This place is amazing for the following reasons 1) Manager of the resort met us personally to welcome us & explained our package in detail....Meticulous detail in every aspect of our stay here for 3nights /4 days stay. 2) We travelled from Osaka to Amanemu by car for almost 3 hour trip...It is really worth the travel to this place of nature. Bird song/chirping wakes you up every day at 5am... 3) Japan tells us about as to how to be the best in Customer service with a smile & and a bow...I have learned a few thing from the people here 4) Last I also want to credit all staff for their hospitality. Also to name a few 1) Mayuko and June in office...(Not sure on spelling of his name in Japanese)

- Tranquil, peaceful, relaxing - Beautiful nature - Amanemu delivers an amazing experience, especially at the hot spring onsen. - General Manager handled a health emergency very elegantly - Food quality is excellent, especially the Japanese breakfast - Area for improvement is the junior staff, who are not well trained and should be trained more before assisting with the guest

This hotel is overpriced in every aspect. The rooms are good, but for the price there is far better in Japan. The food is good, but its hard to enjoy when you know its 3 or 4 times the price that is should be. Read the other reviews and they are all the same - if I had taken the time to read them, I would have never booked this hotel. This hotel negates many aspects of being in Japan. The reality is you could be anywhere in the world at this hotel which is such a missed opportunity. The baths are not traditional, other guests turn up to dinner in tracksuit pants and you loose all of the great things about luxury Japanese culture. My advise would be to stay at a small luxury Royokan for a more authentic Japanese experience - a fraction of the price and such a unique experience. Check out Relais & Châteaux. Any of them will be unique and provide better value than the Aman.

