The solo traveller programmes will take place at the urban onsen hotel Hoshinoya Tokyo; the remote retreat Hoshinoya Taketomi Island and another island location Hoshinoya Okinawa
Activities include rooftop Kenjutsu sessions (a swordsmanship workshop), garden tours and breathwork lessons
Nutrition will play a key role at each of the three properties with one following the principles of the “five tastes”: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, spicy; five colours (red, yellow, green, white and black); and five cooking methods – raw, boiled, grilled, steamed and fried
The programmes are designed for those seeking personal enrichment
Three of Hoshino Resorts’ luxury properties in Japan are offering discounted packages to solo travellers seeking personal enrichment.
The three hotels are managed under the hospitality group’s top-tier luxury brand Hoshinoya and they include the urban onsen hotel Hoshinoya Tokyo; the remote retreat Hoshinoya Taketomi Island and another island location Hoshinoya Okinawa.
Masato Hirose, GM of Hoshinoya Okinawa told
Spa Business: “Hoshinoya has always welcomed and encouraged solo travellers. While we have offered special single-use rates at all six of our domestic Japanese properties for a long time, in recent years, we've noticed a growing interest in solo travel.
“With greater demand for these rates and facilities, we were prompted to develop these new programmes,” Hirose added. “Each trip has a unique and creative theme and we've designed plans with different approaches to ensure guests can fully enjoy their chosen theme.”
Hoshinoya TokyoIn the centre of Tokyo, this hotel is offering a package called the Mindful Solo Onsen Stay, which includes a two-day, one-night stay.
This trip provides guests with access to the indoor-outdoor bathing experience at the hotel, which features waters from the city’s mineral-rich Otemachi Onsen and a vertical view of the sky.
A Kenjutsu practice session (the art of swordsmanship) takes place in the mornings on a rooftop, 160-metres above ground, offering panoramic views.
A balanced and artistically displayed Japanese meal is prepared for breakfast with seasonal ingredients. The meal will follow the principles of the “five tastes”: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, spicy and five colours (red, yellow, green, white and black). It will also feature five cooking methods – raw, boiled, grilled, steamed and fried.
This hotel is a modern, high-rise hotel in a business district, with traditional Japanese ryokan design elements and customs. The Otemachi Onsen that feeds the waters of the hotel’s bathing facilities is a salty hot spring containing seawater and seaweed minerals.
The price starts at 87,470 JPY (US$598, €509, £440) per person, including tax and service charges.
The single-use rate for just the room (without the package) starts at 71,740 JPY (US$491, €418, £361) per night for solo travellers.
Hoshinoya Taketomi IslandThe island retreat at this property is called A Peaceful Solo Stay for Deep Sleep on a Remote Island. It includes a three-day, two-night stay and is designed to restore guests’ bodies and minds to their natural rhythms.
The trip includes a tofu hot pot breakfast, infused with ginger and Piyashi (pepper from the island), known for its sleep-promoting properties.
Guests can enjoy the local garden, learn about the historical medicinal plants grown there (“nuchigusā”) and enjoy “neebui tea” – made from sleep-inducing grass.
A series of breathwork sessions will take place at sunrise (“Yonnaa breathing”) and sunset (“Tinnuu breathing”) to promote relaxation. Guests will also have an in-room chair hammock within their accommodations, for napping.
The price starts at 109,218 JPY (US$747, €636, £549) per person, including tax and service charges.
The single-use rate for just the room (without the package) 49,610 JPY (US$339, €289, £249) per night for solo travellers.
Hoshinoya OkinawaThe three-day, two-night trip on offer at this coastal property is called the Beauty and Wellness All-Inclusive Solo Journey.
Nutrition plays an important role during the programme, due to the local Ryuku gastronomic philosophy, embraced by the hotel, that medicine and food are the same thing.
Natural spa treatments will also be on offer, using local ingredients for therapies.
Guests will also have the chance to take part in cultural activities such as Ryuku dancing or learn sanshin music from a master. Horseback-riding, a tour of the gardens and stargazing floating bathing sessions will also be available.
The price starts at 199,700 JPY (US$1,366, €1,163, £1,004) per person, including tax and service charges.
The single-use rate for just the room (without the package) starts at 48,400 JPY (US$331, €282, £243) per night for solo travellers.
