Usuário convidado
31 de dezembro de 2022
Miyajima has a lot going for it. It's not far from central Hiroshima (city), it is a short 10 minute ferry ride from the mainland, is steeped in history and has some amazing UNESCO World Heritage structures - including Itsukushima Shrine and the O-Torii Vermillion Gate, Hokoku-jinja Shrine's Senjokaku and Five-storey Pagoda, Daisho-in Temple, tons of cute Deer that roam the island, incredible views of the Seto Inland Sea (especially from the top of Mt. Misen, which you can go part way up via a ropeway), a cute shopping street, and some fine cuisine, including Oysters that are harvested in the area. And during the Fall foliage season, the autumn leaves burst in vibrant colors that add to the mystical appeal (including in the famous and picturesque Momijidani area.) And when it comes to the Torii gate, it shows itself in different ways, depending on the lighting/weather, low/high tide, and dawn/midday/dusk. It is for these reasons that we returned yet again to Miyajima. During our most recent visit, we stayed at Iwaso and were underwhelmed. This time, we went with Kinsuikan, and we're sure glad we did! Originally established in 1902, Kinsuikan doesn't quite have the history or old-Japan charm that Iwaso has in abundance, but it more than makes up for it in too many ways to mention. While the building is nondescript and there is no garden to speak of, it has rooms that offer great views of the sea, has incredible Kaiseki cuisine, some nice common areas including a rooftop terrace as well as the only Onsen (natural hot springs) on the island. When looking into selecting a room at Kinsuikan, it wasn't immediately obvious what room type would be most to our liking. There appeared to be some very spacious Japanese-style Suite rooms with separate living/bedrooms, while the six Tokubetsu ****su (the "Special" rooms) were only 42 square meters in size but were more modern (built in 2021 or 2022, depending on the specific room), had a view of the sea and a nice free-flowing bath in the room. In the end, we went with what they designated as the "Special" room, opting for the allure of an in-room bath over a more spacious and traditional room. In the end, we definitely made the right choice. Advantages of the special rooms are: 1) View of the sea; 2) both dinner and breakfast served in the room; 3) super modern rooms with all of the modern technologies (heated floors, power plugs and USB ports everywhere, for instance); 4) Superior meals for both dinner and breakfast. I didn't know this at the time we booked, and don't have a basis to compare with the "standard" meals, but all I can say is that both dinner and breakfast were fantastic (more on this later.) While guests staying in non-Special rooms can pay to have an equivalent-quality dinner, you cannot pay extra to have a similar grade breakfast. The one disappointment with the Special room has to do with the Onsen, or lack thereof. The in-room bath has some mineral properties similar to Onsen, but they
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