A Night Less Ordinary: Benesse House

Nov 16 2012

In this weekly series, we scour the world in search of the most weird and wonderful hotels. From cave hotels to converted prisons, capsule pods to underwater guestrooms, you can expect only the unexpected. This week, Benesse House in Kagawa, Japan.

What’s the gimmick? Built by the celebrated Japanese architect Tadao Ando, Benesse House in Kagawa, Japan, opened in 1995 and has continued to evolve since. The building itself serves as a museum for the modern art collection of Japanese multimillionaire, Nobuko Fukutake. The dozen or so rooms available form part of the museum itself. In a setting that hovers between James Bond in Dr no and the TV series The Prisoner, your stay here is bound to be one of the best memories of your trip.

Why stay? One great advantage of staying at Benesse is that, once the visitors have left for the day, the building is at your disposal and you can wander freely among the artworks that decorate its walls. In fact, to reach the restaurant (featuring a painting by Basquiat) from your room, you have to pass through the museum. Works include such internationally renowned artists as Giacometti, Jasper Johns, Sam Francis, Jackson Pollock and David Hockney, and some of the art is exhibited in the open air, taking guests down to the beach, where there is a Jacuzzi.

The Wow Factor: Usable at night, the Jacuzzi faces an extraordinary desert-like volcanic island, making for a mysterious and enigmatic setting. Benesse House Spa is also available, which holistic natural therapies which use the power of nature to heal and promote harmony throughout every cell of the body. The treatments include aroma therapy using essential plant oils carefully selected by our therapists, thalassotherapy utilising Naoshima’s Inland Sea climate and the richness of the ocean, and stone therapy, which transfers the energy of natural stones to your body and mind.

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