Hoshinoya Okinawa

Hoshinoya Okinawa sits behind a curving stone wall modelled on a gusuku, and the hotel runs along a kilometre of natural shoreline at Gima, which it notes is now rare on Okinawa. The 100 rooms come with an earth-floor dining area, and the chef's dishes can be delivered there to finish in the evening. The pool is cut into the cliff in four depths and stays open around the clock. For a sea swim, walk ten minutes to Nirai Beach.

The hotel keeps the pool at a comfortable temperature through the year, so a swim at dusk works in February too, and in winter it sets out lanterns and an apéritif bar beside the water for the sunset. Horse riding runs year-round in a part of Yomitan where the Ryukyu court once kept its horses. The drive from the airport takes about 60 minutes by expressway. The Cape Zanpa road and the quiet Yomitan lanes are close for riders; ask the hotel about bike storage, since it publishes nothing on it.