Hotel La Teada Iriomote

“Lovely Resort”

The hotel was booked for us through a travel agency, so I have no idea what the rate was, but there was nothing to complain about. Though the staff spoke little English, they were all extremely friendly and helpful. The cottage was described as "basic" on our brochure, but we both found it more tha… more

The hotel was booked for us through a travel agency, so I have no idea what the rate was, but there was nothing to complain about. Though the staff spoke little English, they were all extremely friendly and helpful. The cottage was described as "basic" on our brochure, but we both found it more than "basic". It was roomy and had very comfortable facilities. We were fortunate to visit outside of holiday season, so I cannot comment on how busy it might get in season, but found, the restaurant to be excellent, breakfast choice was very good and, though there was a beach within a couple of minutes walk, it was, admittedly, not a beach for swimming. However, I found a rental car essential for the island and this made the towns and beaches easily accessible.

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“Happy with our stay”

We visited during Silver Week which is peak season in Japan and therefore it was impossible to book anything near the north (around Uehara Port) where most of the activities and 'life' takes place. We reluctantly booked La Teada which was one of the few that were still available but located near th… more

We visited during Silver Week which is peak season in Japan and therefore it was impossible to book anything near the north (around Uehara Port) where most of the activities and 'life' takes place. We reluctantly booked La Teada which was one of the few that were still available but located near the South. We were pleasantly surprised by how big, spacious and clean the rooms were. The bathroom was modern, so I think the other reviews are being a bit harsh in terms of calling the interior 'tired and worn' as for this price range it is fine for Iriomote standards. Yes our room also had trees in front of the windows, but I think this is specifically made for privacy. The staff were very nice to us, especially Atsushi-san, the hotel manager who was friendly and extremely helpful in booking a car and tour for us during our stay. He even joined us on his day off on our trip to Pinaisara Falls and was good company. The food in the restaurant is excellent. Dinner (albeit a bit pricey) is good and worth trying at least once. There is one other restaurant nearby (5 mins walk) which serves good simple food for cheaper, but has a nice patio to sit out on. All-in-all we thought we were at a big disadvantage staying in the south but in the end, we could do everything we wanted (you do need a car!) and were happy with our stay here.

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“Quiet!”

We stayed for 3 nights in July. There is free pick up from the port. Journey takes 5 mins. Staff speak minimal English but enough to get by. The room itself was basic but spacious. Very little natural light, no WiFi in rooms, only at reception. Bed was comfortable, bathroom was small but func… more

We stayed for 3 nights in July. There is free pick up from the port. Journey takes 5 mins. Staff speak minimal English but enough to get by. The room itself was basic but spacious. Very little natural light, no WiFi in rooms, only at reception. Bed was comfortable, bathroom was small but functional. Breakfast is small and is generally catered toward the local market with soup, rice, savory dishes and pickles . There is bread, yoghurt and fruit. You can walk into town which takes about 20 mins but there is not much in town. The day we arrived on a Sunday, the hotel restaurant was closed so the hotel recommended a restaurant which was 5 mins away and was very good. We ended eating there twice. We did eat at the hotel restaurant which was a set Japanese menu. This was also very good and well presented but was at least twice the price of the restaurant the previous night. We hired the hotel bikes for a day (no gears) and cycled around and found some idyllic, most beautiful and deserted beaches that I have ever seen. Ohara, the port town is nothing special, we ate in the cafe in town at lunchtime but it is not open in the evenings. There is also a small supermarket and a nice local gift shop. The port has a shop and that was the only place that sold ice cream. The only ATM is at the post office. We used the public bus to get to the north of the island and you need the hotel to translate the times and stops for you. However, the buses only run 4 times a day. The only way to see the island is to rent a car but do this before you get onto the island. I would fully recommend to rent a car. The car rental place at Ohara spoke minimal English and when we asked if we could rent a car, they said it was full, but every day we went by, there was always loads of car at the back. There is loads of trips and info at the hotel, but it is all in a Japanese. We tried to visit the Iriomote wildlife center, but when we got there, it was shut on a Monday. Star sand beach in the North was nice and you can snorkel off the beach. We also went on a boat trip to the mangroves which was nice but the tour was in a Japanese. Some very kind people in front us translated the key/informative parts for us. The hotel itself looks like there was a pool but has now been filled/grassed up. There is an onsen which we used. It is new but not all the pools/areas were open. Overall, hotel was clean but to be honest overpriced for what it was. We then went onto to Ishigaki for 5 nights and looking back we should have spent all our time in Ishigaki as there was more to do and see.

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