Name: Le Lotus Bleu
Address: 907-0242 Okinawa, Ishigaki Island, Shiraho 148, Japan, Ishigaki, Ishigaki, Ishigaki, 907-0242, Japan
Rating: 9

Air conditioning

Smoking areas

Smoke-free property

Garden

Terrace

General

Non-smoking rooms

Family room

Rooms

Free Wi-Fi

Internet

English

French

Japanese

Languages Spoken

Sun Deck

Recreation

Free parking nearby

Free Parking on Premises

Parking

Family/Kid Friendly

Kids

Pets Not Allowed

Pets

Location

At the hotel

Shiraho Beach

Painushima Ishigaki Airport

Hateruma Airport

Le Lotus Bleu

Ishigaki

Falling in love with Japan since 1989, I've been there 31 times. My husband working with Japanese for 30 years, I decided to learn the language. I have to fill out a fictitious date because it's not possible otherwise. We spent 3 nights and 4 days at the Blue Lotus in December 2018. We had the house for ourselves. If I write now it's because a lady asks me for the address on a forum. No problem giving it because we loved our stay. I only travel in Japanese and so many friends have asked me to guide them to this country outside the norm. The beach is not very future-oriented but we don't look forward to it and it didn't bother us. I laugh when I read This is a trip without lights in the streets, not a trip to avoid a parking lot, I think it's okay to give it away because we loved our stay.

Reserving without hesitation for those who want to get out of the way

This place is simply amazing.
It is super clean and has everything necessary; it is in a very quite location right out of the main Ishigaki city. 
Maiko, the owner, provides immediate and great support for everything you need.
Would come back for sure!

Great location in a quite place

We spent 3 nights in October 2019. The IKEA furniture and the startified floor take a lot of the charm of the traditional Japanese house. The direct environment without lighting at night and unattended parking away from the guesthouse are not mentioned nor the unpracticeable beach. I don't understand the good notes at all???. A shot of painting wouldn't hurt. Having a big cockroach in the room.

Not at all convinced

We stayed for 4 nights in July and we were for the most part in a typhoon. Therefore we did not get to see the sea at it's best. However once you accepted the situation, it was quite a dramatic experience getting caught up in the deluge! The villagers were very kind telling us which eateries were open, as many close up in the typhoon.
We were able to have massage and yoga classes at the Lotus Blue which made up for not being able to go to the beach. We explored Ishigaki City which was a bus ride away and it had a  charming covered shopping street to while away the time, where we bought souvenirs.
On our last day, Patrick, our host took us on a tour around the island and we enjoyed the wild nature of the northern coast and the serene Kabira bay where we took a touristy glass boat ride, which turned out to be very entertaining, due to the hilarious excitement of the captain of the boat and we saw a giant turtle and clown fish, despite the visibility being a bit murky due to the weather. The trip was well worth it and we had lunch and the best soft serve fresh ice cream on the way back.
Before we departed, we visited the Sunday market in the village and they sold some delicious local foods, I recommend the purple potato and banana crepe!
The House was very serene and the rooms at the inn was very spacious and comfortable. Patrick and Maiko were great hosts and we were sad to leave the idyllic village of Shiraho.

Beautiful retreat in an unspoilt village

We enjoyed our days at „Le Lotus bleu“ very much. The house and the rooms have a great atmosphere, it feels like home. Patrick and Maiko are very kind and helpful and gave us very good advices for exploring the island. The breakfast is very fresh and healthy. We loved Patrick‘s Yoga class and Maikos massage.  
It‘s good to have a car to explore the island.  If you are Swiss or German don‘t forget to get your driving license traslated. 
We would love to visit the island and to stay at „Le lotus bleu“ again. Next time longer. 


A small paradise! 

Beautiful place around 15 minutes drive from Ishigaki town. We stayed 5 nights in a big family room. During our stay the room was never cleaned nor did we get any clean towels. We did not ask for it either but I would expect to at least get clean towels after a few nights. For breakfast you have to pay extra: fresh fruit with cereal, nice bread, smoothie, very nice but the same every time. The hosts were '' professionally friendly" but we found that they were more interested in their french speaking guests. All in all a nice stay.

