Jungle Hotel PainuMaya — Hotel in Taketomi

Perfect getaway from Tokyo!||Painumaya was an excellent choice as our introduction to Iriomote. The location was excellent: away from other spots on the island, we had an unobstructed view of the Milky Way at night. We could walk across the street to the beach to watch the sunrise. And the hotel is basically in the middle of the jungle so all we heard at night were various animal calls. ||This isn’t a place to go if you want a bustling nightlife. This is a place to go to get away from it all. ||We are two native English speakers who live in Tokyo, and we’re vegetarians. We chose this hotel because they were willing to remove meat from the dishes on their menu for us. Not everyone on the staff spoke English, but even those who didn’t did their best to communicate with us using a translation tool. ||The hotel offered excursions that were non-impact on the environment. We went on the 2 hour trek and canoe trip, and the 1 hour night walk. Both were exceptional, even when we didn’t understand everything being said by our Tourguides. It was all worth it. ||A few notes about the premises:|- the pool is currently closed (Covid)|- same for the public bath|- the hotel is in the middle of the jungle - if you don’t want insects or lizards in your room you need to keep the balcony door closed. We enjoyed watching the one lizard that found its way in eat all of the flies that had been annoying us. |- the hotel is trying to be low impact, and the island is working to eliminate plastic. For this reason there were no free small toiletries: bring your own. Also, they won’t come in and change the bedding and towels unless you ask - to save energy.||As we are eco-conscious, we were fine with all of this. Some other guests complained, though. ||Also: you have to plan how to get there thoroughly: they offer a free shuttle to/from Ohara port but it’s not available all day. Same for the bus. Taxis are limited. Don’t get stranded at the port due to poor planning!||We enjoyed every part of our stay with them and will definitely be back with...

This is a beautiful and substantial property but at the moment it seems at risk of returning to the jungle.||Staff on arrival were kind, helpful and professional, despite the lack of a common language (we don't speak Japanese). The imposing reception area had no air conditioning and was very hot because of the big glass atrium.|Our room was huge with a great wet room/bathroom, a corner window looking out at the jungle and a lovely tatami platform with a little table for relaxing. The air conditining and all the other fixtures worked well and the beds were comfortable, so we were comfortable. However the room was in dire need of painting with marks all over the walls.||We went to the pool and found it empty. I don't know if this is usual. At reception they suggested we go to the beach but it was stinger season and we wanted to swim somewhere without our stinger protection. Also, we couldn't find the path to the beach without returning to the main road via the driveway, and walking along it.||The dinner buffet was something I have never before experienced in Japan with people being very noisy and pushy and lots of crying kids. It felt like a school camp - not in a good way. Later at night people were wandering around the atrium making noise (maybe they drank too much as alcoholic drinks were included with the buffet). Receptioin was not attended 24 hours so there was nobody around to ask them to be quiet.||Breakfast was better, thanke to the cheerful and efficient staff members.||Despite all that, this is a unique property and a unique experience to stay in one of Japan's special wild places. I hope the owners invest in a bit of a renovation, re-opening the pool and supporting their wonderful staff, who are working so hard to provide guests with a...

I visited this resort one night while in Iriomote-jima. It is always relaxing to spend a night at an onsen resort and after hearing that one was located in Iriomote-jima, of course I had to visit it. Now the resort itself is really nothing special. A typical 3-star Western-style hotel in Japan. The rooms were spacious and had all of the expected amenities, but were in need of a renovation. WLAN was available in the Lobby which is for me a negative. I like staying connected to the internet and not having to leave my room. Dinner and breakfast were of course included in the price, but it was nothing to write home about. ||The only thing that made this hotel special was the outdoor onsen. What a treat. I always love soaking in the Japanese-style mineral baths. You usually do 2-3 times soakings in baths of different temperatures. First went outside to soak in some baths after dinner and then went inside to baths inside for my evening bath. ||If you are going to visit Iriomote-jima anyway, I recommend staying one night at this hotel or at least visit the onsen baths once. This resort was not good enough to be the sole reason for visiting...