Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) has announced the opening of ANA InterContinental Appi Kogen Resort. It is the first luxury resort in Tohoku, Japan.
With the opening of this hotel, the Appi Kogen precinct is now complete with three IHG Hotels & Resorts properties following the rebrand of ANA Crowne Plaza Resort Appi Kogen and ANA Holiday Inn Resort Appi Kogen in December 2021.
Location and Design
Set upon stunning snowscapes, renowned by locals as ‘miracle silky snow’, Appi Kogen is the largest-scale ski resort in Japan’s northeastern Tohoku region and accessible in just over two hours from Tokyo on the Shinkansen bullet train. Guests will immerse in the rich beauty of Appi and the nearby Hachimantai region, offering picturesque snowscapes in Winter and lush greenery and white birch forests in the Summer.
Each touchpoint, from arrival to departure, has been thoughtfully curated to evoke a sense of place and a connection to the surrounding nature, including a design-led darkened hallway, which represents the start of a journey through an abundant forest and leading to the ‘Dragon Eye’ – a stunning art piece based on how the snow melts at Kagami pond, near the summit of Mount Hachimantai. The image illustrates the raw beauty created by nature as it leads guests to the Club Lounge.
Related: IHG to open Intercontinental Bali Sanur Resort
Accommodations
ANA InterContinental Appi Kogen Resort features 38 all-Club InterContinental rooms and suites, each with show stopping views of the Appi ski slopes and landscape of Hachimantai. The memorable design features include Japanese traditional paper – called Washi – used to adorn the bedheads to represent the pillowy elements of cloud or snow, as well as large floor rugs with various designs to represent clouds, morning glow and the dragon eye motif. Inside the guest bathrooms, rock and white wood evoke a sense of tranquil nature, while large bathroom windows overlook the ski slopes, giving guests the sense of soaking in an outdoor hot spring. On the ground floor, an outdoor space gives a sense of freedom to sit and relax with a refreshing beverage.
The Presidential Suite covers an area of 300 square meters and boasts a floor-to-ceiling corner window facing the ski slopes. The suite also includes specialty sake, kitchen, large dining area that can also be used as meeting space, private office and a viewing terrace.
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Dining
Guests will continue their journey through art into the SHIRATSUYU restaurant, with impressive pieces throughout the interiors. Traditional local craftworks are on display throughout SHIRATSUYU as well as a wall-art of fine woodwork (called Nanbu Sazamekumi Monyouzaiku) produced by Japanese artisans, Nagayama Kogei.
The nature-rich qualities of Appi underpin the restaurant and bars experience inside the resort. SHIRATSUYU is the signature restaurant with a Japanese/French cuisine built on a philosophy of focusing on the ingredients. The culinary team take the ‘farm to table’ concept and enhance it by engaging with the guests to educate them on the origins of the produce – for example, where the seafood is caught off the coast of Iwate – and then asking how they would like their ingredients prepared, in a Japanese or French style. The restaurant offers breakfast, lunch and dinner, highlighting specialty food from the Iwate and Tohoku region.
Japanese bar, MOCCO, located up on the third floor has been designed to evoke a secret hideaway above the mountains and is the ideal place to relax with a wide selection of Japanese whisky and other Japanese spirits.
Facilities
The resort is home to two traditional onsen Japanese baths, the IWA and HINOKI. The baths are made from rock and cypress, offering a modern bathing ritual exclusively for guests. The onsen baths are located on the third floor, where guests have the option to soak outside while snow lightly falls around them as they sit in the revitalizing onsen minerals.
LAVILLA SPA APPI offers treatments ranging from traditional shiatsu massages to facial treatments using Elemis products.
Meanwhile, IHG recently announced that it will open more than 50 luxury and lifestyle hotels in 2022.
Featured image by IHG
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