Renovated from a historic 1950s era motel and named after traditional Japanese inns, Nobu Ryokan offers a unique blend of Japanese hospitality and Californian coastline. Located on the shores of Malibu’s Carbon Beach, the hotel’s naturally stained teak and ipe woods ease the eyes and mind with their warm, earthy tones and clean, linear lines.

Guests are drawn up the wide stone steps. They pass through floor to ceiling teak and glass doors that are found throughout the property to arrive at a reception lounge with artfully placed boulders, a rock wall, beamed ceilings and a glass and bronze stair to the upper level. Furnishings are comfortable and welcoming with thoughtful fabrics in natural linen tones. The reception opens to a lush garden designed in the Nihon Teien style interpreted with native California plant materials and species. Its’ meandering paths lead visitors to their guest rooms, to an intimate enclave with a grand outdoor board-formed concrete fireplace, or to the inn’s central ipe wood deck with its’ expansive views of the Malibu pier to the west, the Palos Verdes peninsula to the east and the endless sea to the south.

Guest suites are defined by thoughtful Japanese inspired design elements, and while they have shared sensibilities and palettes, no two rooms are the same, providing for a unique experience for each visitor. Some rooms hold modern interpretations of tatami mats and shoji screens and each has a board-formed concrete fireplace. Some rooms have private courtyards and balconies where visitors can enjoy the sounds and sights of the stunning Pacific Ocean.

Bathrooms offer spa-like amenities with open showers, custom teak soaking tubs surrounded by sea pebbles, and walls and floors wrapped in honed limestone. Many bathrooms are illuminated by skylights that fill the spaces with easy beach light.

Every last detail has been carefully designed and artfully crafted from the knuckle joints of the exterior teak siding to the painstakingly selected warm tones of the custom colored board-formed concrete walls. This project is a true collaboration between, the design team, the owner, and the craftspeople tasked with construction. Reflections of nature in the building’s architecture and blurred lines between indoor and outdoor spaces culminate in a profound and serene experience. Nobu Ryokan embodies the Nobu brand’s concept fusing together Japanese architecture and modern California living. It is a true destination.

Material Used :
1. Duratherm Doors & Windows
2. Infratech USA, Heaters
3. Dornbracht, Plumbing Fixtures
4. Board Formed Concrete
5. Teak Siding and Flooring
6. Ipe Deck Flooring
7. Limestone Slab

Located along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, Nobu Ryokan is a completely renovated 1950s-era beach motel that combines the minimalist aesthetic of traditional Japanese inns with the cool elegance of the California coastline. A simple, veiled entrance opens onto an ocean-facing courtyard. around which the bungalows face. The different buildings are brought together with a unified palette, which flows seamlessly from outdoors to indoors: exterior limestone pavers become inlays in the reception area’s teak flooring, then turn vertically up the walls at the sculptural main entry stair and fireplace surround; built-in teak millwork in each of the 16 guestrooms suggests the lattice-like exposed cedar rafter ceiling; large wood and glazed doors and skylights bring natural light deep into the interiors of the suites. Integrated landscape elements push and pull against the building facade to create pocket gardens, while dramatic eaves and sliding wooden screens at the balconies and lower level courtyards provide shade and privacy for guests.