Amakusa Tenku no Fune
B · 7.4 / 10right inn, right place
A 15-room contemporary-Western property above Amakusa bay, closer to a hotel than a ryokan, that KI-NRT found outstanding overall in 2021: incredible Italian-leaning cuisine, first-rate service and mesmerizing island-sea views, let down only by a dated build and no onsen. He would only maybe return, because the same owners opened Amanojyaku in 2023, which he expects 'likely outshines it in every way,' and that is where he now points people.
Scores
Food 4.5 / 5
The cuisine was the highlight of KI-NRT's two-night stay in 2021, scrumptious high-end Italian fare built on Amakusa's famous seafood, and the uni pasta made with the local purple sea urchin is the dish he names: if you have never had uni pasta in Japan, you must try it. Four years later he still recalled the food as incredible, and he expects the same owners' newer Amanojyaku to be as wonderful, or even better if that is possible.
Bath 1.5 / 5
There is no onsen here, which KI-NRT names as one of the two things that let the property down. The same owners' newer Amanojyaku nearby has onsen straight from the source in every room, which he calls a huge advantage, and that is part of why he now points people there instead.
Service 4.5 / 5
The service was first-rate on KI-NRT's 2021 stay, and he still called it that when he looked back on the visit four years later. The property runs more like a hotel than a ryokan (shoes stay on except in your own room, and nobody really polices even that), and he had no complaints about the service.
Room 3 / 5
The Island View Villa is generous at about 74 m² plus a 34 m² balcony, and most rooms are in a building behind the reception and restaurant with great views. The architecture and decor are thoroughly Western contemporary, but the build was already dated in 2021, the one flaw KI-NRT names besides the missing onsen, and the fresher, more luxurious sister property Amanojyaku is where he would stay now.
Place 4.5 / 5
The ryokan sits on a commanding hilltop over Amakusa bay with sweeping views of the sea and the many small islands dotting it, and KI-NRT calls Amakusa breathtakingly scenic and puts it above the more famous Matsushima. He came through on a road trip around the Hidden Christian sites and the UNESCO World Heritage churches of Nagasaki. The same owners' newer Amanojyaku nearby has the same mesmerizing views of island-dotted sea.
Getting there
- Fukuoka — 1h55, 1 transfer. Shinkansen Hakata to Kumamoto (~45 min), then ~90 min by car/rental to Kami-Amakusa.
- Kagoshima — 2h05, 1 transfer. Shinkansen to Kumamoto side, then ~90 min by car south to Amakusa.
- Nagasaki — 3h30, 0 transfers
Sources
FlyerTalk review #1 · TripAdvisor 5★ (April 2021) · #247 · #715 (thread mentions)