Ryokan (Japanese inn)
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A ryokan (旅館?) is a type of traditional Japanese inn dating from the Edo Era (1603–1868), when they served travellers along Japan's highways. They typically feature tatami rooms, a communal bath, and other shared areas where visitors can wear a yukata and talk with the owner.
Ryokan are difficult to find in large cities such as Tokyo because many of them are expensive compared to Western-style hotels, and the Japanese increasingly incline toward Western-style hotels for urban tourism. One notable exception is Kyoto. There are a few in Tokyo and other major cities, that have very reasonable prices, with some charging around $40. However, most ryokan are located in scenic areas, often in the mountains, and can charge sums upto $400 per night[citation needed].
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[edit] Features
A typical ryokan might feature a relatively large entrance hall, with couches and chairs where guests can sit and talk; a modernized ryokan would probably have a television in the hall as well. A room in a ryokan is constructed using traditional Japanese materials; flooring is tatami, and doors are sliding rice-paper (washi) doors. Even if a ryokan uses Western-style doors for security, they usually open into a small entranceway where guests can take off their shoes before stepping onto the tatami floor, which would be separated by a sliding door. A room in a ryokan might also feature a porch or balcony, also set off with a sliding door.
A ryokan will usually also feature a common bathing area, often using hot spring water if in an onsen(温泉) area (onsen areas tend to have large concentrations of ryokan). Recently high-end ryokan often provide private bathing facilities. Typically a ryokan will also provide guests with a yukata to wear; it might have games such as table tennis, and possibly geta that visitors can borrow to walk outside.
Sleeping arrangements are a futon on the tatami floor. When a guest first enters their room, there is usually a table, and frequently some supplies for making tea. This table is also often used for meals, should they be required. While the guests are out, staff (usually called "nakai" in Japan) will come and move the table aside, and set out the futon.
Many ryokan offer dinner and breakfast as optional meals, although typically most Japanese visitors will often take meals at the ryokan, and ryokans promote themselves within Japan on the quality of their food[1]. Typically the meals available consist mostly of Japanese foods(和食), although ryokan which are likely to serve Westerners may have a selection of Western dishes.
[edit] Minshuku
Minshuku (民宿?) are the budget version of ryokan, roughly equivalent to the British boarding house or Bed and Breakfast. The facilities may consist simply of spare rooms in a family home, and minshuku often serve as the only type of accommodation in towns or villages too small to warrant a dedicated hotel or ryokan. The overall experience is much the same, but the food is simpler, dining is communal at dinner, bathrooms are shared and guests are expected to lay out their own futon.
[edit] References
- ^ Although not in print, this fact has been verified many times in Japanese travel-themed TV shows, such as Burari Tochu Gensha no Tabi (ぶらり途中下車の旅) and Iitabi Yume Kibun (いい旅夢気分).
