Denpaku Hotel Akakina
So in my research for this adventure I at first only found quite pricey, luxurious style accommodation, slightly dated older style places, other minshukus etc and then I discovered DENPAKU. I immediately fell in love with what they were doing, and the simple, classic, minimalistic designs of their premises.
Denpaku’s philosophy is to ‘stay like a local’, in which they have taken traditional Amami folk houses (kominka) and buildings and have given them new life by maintaining or refurbishing most of the original exterior, whilst the interiors have been refreshed.
They only have accommodation on two of the Amami Islands, Amami Oshima, its offshoot Kakeromajima and the island of Tokunoshima.
On Amami Oshima, they do have one luxury property THE BEACHFRONT MIJORA, however we choose not to stay there due to our budget. I really wished to stay at one of their Kominka properties on Amami Oshima however they were all sold out (however we did so on Tokunoshima).
Instead we stayed at Denpaku Hotel Akakina. Originally the local supermarket of the town , when the building closed to make way for a larger grocery store down the road, Denpaku desired to still have it live on as a place where the community can gather. Upstairs are 9 rooms, tastefully redone in bright, minimalistic modern decor including the bathroom (great shower pressure which I love!) and downstairs on the ground floor is the “Magun Shokudo” where one can enjoy traditional cuisine at their restaurant (days open vary), community performances/town gatherings etc and a tiny boutique showcasing local handmade produce and artisan crafts.
WELCOME TO DENPAKU
The bright yellow Noren curtains with the Denpaku logo are simple and eyecatching, and can be found at the entrance of each of their properties. Whilst we were exploring the local area, we stumbled across two other Denpaku Kominka simply by spotting the bright yellow curtains swaying in the breeze
Our room for our nights on Amami Oshima, spacious enough for two people with a great little work station, a spacious bathroom, and outside all the rooms is a long communal table with books and magazines, and where we would eat our breakfast from the local grocery store. Around the corner from the long table (not in the photo) are microwaves and toasters you can use too.
MAGUN SHOKUDO
On our last night, we simply decided to eat at the local restaurant downstairs as we didn’t want to drive. Was delighted to find such tasty fresh dishes with amazing local produce. Though because we are pigs, we do wish it could have been a little bigger portions.
