Bella Vista Spa and Marina Onomichi: Overview
Perched partway up a mountain between Onomichi and Tomonoura, and looking over the Seto Inland Sea, the Bella Vista Spa and Marina has as much to see inside as it does outside. The hotel also has a marina on the Seto Inland Sea, which serves as a base for Setouchi Seaplanes and the cruise ship Guntu. Originally built in 1973 for visitors to the nearby local shipyard, the Bella Vista Spa and Marina reopened in 2007 as a luxury hotel, spa, and wedding venue.
Along with designing the hotel’s unique Ribbon Chapel and Erretegia restaurant, architect Nakamura Hiroshi was involved in the hotel’s renovation. The floor, walls, and minimalist furniture of each room are made of wood, and all of the 45 hotel rooms at the Bella Vista Spa have an expansive view of the sea.
Perhaps most impressive is the Maisonette Spa Suite, which Nakamura created by joining three rooms between two floors, giving the suite an impressive ceiling height of five meters. The room also boasts a lavish bathroom made of bedrock, with an open view of the sea.
In fact, the sea is almost a part of the Bella Vista itself. The terrace at the Bella Vista Spa, called The Deck, has a decorative infinity pool positioned so that it appears to flow directly into the sea. The design of The Deck perfectly obscures the slope of the mountain and the other surroundings—everything between guests and the ocean. The blue mosaic tiles of the infinity pool begin in the hotel’s central hallway, and run from the entrance all the way out to The Deck, creating another link between indoors and outdoors. The Deck has two sunken, square-shaped seating areas designed to hide nearby visual distractions to help guests soak up the Setouchi scenery.