This is our review of ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort (Maps), visited in May 2026.
ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort (ANAインターコンチネンタル 石垣リゾート) is truly a special choice if you want to experience what it really means to stay at a resort hotel in Ishigaki Island. Based on my stay in a breakfast-included plan in the “2 Single Bed Bay Wing Ocean View” room, I’ll walk you through the comfort of the room, the breakfast, the resort facilities, and the beach experience in detail. If you’re trying to decide where to stay in Ishigaki, this should help you picture the experience much more clearly.
Located along the coast of Ishigaki Island, ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort is one of the island’s signature large-scale luxury resorts. It offers a sense of openness and scale that city hotels simply cannot match. The moment you arrive at the entrance, with the sea shimmering beyond the buildings and the wide sky stretching overhead, you immediately feel your shoulders relax. It becomes clear that this is not just a place to sleep, but a destination where the stay itself is part of the journey.
The resort is made up of four accommodation buildings: Ocean Wing, Coral Wing, Bay Wing, and Club InterContinental. Ocean Wing sits at the center of the resort and offers easy access to the pools and main facilities. It has a lively atmosphere and is convenient, though some areas do show their age. In contrast, the Bay Wing, which opened in 2020, feels fresh, modern, and notably quieter. If you are looking for a more refined and peaceful stay, Bay Wing and Club InterContinental are especially attractive choices. During this visit, I stayed in the Bay Wing, and from the lighting and color palette to the calmness of the hallways, everything felt sophisticated and ideal for an elegant island getaway.
The first thing I noticed when entering the “2 Single Bed Bay Wing Ocean View” room was how beautifully it was designed to let “Ishigaki Blue” take center stage. The interior is not overly decorated; instead, it is carefully arranged so that the view of the sea becomes the room’s true focal point. Beyond the large windows, you can see emerald-green water, lush gardens, and the softly curving shoreline in the distance. Stepping out onto the spacious balcony, with the sea breeze brushing across your face, I found myself lingering there both in the morning and in the evening. For anyone prioritizing an ocean-view hotel in Ishigaki, this view alone is reason enough to stay here.
The beds feature Simmons Beautyrest mattresses, and the sense of support the moment you lie down is excellent. On a southern island vacation, where you tend to spend long hours outdoors, good sleep has a huge impact on the overall quality of the trip, and this room delivers. The room also comes with a Nespresso machine and TWG tea bags, which add a nice touch of luxury to both early mornings and quiet nights. After returning from sightseeing, it felt wonderfully indulgent to make a cup of coffee, sit in the cool air-conditioned room, and gaze out at the sea from the balcony.
The bathroom is another part of the stay that enhances the overall sense of luxury. The amenities are by BYREDO, and their refined fragrance immediately adds a premium feel. The rain shower is gentle and soothing, especially welcome after a day in the sun. There is also a large bathtub spacious enough to fully stretch your legs, making it easy to soak and unwind after walking around the island or spending time at the pool. Some Okinawa resort hotels focus mainly on showers, but at ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort, bath time is very much part of the experience.
One especially convenient feature in the Bay Wing room was the up-to-date in-room entertainment setup. A soundbar provides richer audio, and the television allows you to watch YouTube and Netflix. On Ishigaki, there are evenings when you may not want to go out into town and would rather simply relax at the hotel, and in those moments, this kind of equipment becomes surprisingly valuable. Looking at the sea, enjoying a bath, and then settling in with your favorite show creates exactly the kind of “doing nothing” luxury that a resort stay should offer.
This stay included breakfast, and one of the appealing points of ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort is the range of breakfast options. If you want a lively buffet-style breakfast, Suncoast Café is the place to go. If you prefer a calmer atmosphere and more refined dishes, breakfast in the Club InterContinental Lounge is considered the better choice. For travelers who see hotel breakfast as one of the highlights of the trip, this is the kind of place where you may want to stay several nights just to try both. The buffet has all the cheerful energy you would expect from a tropical resort, while lounge breakfast offers a quieter and more polished morning experience that suits adult travelers especially well.
One of the standout dining venues on the property is SALTIDA. This stylish restaurant showcases local ingredients such as Ishigaki salt and premium local fish like akamachi. It is not just visually sophisticated; it also feels like a thoughtful reinterpretation of the island’s flavors in a modern hotel-dining setting. That balance between a strong sense of place and a refined presentation makes it especially memorable. If you want at least one special meal during your stay, SALTIDA is well worth a visit. Meanwhile, Palette Terrace Lounge offers plenty of vegetable-rich dishes, making it a great option when you are craving something lighter or feel the need to offset the heavier meals that often come with travel. On a tropical holiday, it is easy to lean toward meat, fried dishes, and sweets, so having healthy choices within the resort is a real advantage.
The resort also strongly feels like a self-contained destination. There are five pools in total, including the Sunrise Pool with a waterslide, the more adult-oriented Sunset Pool, an indoor pool, and an exclusive pool for Club guests. You can choose the atmosphere that matches your mood, whether you want an active day in the sun or a more peaceful and elegant poolside experience.
Another major highlight is Maesato Beach, which stretches out right in front of the hotel. It is especially known for the quality of its snorkeling. Because the hotel maintains its own protected area, the coral is preserved, and the marine ecosystem is remarkably beautiful. Even simply looking out over the water, the clarity and shifting shades of blue are striking. For travelers who want easy access to the best of Ishigaki’s sea without having to venture far, this is an ideal setting. There is great value in having such a beautiful stretch of ocean just steps from your room.
Beyond that, the property includes a golf course, a 24-hour gym, a game area where you can enjoy table tennis or mahjong, and even a convenience store called Tingara where purchases can be charged to your room. If you suddenly want a drink or a quick snack, it is incredibly convenient to have everything available on-site. Even without a rental car, the resort is easy to enjoy, and on rainy days it still offers more than enough to keep you occupied.
There are also a few fascinating details that make the resort even more memorable. One of the most interesting is that a Harris’s hawk named Ai-kun patrols the grounds with a handler in the morning and evening to humanely keep crows away. It is the sort of thoughtful solution you only encounter at a large resort that coexists closely with nature.
Accessibility is another strong point. Public buses from the airport go directly to the hotel entrance, and credit card tap payment is available. Ishigaki is often associated with rental car travel, but with the bus and hotel transportation options, arrival and departure days can be very easy and stress-free. For first-time visitors to the island, that convenience adds a lot of peace of mind.
For IHG elite members, including Diamond members, the value can be even greater. Benefits such as complimentary breakfast, 2,000 yen credit, and late checkout are guaranteed. If you already hold elite status, the stay becomes even more rewarding, especially if you are the kind of traveler who likes to make the most of the hotel itself.
Looking back on the stay, my advice would be this: if you want modern luxury and a quieter atmosphere, choose Bay Wing or Club InterContinental. If you value proximity to the pools and main resort facilities, Ocean Wing may be more practical. Also, one thing worth noting is that the resort is very large, and walking between buildings can sometimes mean covering as much as 500 meters. On hot days or when carrying bags, it is smart to request a cart ride rather than walk.
ANA InterContinental Ishigaki Resort is not simply a luxury hotel. It is a place where you can immerse yourself in the sea, sunlight, breeze, food, and spaciousness that define Ishigaki Island. In particular, the room offers a wonderful balance of tranquility, modern design, and beautiful scenery, making it easy to recommend for couples, friends traveling together, or adults seeking a refined resort experience. If you want a hotel stay in Ishigaki that you will genuinely remember, this is a very strong contender. The moment you stand on the balcony in the morning, take a deep breath, and look out over the sea, you will probably think, “I’m so glad I chose this hotel.”