We stayed at Amanemu in a Sora Villa for several nights in November 2023 and had a wonderful experience. The contemporary, Japanese buildings using clean lines, tiled-roofs, dark wood and stone to complement the lush setting and views of Ago Bay. The landscaping was exquisite — both entirely natural, but well maintained, with peaceful courtyards, gardens and views around every corner. The villa itself was perfect. It was massive (almost 4K square feet) with two beautiful bedrooms that had their own private gardens, as well as back patios that opened up to a large, private backyard and views of the surrounding foliage and water. The entire backside of the villa across both bedrooms and the living room as well as the doors to the private gardens could be pocketed to allow the breeze of the Bay to pass through the entire unit which when combined with the sound of trees rustling and birdsong was extremely relaxing. The ceilings in the villa very high, and the bed and various daybeds inside and outside were comfortable. The mini-bar was also stocked with complimentary local beverages and snacks. The bathrooms were open, light and visually striking with the mix of dark stone and wood. The highlight was definitely the massive stone bathtub with views to the backyard and Ago Bay. The living room has a large seating area around around a television, as well as a dining table, laundry facilities and a kitchen with Miele appliances (including a coffee/espresso maker). There is also a large work desk and separate water closet at the front of the unit. The highlight for the villas is the commercial-grade onsen that sits just off of the main entrance. There were shower facilities, a large onsen bath in the center and one of the walls had pocket doors that opened to an additional private garden. The rest of the facilities at the resort include an arrival pavilion, a central set of pavilions that contain the lobby, restaurant, bar, main pool and a small library, as well as a separate complex downhill that contains the spa and gym. The arrival pavilion is where we were brought after our driver picked us up from nearby Kashikojima Station (after about a 20-minute drive). The General Manager greeted us, we completed some brief paperwork and then were taken to our accommodations. All of the facilities at Amanemu are pristine. The restaurant was beautiful and they did a nice job of separating the space for families with children and other groups such that the noise levels were always pleasant. The food was really stellar (by Aman standards and by Japan standards). For breakfast there were plenty of Japanese and Western options. For dinner, there is an a la carte menu as well as a few tasting menu options. All of the seafood, meat and produce featured were delicious, well prepared and service was prompt and friendly. The bar is a nice space where they serve cocktails, bar snacks, local juices as well as complimentary afternoon tea and small bites every day. They were always quick to greet us when we visited the bar, even when it was empty (as it often was). The main pool is large and nestled directly against some vegetation along with view of the Bay are the far end. It is long and would be a great place to swim laps as well as lounge at the wider end, Bay-side. There are plenty of loungers and private shower, bathroom and changing facilities nearby. The library was stocked with interesting books about the region as well as Aman’s history and expansion plans. And was a quiet, light-filled place to read, play a board game or get some work done. Finally, the back patio in between the restaurant and the bar has a couple of nice sunken seating areas, and the whole complex is built around a peaceful courtyard. The spa was one of the other highlights of the stay. It is a bit of a walk (or buggy ride) from most of the accommodations, but that was a welcome design decision because the setting was relaxing and its removed location encouraged us to stay longer once we had made the trek. In addition to a beautiful, light-filled gym, there were extensive spa facilities (especially relative to the limited number of people who were at the spa at any given time) including relaxation areas, steam rooms, saunas and Japanese bathing facilities. The pièce de résistance (of maybe the entire resort) was the Thermal Springs complex. These massive, co-ed facilities featured two large pools with various temperatures (including a cold plunge) that could accommodate dozens of people — though in typical Aman fashion, I never saw more than two other people using them at the same time as us (and we went for at least two hours every day). The TripAdvisor reviews I have read that dinged Amanemu I think were often a function of English communication issues. We experienced some of this (especially around our check-out experience, which was a mess), but my wife was able to navigate in Japanese for much of the stay. Despite a few of these mishaps, the quality of the service across the board was really high. We had the great pleasure of interacting with some of the English-speaking staff (shoutout to Reina who was an amazing help throughout our stay) and the hotel did a good job of pairing us with English-speaking folks for our meals and many of our drives. There were a lot of standout service experiences, both overt and subtle. The restaurant host always knew who you were when you arrived at dinner. Anytime we went to the bar, someone would magically appear to serve us even if it was unstaffed and unoccupied by guests before we arrived. Housekeeping was incredible and their high standards and attention to detail sort of ruined housekeeping at the other Japan hotels where we stayed. One evening we wanted to visit the public beach nearby to watch the sunset (about a 30-minute walk) from the hotel. Our driver, Fujiwara, picked us up such that we arrived at the best spot right before crowds started to form, he took photos for us, waited until the sun set and then promptly returned us before the other tourists started to vacate the area. One time we went for a walk off-property, and when we returned to the front gate to call a buggy to return to our accommodations, the gateman, without a moment’s hesitation, brought out the stools he and his colleague had been sitting on moments before for my in-laws to sit while they waited. Also, for the Amanjunkies reading this — we were never asked our room number. The service paragraph could be several anecdotes longer, but the conclusion is — the service at Amanemu was excellent for us (but I do think some knowledge of Japanese goes a long way to ensuring consistently high service). The combination of amazing accommodations (with a private onsen), incredible food, service and spa facilities and a tranquil setting makes this one of my favorite hotels in which I have stayed. If I am ever on this side of the world again, I would love to return to Amanemu — it is the kind of place I would plan a trip around and is a perfect, relaxing detour on an otherwise jam-packed Japan itinerary.

This was our first Aman resort so we were anticipating the best of the best. The room was as well as we expected but there were few things that unfortunately ruined our trip. 1)The old Japanese man who worked at front desk was the rudest person you ever met. During check out, there was another family who was already checking out before us in the lobby near the front desk. There were 2 sofas at the back of lobby and one of which was empty. So we were about to sit on the sofa but the old man told us to go outside to wait where the temperature was 41 degrees and I had no jacket at the time. I couldn’t believe what was hearing. 2) the check in was just as bad as check out. he made us wait in the taxi for 5-7 mins at the gate. We have been traveling for almost 5 hours and were crammed in the taxi. When we got out, he talked to us with no greeting, no smile and no bow ? I am sorry but Amanemu absolutely retrained this old man or let him go. Workers at the Japanese seven eleven can greet us better than this guy.