The town of Atami isn’t at the top of every tourist’s Japan itinerary. And, selfishly, let’s hope it stays that way. If the town’s appealing shopping streets and bayside attractions became as over subscribed as Nara and Kyoto it would lose a significant chunk of its charm. Perched on the top-right edge of the Izu peninsula, Atami exemplifies the breezy, laid-back side of Japan that most visitors never see.
The Hiramatsu resort is a traditional (to an extent) ryokan, located just outside of the town’s centre, halfway up a hill that overlooks the magnificent Sagami Bay. The meandering road that leads to it is quite beautiful in its own right, the kind of sunny coastal highway that’s redolent of City Pop album artwork. In fact the whole area feels like a blissed-out flashback, back to a time when Japanese manufacturing (rightfully) ruled supreme, every home owned a Game Boy and the whole country was still riding high on its post-war economic miracle.
If Atami is a vibesy town that time forgot, then Hiramatsu is the hotel that time never knew existed. Guests enter the 13-room property via a suitably otherworldly secluded wooded area. By the time you’ve surrendered your shoes (standard ryokan protocol) and shuffled into the elegantly rustic interior, the real world may as well not exist. One end of the Hiramatsu is sequestered in beautiful woodland. The other looks out onto the jaw-dropping Pacific Ocean.
The spacious rooms themselves are (in my experience) genuinely unique fusions of traditional ryokan aesthetics with western amenities. I realise that sounds like a cliche, but in the case of Hiramatsu with its dark-wood surfaces, gigantic beds and bathrooms accented with marble and stone, it’s accurate. Also, all of the rooms, in some capacity, offer panoramic vistas of the bay, over which the sun rises each morning. Honestly: set your alarm. Watching dawn materialise from your own private onsen is something you’ll never ever forget. Oh, did I not mention that? Each of the 13 rooms has its own hot-spring bath - a stone pool heated by naturally warm, mineral-rich water, located basically at the foot of your bed. It’s both a miracle of engineering (it adjusts its own temperature and refills automatically) and also a beguilingly magical experience.
The east-west fusion is at its starkest at dinner. The kaiseki-style meal, full to bursting with local and seasonal Japanese produce, has a distinctly European haute cuisine aspect. On our visit the seven courses ran the gamut from squid truffle and wagyu raspberries to scallops with champagne sauce and fish of the day served with Kyoho grape. Breakfast meanwhile, can be ordered either in its Japanese or western incarnation.
Hiramatsu the Atami isn’t cheap. But split between two people, for a special occasion, I can hand-on-heart say the cost is thoroughly worth it. More than worth it: it’s good value. The sensational rooms, the fine dining, the views, the supernaturally attentive omotenashi-style hospitality, it all coalesces to form something wholly unique and unforgettable.
Nearby
Booted out of the ryokan and have a bit of time to kill in Atami itself? You’re in luck: this is a great town. Culture vultures will have a delightful time pottering around the MOA Museum of Art and Atami Castle. We also recommend kiunkaku - a beautifully preserved historic villa that was one of the first in Japan to blend European and Japanese styles of architecture. In nice weather Atami is also just a charming place for a wander - with its vertiginous streets, palm-lined roads and beautiful ocean views. There’s also the town’s shotengai (covered shopping street), which has tons of local goods on sale.