俵屋旅館(Tawaraya Ryokan)

My husband and I spent one night at what is widely considered Japan’s finest ryokan and we were not disappointed. I have NEVER experienced hospitality at this level. From the moment you arrive, they are waiting for you out front. They know you are coming. There is no check-in process, no waiting. Just being escorted to your room where somehow your luggage already made it there. A wooden tub with perfectly heated water awaits, after which you don your yakuta and relax with your zen garden view before the most amazing dinner of your life is served in 8 courses over a relaxing 2 hours. There is nowhere to be, and nowhere else you will want to be. It’s like a step back in time. After dinner, your futons are made up for you, you choose whether you’ll have a Japanese or Western-style breakfast in the morning, and select the time it is served. At check-out, the staff make sure you are safely in your taxi (the older woman who took care of us even put her arm around me, held my hand, and escorted me safely across the street to our Uber.) I had to use google translate to tell her that she took better care of us than even our own mothers, which made her laugh. This place is difficult to book, and if you speak no Japanese it can be a bit challenging to communicate, but everyone at Tawaraya does their utmost to make you feel like an honored guest. It’s unparalleled. Well worth the cost.