Great stay but even greater if you are French

We had a very pleasant time at the Blue Lotus, we recommend yoga classes in the morning with Patrick, the owner of the place. The house is sublime, it is a haven of peace, an ancient home from the Kyoto area that goes back to Ishigaki! The landlords, Patrick and Maiko are charming and it is a real happiness to be able to live a few days in their beautiful place. The village of Shiraho is quiet and there is a delicious beach ready restaurant nestled in a secret garden, to discover absolutely. It is better to rent a car to go around the very beautiful Ishigaki. Otherwise, it is possible to make excursions with Patrick who perfectly knows all the most beautiful places. The Blue Lotus is a rare and precious place.

A perfect stay

My husband and I just came back from a 15 day trip from the Yaeyama islands.  The trip was inspired from our last trip to Miyakojima (read my other hotel review) just 2 months ago (we only stayed 3 nights there and found it totally insufficient and decided to come back almost right away!)  Given such a long stay, we had no problem committing to the minimum 6 day requirement of Le Lotus Bleu.  One important tip:  We booked through Airbnb but later found out the hosts run their own website and the prices given in there were significantly lower.  Reason being that Airbnb charges 10% service fees and another 3% exchange rate since I paid using a credit card not issued in Japan (not to mention that my bank charges me another 1% since I didn’t use their foreign exchange service).  Airbnb has recently changed their foreign exchange policy (which I seriously hate and make me unwilling to use their service unless absolutely necessary) and you are no longer allowed to request them to book in the local currency (they simply do their hand waving when you write or call them).  The only caveat is that you will have to pay in cash if you book directly with the owners.  I am surprised that nobody in the Tripadvisor community has mentioned about this important booking information before.

And about this amazing traditional Japanese house, the first thing to note is its wonderful hosts.  Even before getting there, Maiko-san has helped me in making a complicated hotel reservation on Hateruma island (see details in another hotel review).  The Hateruma trip would not have been possible without her participation!  Given 6 days on the island, we were quite laid back, visiting places at a leisurely pace.  We rented a car but would imagine going to places by bus plausible.  Route 4 and 10 of the city bus run between the airport and the ferry terminal with a few stops in Shiraho, a small community where Le Lotus Bleu is located.  The closest stop is Shiraho Shogakko mae (front of Shiraho primary school) and the ryokan is 5 min on foot from there toward the sea.  The bus charges according to the segments you take but if you opt for a one day ride, it is 1000 yen on all routes, if not a five day ride is 2000 yen.  Information can be found on Kotsu-okinawa website.  If you rent a car, go to a broker’s website (okitour) instead of the individual car rental companies (the broker’s site is in Japanese but one can easily use google translate to help make sense of it) to find the best deal (thanks to Patrick for this site, the price difference was huge.) Le Lotus Bleu provides parking nearby on an open parking lot.  You will need a flashlight at night to walk back to the ryokan (2 min).  In any case, a flashlight is a good equipment to have on the island as streets and alleys are not well illuminated.

Le Lotus Bleu uses the upper floor (previously used as weaving workshops and storage) as its guest quarters, the lower floor as yoga and breakfast area.  This centennial Japanese quaint structure is absolutely beautiful and spacious with plenty of open area to relax and meditate.  Our hosts live next door in an old theatre house just opposite to the guest quarters, a big plus if you need any help from them.  Maiko and Patrick, a Franco-Japanese couple who have traveled the world and decided to live close to nature acquired this gorgeous place, refurbished it, made it their home and a home-away-from-home for the traveling community.  Do note that they will not service the room during your stay but do provide cleaning supplies in a public area, and laundry machines are provided for free if you need to wash the room towels and your own laundry.  Simple amenities are also provided in the en-suite bathroom (we stayed in the Hibiscus room).  You may want to bring/buy some extra towels if you plan to visit the beach.  The biggest shop in Ishigaki is San-A (around half way between the airport and downtown) where you can buy food and all sorts of things at prices good even for locals.  There is also an Aeon MaxValu supermarket in the adjacent shopping mall that opens 24 hours.

