Ride the Nunobiki Ropeway up the mountain and you arrive at The Veranda Kobe, a resort facility tucked inside the herb garden grounds — and it's getting a major renewal in April.
Look at the photos: ironwork details, chandeliers, stained glass. There's an atmosphere here that feels of a piece with Kobe's Former Foreign Settlement and the Kitano ijinkan houses — an extension of the Western-influenced culture that took root in this city. With the ropeway ride built into the journey, it's the kind of experience you'd struggle to recreate anywhere outside Kobe.
Renewal at a glance
- Grand opening: Saturday, April 25, 2026
- Location: The Veranda Kobe (Kitano-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe)
- Access: About a 5-minute walk from Shin-Kobe Station
- Summer season: Sunset & night hours planned from mid-July through end of August
The headline change is a roughly threefold expansion of the terrace area. Terraces that float above the forest, water mirrors that reflect the sky and greenery, a hammock net strung about 5m above the ground — four new zones with distinct sensations are added to the open-air space overlooking the Kobe cityscape and the Rokko mountains (bringing the total, with the existing Herbal Cafe, to five zones).
New zones
Garden Terrace
An outdoor space arranged around a newly installed reflecting pool, lined with luxurious sofas and parasol-shaded seating. A place to sink into a sofa bed and take in the Kobe cityscape at your own pace.
Emerald Lounge
A lounge that sits as if dissolving into the forest, ringed by a water mirror that catches the sky and greenery overhead. The feeling is of taking a seat at the edge of a spring, enveloped by the quiet of the woods. Herb-based drinks and dishes are planned. Closed during strong winds or rain.
Sky Bar
A bar counter set at the highest point of the terrace. A front-row seat where you can take in sweeping views of Kobe and the sea while sipping cocktails or wine with the breeze on your face. Closed during strong winds or rain.
Hammock Sanctuary
A hammock net stretched about 5m above the ground. Lie back as if floating above the Nunobiki forest, with the scenery beneath your feet and the sky filling your view — a suspended quiet that lets the senses unwind.
Herbal Cafe (existing, 2F)
The existing cafe lounge on the second floor. Dishes and sweets made with herbs grown in the surrounding Nunobiki landscape.
Sunset & night hours in summer
From mid-July through the end of August, sunset and night hours are planned alongside the regular daytime operation. From dusk into the evening, the city lights of Kobe and the harbor night view spread out below you from the mountain — a summer-only way to enjoy the terrace and Sky Bar in a completely different mood from daytime.
In summary
Take the ropeway up to about 400m above sea level and spend time on forest-floating terraces, by reflecting pools, or suspended in a 5m hammock net — The Veranda Kobe's renewal layers Kobe's signature mountain-and-harbor setting with the ijinkan-rooted Western aesthetic of the city, creating an experience that really only works here. Grand opening is April 25, with summer sunset hours to come — worth choosing your visit timing carefully.
Facility info
| Location | 1-chome Kitano-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe |
| Hours | Herbal Cafe 10:30–16:30 (L.O. 16:00) / Terrace areas 10:30–16:30 |
| Access | About 10 min by Nunobiki Ropeway from 'Herb Garden Sanroku Station' / about 5 min walk to Sanroku from Shin-Kobe |
| Official site | theveranda-kobe.jp |
