Ryokan and Minshuku Japanese Inns and Japanese Food

japanese inns: ryokan

One of the great joys of travelling is to fully immerse yourself in the local culture. At first blush modern Japan seems a highly westernised country with western hotels and fast food restaurants. However, if you look beyond the glitter and flash of Tokyo you will find a window into the shadows that are still redolent of ancient Japan. Key amongst these are the Japanese Inns, known as Ryokans, or Minshuku. These are a feature of all of our tours.

With us you journey into rural Japan and we use a range of accommodations from top class Ryokans to basic Minshukus. Most of the Inns have full Japanese rooms, and some have a combination of both Western and Japanese rooms.

Japanese style rooms have tatami, or straw mat floors and futons laid out of a night time. On arrival there is always a hot pot of water and Japanese tea or ocha. You will be provided with a yukata, or kimono style dressing gown to be worn throughout the Inn or lodge.

Bathing is ritualised in Japan and the Inns are no exception. Here you can take a long soak, sometimes in hot spring baths or onsens. Several of the locations we use also offer the option of an outside bath or Rotenburo.

food: an asian feast

A typical meal in an Inn will consist of Miso (soy bean paste) soup, a bowl of rice which can be refilled when desired and several dishes of either fried fish, chicken or small slices of meat. Fish or meat hot pots, known as nabe, are also popular. Sashimi and sushi (raw fish, rice and seaweed) and tempura (vegetables, fish and prawns deep fried in a light batter) will accompany many of the meals. Breakfasts vary from western-style toast, ham and eggs to Japanese style rice, fish and miso soup. The meals are filling and greatly varied. We recommend an extensive pre-tour training programme in the use of the ubiquitous chopsticks, but feel free to carry a fork for those rare occasions when the rice doesn’t seem to stick together.

winter: accommodation
On our winter tours, accommodation is predominantly Japanese style with longer stays in each location. There are some western room options in some of our accommodations so please contact us if you wish to stay in western rooms on a winter tour.

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