Hotel Nikko Alivila — Hotel in Yomitan

We had a truly excellent experience for our wedding anniversary at Hotel Nikko Alivila yesterday.

I've lived in Japan for about 30 years now, and it's been about 19 years since I was last in Okinawa. But this was well beyond my expectations. The service, the food, and the atmosphere were, in my opinion, 5-star. Please have a quick look at that :

The service. I really don't understand why others have posted about rude, and even racist, service. This white guy and black girl couple were treated with the utmost respect and care all the way - always a smile and never a frown regardless of our sometimes silly requests. For example, big Hino-san at reception chased us all the way down the lobby hall to hand me back some docs I'd left on his desk, and later on he took the time to guide us right to our room. What a star. Nobody does that. And throughout our stay even the cleaning staff were super friendly and always greeted us with a smile and a "Ohayo gozaimasu" as we passed by. The food. Again, I'm astonished to see reviews from people who weren't happy with the food. Some dude posted that he had to walk miles down the road to get a burger and fries. Fly and bus all the way to the Yomitan peninsular in Okinawa for a burger and fries? Wow. Instead, we went for the Japanese local-style dinner and were totally impressed. When we asked about whether we should go for the lobster upgrade or not, without any hesitation the perfectly kimono'd floor manager stabbed at the menu - Go for the lobster of course! She was direct and outspoken, as is the Okinawan way. While this might offend some people (as I see in some of the reviews here) the 3 of us had a big laugh, and we of course decided on the lobster. And it was perfect! Try getting a lobster with uni sauce and a proper spread of fresh sashimi for under ¥7,500 yen in Tokyo. For our wedding anniversary, the whole dinner experience was excellent. The atmosphere. Very family friendly. The huge pool had friendly lifeguards to help kids into floaties (inflatable armbands) and then keep a close watch on them. Tired parents could just chill out on the deck chairs and let the kids have fun in and out of the pool. Lots of games and cool stuff for kids too. Even down on the beach the lifeguards & staff helped folks get comfortable in their deck chairs in the sun, or get a jetski ride, or get a mask and snorkel for diving. The care and the attention to detail were first class, in my opinion.

Yes, there was some rush on the steel doors (it's a resort on the sea, right?) and there was some wear and tear showing on the corners here and there (it's an old building, ok.) If that offends you somehow, then please avoid this amazing resort and stay at one of the many newer, and far more expensive,...

Stayed 3 nights at Hotel Nikko Alivila. The location of the hotel is fantastic, just about an hour drive from the Airport and about 50 mins from Naha via the Highway.||It is a beach front hotel with relatively great beach area compared to some other hotels though it still has lots of coral chips and broken shells so a “wet / aqua shoes” is highly recommended.||The tides comes and go in Okinawa. During low tide, it is very fun to do the intertidal walk along the shallow area to experience the abundance sea creatures and fishes. It was amazing! You can see a lot of tropical fishes by just walking in the shallow water.||The hotel room is very generous in size, more than 40sqm I presumed. It is slightly outdated in terms of deco, but it was immaculately kept to its pristine condition. The toilet is huge with separate room for the WC. The shower has great water pressure, WC with a washer, and all the Bath Gel, Shampoo, Conditioner and Face Wash all provided for. There is a mini fridge and a Coffee machine as well.||The TV is extremely small, but I hardly have any time to switch it on.||My room is facing the Wedding Chapel, also a well known café next door (Banta Café). It is a instagramable spot so you can just walk over from the resort, it is about 5 mins walk.||The hotel has a big landscape Swimming Pool, but with many room inventory, the pool is always busy with lots of children. Nonetheless it is fun to hang out. If you prefer a quiet place to chill, they do have extensive beach deck and umbrellas where it is mostly adults.||The watersports centre has lots of activities and it is competitively priced. I was a little upset of the operating hours due to the tide, and they should have at least some communications to all their guests. The watersports centre only operate from 1500 hours to 1600 hours (only 1 hour) as before 1500, it was low tide, and after 1600 the tide comes in … so we only have 1 hour to do the watersports which is not ideal.||The breakfast was phenomenal, with 3 restaurants to choose from. This is one of the highlights. You can choose the Western Restaurant for breakfast, Japanese Restaurant for breakfast or a Casual Dining (a mixture and good for family and kids).||Parking is chargeable at 1000 Yen per stay. You can go in and out of the carpark with the ticket. The carpark is unsheltered just opposite the hotel. ||The stay experience is absolutely phenomenal. I would highly recommend this...

In our inaugural visit to Okinawa Honto or main island, my wife and I stayed overnight at the hotel that is located on the north-west of the island. After picking up the Times rented car at the airport, we drove along the Route 58 with a stopover for dinner at the Grilled Fukugyu Restaurant in American Village. We checked-in past 10pm after leaving the car at P1, the external parking lot across the road, right opposite the hotel. The parking ticket is handed over to the Reception for reissuance that allowed for multiple entries that was not used. The parking charge is 1,000 Yen per night with no discount for One Harmony members, as well. As expected, the hotel is well decorated with lights, both externally and internally, since it is Christmas. The hotel is beautiful, welcoming, and a sheer delight to behold. After dropping off the bags, we came down to explore the hotel and take the night shots of the building, pool, and surrounding areas. The room size was adequate and the ocean can be viewed from the balcony. The white pyjamus was enticing and nice when put on and is made of soft cotton. The bed was very comfortable, and the water pressure from the shower was strong and powerful. After a restful night, we had buffet breakfast at the Brasserie "Verdemar" when the casual buffet "Hana Hana" was closed. As expected, the buffet was great, served with quality food which we enjoyed. There is no opportunity to swim at the pool or partake in any activities as the check-out time is at 12noon and we planned to cover the Churaumi Acquarium, Kouri island, and other places of interests in the north island before we head south to Naha City. We tested the water at the white sandy beach and it was cold, indeed, although we did bring our swim wear, just in case we can go into the water in winter! After we had checked out, we realised my jacket was left behind in the closet. We were grateful that we need not detour when one the staff was able to hand the jacket to the reception at the sister Hotel JAL City Naha, where we will be staying for 2 nights. Well, another visit in the summer beckons to really enjoy what the hotel and facilities has to offer, although the hotel could consider opening up the internal pool or install heaters to the external pool to enliven the hotel during winter. There are two lovely churches on the left and right of the hotel, but only for external...