Hotel Innoshima

The room was large, clean, and basic. I had dinner and breakfast, and both were fine. For the dinner course, they gave me a Japanese menu, but the servers said very little as they brought the dishes out one by one. Maybe they assumed I didn’t speak Japanese. A little explanation of what I was eating would have helped. The public bath was very nice, though I had to plan my visits around a large group of students staying there at the same time. My room had no bath or shower, and I’m not sure if that was true of every room. Getting up there is a workout. The hotel is at the top of a VERY long, steep slope. They offered to pick me up at the port, but I declined because I had my bike. I wasn’t up to riding the hill, though, and pushed the bike the whole way, which took about 15 minutes. It’s by the entrance to a large park with lovely views over Habu and beyond. The cherry blossoms were just starting to bloom, and I enjoyed walking around. After making that climb, I didn’t want to do it again. The small town seemed to have some interesting places to eat and drink, and there’s a supermarket where you can get supplies before going up to the hotel. They also sell some snacks and have vending machines.

The views of the Setouchi islands at sunrise and sunset are amazing. The building, though, is so ugly. The Wi-Fi was patchy, there was no shower in the bathroom, and the hill is very steep, so keep that in mind if you’re cycling.

If you catch it at the right time, the moonlight reflected on the sea from your room looks like a “Golden Road.”

Lovely views, and even prettier once the sakura come out.