma water by picking plants and flowers on the grounds and distilling them the same day. Guests can also go further, to a harvest experience at a local farm or a fisherman's meal experience at a small fishing port. Ingredients found there may appear as a plate at Restaurant UZU that night.
The next morning, breakfast is served at "TRATTORIA amarancia," which stands on a cliff overlooking the sea of Ama, about 2 minutes from the hotel by a dedicated car. For breakfast, guests choose a main from three options: Awaji masu (trout) with avocado toast, a salad plate, or an American breakfast. Yogurt, fruit, croissants, yudane bread (湯種パン), granola, and more come with it. In-room breakfast is also available for guests who want to spend the morning in their room.
After a morning sauna and a walk on the trail, and breakfast by the sea, guests check out at 11:00 AM. On the way home, guests may recall the color of the sea, the scent of the plants, and the plate they had at the counter. The scenery and daily life of Minamiawaji, which were unfamiliar before the visit, remain as memories of the trip.
BE WANDERLUST HOTEL Information
- Name: BE WANDERLUST HOTEL (ビーワンダラスト ホテル)
- Address: AMA SUNSET CLIFF, Ama Nishi-cho, Minamiawaji, Hyogo 656-0545 (兵庫県南あわじ市阿万西町)
- Opening: December 1, 2026
- Site area: 8,724 square meters (about 2,640 tsubo)
- Rooms: 14 in total (7 Setouchi Ocean View rooms and 7 Mountain View rooms)
- Room size: 40 square meters plus a 4-square-meter terrace
- Rate: From ¥90,000 per room for 2 guests, breakfast included (tax included, service charge not included)
- Check-in: From 3:00 PM (last check-in 8:00 PM)
- Check-out: 11:00 AM
- Official website: https://hotel-wanderlust.jp
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/be_wanderlust_hotel
Access
- By car: About 25 minutes from Seidan-Mihara IC on the Kobe-Awaji-Naruto Expressway. After parking at the TRATTORIA amarancia parking lot, it is about 2 minutes to the hotel by the hotel's dedicated car.
- From Kobe: Take the "Minamiawaji Fukura Line" express bus from Kobe Sannomiya to Fukura. From the Fukura bus stop, it is about 25 minutes by taxi.
- From Tokyo: Fly from Haneda Airport to Tokushima Awaodori Airport (about 1 hour 20 minutes). From the airport, take the "UZU BUS" to Fukura (about 70 minutes), then a taxi for about 25 minutes.
- There is also a helipad near the hotel, and guests can ask about using it.
