Nobu Ryokan Malibu

Nobu Ryokan Malibu occupies a former 1950s motel on Carbon Beach, between the Pacific Coast Highway and the sand. It opened in 2017 as the first property in the Nobu Ryokan collection, with 16 rooms and suites on two floors, all with a king bed. The building was the Casa Malibu Inn, a modest motel that operated for more than 60 years before a renovation of about three years turned it into a Japanese-inspired inn.

The place

The address is 22752 Pacific Coast Highway, on the stretch of Malibu known as Carbon Beach. The property sits between the highway and the water, a few steps from the Nobu Malibu restaurant, which is a separate business under the same name.

The beachfront rooms face the Pacific directly. Others look onto the garden or the ocean at an angle. The motel's long, low footprint along the shore dates from its original use, and the two-storey layout keeps most rooms close to the sand.

The concept

The name refers to the ryokan, the traditional Japanese inn, a type that emerged in the 1600s. Studio PCH and Montalba Architects led the redesign, with a Japanese-influenced look adapted to a California beach setting. Dezeen covered the opening in May 2017.

The 16 rooms fall into three families. Beachfront rooms run from 300 to 685 square feet, ocean rooms from 317 to 530 square feet, and garden rooms are listed separately. Several categories exist within each, which is how a 16-key hotel ends up with a dozen different room types. The site had been bought in 2007 by software entrepreneur Larry Ellison, and the owners named in the press at opening also include Robert De Niro, Nobu Matsuhisa and producer Meir Teper.

The hotel presents bathing as part of the stay, with a package called The Art of Bathing that it describes as inspired by onsen tradition. Other packages cover surfing, a sunset sake tasting and a 90-minute wellness treatment.

Dining & wellness

There is no restaurant inside the hotel. Nobu Malibu, run by chef Nobu Matsuhisa, sits just above the shoreline next door, and guests get preferred reservations through the concierge. In-room dining and customised menus are also offered.