Ishigakijima Hotel Cucule

Very good access to the center. The view from the rooftop terrace is also good. There is a diving equipment drying room. You can also keep your luggage when staying on a remote island for consecutive nights at intervals. Breakfast is also available, which can be used as a base for diving and exploring remote islands. Accommodation necessary and sufficient.

The location is very convenient and the service is well-equipped, just a few minutes walk from the remote island terminal to the city center. The facilities in the room are a bit old but very clean and comfortable to use. The excellent value for money includes breakfast, drinks during the day and evening, and a sense of openness with a rooftop chair where you can relax and admire the night sky. In addition, it was very helpful to be able to keep my luggage during intermittent consecutive nights (tours including overnight stays on remote islands from Ishigaki Island). Free sake from 15:00 to 21:00 ... is kind of a bug. There is no need to reserve those places in the room as there is a drying area for diving equipment at the back entrance on the 1st floor, so diving enthusiasts will feel they can use the room more than they imagined. It may vary from room to room, but the room I stayed in doesn't have any kind of balcony, so it's probably a measure against them. On the other hand, I was concerned about the comfort of not having to bring wet equipment into the room. There are no luxurious swimming pools, dining facilities or room service, but I thought it was packed with "necessary and sufficient" elements for those who want to enjoy Ishigaki Island itself. Even if the island's activities are divided into ocean purposes and walking around town or driving around the island with several people, hybrid support is available.

This is my second time in Ishigaki, I was last here 12 months ago and stayed at the Vessel Inn on that occasion. This time around I was attracted to staying in the middle of town and since the Cucule seemed to enjoy generally good reviews I thought it looked like a good choice Unfortunately I am somewhat at odds with the general enthusiasm that most reviewers lavish on this hotel. Whilst I wholly agree that the staff are friendly (but that’s also true of most hospitality establishments in Japan) there are simply too many shortcomings. I spend a lot of time in Japan (at least 8 weeks in each of the past two years) and have stayed in countless hotels. The vast majority offer a good standard and are well organised, but this hotel left me cold. So much so that I felt I had to write a review, something I rarely do these days. Specifically: - Bathroom very cramped with awful set “set up” for diverting water between the sink and the shower - Furniture looks like it came out of IKEA five years ago and has been well used in the interim - The 6th floor terrace which looks nice in the publicity pics is a dump. Just one very uncomfortable sun lounger and not even any cushions on the lounge furniture. Appalling contrast with what they show on the promo pictures - Carpets and walls are marked and stained. You can see where the edges of the wall covering have been re-glued to the wall and painted. Lots of stains on the carpets especially in the stairwells. This is not a three star hotel. It’s a two star at best and in need of decorating and re-carpeting. - I was on the third floor which is shared with a child’s nursery (weird set up). Forget coming back from the beach and having a nice peaceful lay down and rest in the late afternoon. You will hear the kids voices. - At check in I was told my first clean would be after two nights stay. I expected clean towels hanging from my door in a plastic bag after the first night. Standard in just about every hotel that doesn’t provide a daily cleaning service. I had to ask for clean towels and the request didn’t go down well. The cleaning became even more bizarre when, the following day (the day I had been told at check-in would be the cleaning day) I found clean towels hanging on the door but no room clean. I was paying about 18,000 yen a night and very disappointing that the hotel can’t provide a decent cleaning service. My room wasn’t cleaned in the 4 nights I stayed. - Other things I didn’t like included the mattress which, is absolutely solid. The buzzing noise from the AC or the sound of guests in adjacent rooms, the weak wifi signal. Breakfast is adequate but no more. I could go to a lower level of detail but you get the idea, there are so many things that taken together just make this a bad choice of hotel and suggest an amateurish management team running the place. Do yourself a favour and give this hotel a miss. As I mentioned above I stayed in the Vessel last year and I regret enormously I didn’t return to that hotel.