The Shiraho community has a few nice family restaurants, inexpensive but then no excitement there.  However, two addresses are worth mentioning.  Banchan (旬家ばんちゃん)which offers exceptional breakfast and lunch, and Shiraho ie café (Shiraho 家 café) which boasts a lovely tatami room overlooking a garden.  On the island, restaurants are more easily found closed than open.  Island people practice a non-fixed holiday policy so they are free to close up any day during the week, and they can also close the restaurant earlier than stated when they have sold out their food earlier than expected – and this can be 2 hours before their official closing hour, beware!

With the car, we visited almost everywhere on Ishigaki island.  The following are places we particularly like: Hirakubozaki and Tamatorizaki Observatory Point for their breathtaking views; Sukuji Beach for its fine sand and seclusion (Yonehara and Sunset are also nice but are more visited.  Sunset Beach charges 400 yen for parking unless you park further away, the others are free.); Mirumiru Hompo Honten also for its view and its delicious fresh milk (but surprisingly not its ice cream: I found the more commercialized Blue Seal smoother in texture) and Ryukyu no ji (琉球の爺) for its coconut crab (yashi gani in Japanese, it offers the best crab butter than any other crabs in my opinion).  Remember to call and book the crab in advance before you go.

Tranquility off-centre with wonderful hosts + island info and booking tips

We had a lovely week there. The house is as beautiful as in the photos and very nice because equipped with all the necessary comforts. There is nothing missing for your pleasure and our well-being is Patrick and Maiko's main concern. The yoga class is perfect for getting started (our case) where to improve. Maiko's cooking lessons are a time to relax and share. You become an expert in tamagoyaki and Asian seasoning because Maiko makes us try everything and gives us her little tips. The ideal starting point for a visit to the island, the blue lotus is a place where you want to come back someday.

A great place to explore Japan

Fly to Ishigaki, open yourself, stay at Le Lotus Bleu, rest, enjoy and feel alive !

If you are after an affordable place to stay, high tourism industry standards or an exotic housing experience please DO NOT stay at the Lotus Bleu. Of course this place offers all of the above but please leave it to those who care for diversity and a genuine cultural exchange. Having lived on expatriation ourselves we quickly read the tenants' motivations through their daily endeavors and strong service orientation. After living in busy cities and abroad Maiko (native from Japan) and Patrick (native from France) elected to run a guest house in the Okinawa archipelago. After years of house hunting they found this unique place: a traditional mountain house from another Japanese island a wealthy businessman had moved to Ishigaki for his own luxury. They refurbished it magnificently and received their first guests six years ago. Meanwhile they built strong ties with the local community where they now raise their children.
We benefited from their unique Ishigaki expertise: their detailed insights on beaches, lookouts, snorkeling spots, restaurants... all revealed precious and very accurate. They saved us a lot of time and kept us busy for an entire week leaving enough for our next journey to Ishigaki ...
The Lotus Bleu offers various activities and we decided to take a Japanese cooking class with Maiko: preparing our own Bento box was great fun, delicious and an opportunity to decipher some of the cultural codes and secrets of the local Japanese food and culture. Your own attitude commands what you'll get out the Lotus Bleu and that is truly a worthwhile effort ! For instance, in a very humble manner Patrick freely offered to turn his own morning routine into a Yoga master class. I had been in need for two weeks and he allowed me to practice my art on his own guitar. After daring to ask Maiko, she let us prepare our own breakfasts into the main kitchen. Completing our deficient gear, Patrick connected us to an English speaking fisherman who diversified in snorkeling tours. This was one of the finest snorkeling experiences I had so far (worth if not better than what I already enjoyed in Bora-Bora, Hawaii, Bali, Phuket or Charm-al-Cheik and big bang for the $).
We had been touring Asia for a few weeks already and were pleased to find out the Lotus Bleu features a free laundry room for its guests. This is a real plus considering the amount of sweat and sea salt you will juice out of your tired body in the heart of the Japanese summer. Very few hotels offer that, even in Japan. The rooms are traditional (tatamis and futons), spacious, air conditioned and come with private amenities.

We enjoyed a few ryokans and often left with the frustration of having missed something out of the cultural density that comes with this type of accommodation. The Lotus Bleu bridges that gap for a fraction of the cost if you are ready to reveal some of your human nature.

I strongly recommend the Lotus Bleu.

PS: This place is in growing demand and we booked early (6 months ahead of our stay).


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