Name: Hana Ryokan Iwatoya
Address: 6332-1 Iwato, Takachiho-cho, Takachiho, Takachiho, Takachiho, 882-1621, Japan
Rating: 8.6

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At the hotel

Kumamoto Airport

Hana Ryokan Iwatoya

We enjoyed our stay at Hana Ryokan Iwatoya. This is an older but nicely managed family hotel. Dinner was outstanding. Room is traditional and therefor nice. The Onsen is small but ok, bath in the room the smallest we had ever seen but soo cute ! Free parking behind the hotel. We will come back if we are in Kyushu again ! 

A very special place to stay. They look after you so well. The building is rather old but the family takes care of it with lots of love.

The food is very tasty and plentiful, excellent Futons, big bath and tatami flooring everywhere. 

I was initially unsure booking this Ryokan in Takachiho because there were only a few english reviews in the last couple of years (there were quite a number of Japanese ones though). I need not have worried as we were pretty happy with our stay.

This modest ryokan is located at the Iwato section of Takachiho town. Takachiho shrine and gorge is about 15 mins drive away. The ryokan is within walking distance of the Amano Iwato shrine and the nearby cave where (according to the local legends) the Shinto sun goddess is said to have hidden. The cave is well worth a visit. There is a large parking lot right very close to the ryokan where you can park your car for free. If you don't drive, the ryokan can pick you up from the bus centre, just arrange in advance.

- the reception staff were very friendly and helpful. The lady at the reception spoke only a little english but we could get by. We were welcomed with snacks and genmaicha (please brew it yourself) in our room at check in, and when we departed, we were given tasty black rice onigiri to eat on our travels. The ryokan offer free return transfers to the theater at Takachiho Shrine where the famous Kagura dance is performed. It was good that we watched the dance before visiting the shrines as it gives some context to the legends surrounding Takachiho, its the holy sites and deities. In any case, there is nothing to do in the town at night, so you might as well watch the dance.

-Standard room is of a decent size for 2 persons and there is a shower in the toilet (which is not always the case in traditional ryokans). The WC had a seat warmer but the toilet itself was not insulated from the cold (for ventilation reasons). There was wifi but the connection was not very stable. Although the ryokan is just beside a road, the town is really quiet so we got a good night's rest.

- they offer a small indoor onsen which is gender separated. We tried the men's onsen and I don't think it can fit more than 3 persons at once.

- The room rates include breakfast and kaiseki style dinner. Food is pretty good and portions are huge. I appreciated that they incorporated local ingredients such as black rice, river fish and unusual vegetables/tubers into the dishes. As part of the kaiseki dinner,here was also western inspired dishes such as gratin and beef stroganoff. Breakfast was also of a good standard.

Overall we were pretty happy with our stay and I would recommend the ryokan.

We stayed here for two nights in February 2017. The first thing I want to say is that I felt like I slept really well here. The floor mats and bedding were really comfortable, and the room was quiet. We ate both breakfast and dinner, and the meals were huge ... almost too much food. But it was tasty. There are no nearby restaurants or shops open after around 6 pm (there are a Joyfull and a Family Mart maybe 10 minutes' drive away). Parking is free in a lot behind the inn. The public bath is small but nice. 

We stayed one night in Dec 2013, booked through Japanican, pre-paid.  We were the only guests! We arrived at Takachiho on public bus and telephoned the ryokan (minimal English - someone at the bus centre had to translate for us) to arrange for a shuttle pick-up.  The ryokan is a 15min ride away from the bus centre.  The entire ryokan has tatami mat flooring, even in the corridors and lobby.  It is a simple 2 storey building, rooms are clean, windows can be opened. Our rooms were on the floor above lobby.  There was a mezzanine floor in-between the floors for meals. On the Japanican site it says rooms have toilet, no bath.  When we checked in, there was a short bath-tub (about 60cm square) in the attached bathroom. The bathroom was not too small; you could stretch both arms out and graze the two walls.  Toilet looked old (1970s) but no water leaks, no stains.  Rooms had the standard TV, green tea, water jug, biscuits and portable heater.  There may be air-conditioning for summer - we saw the vents.  Onsen on gound floor was separate gender, cedar wood indoor onsen, large enough (about 170cm x 120cm)- wonderful.

There was a fixed choice of meal times but since we were the only family there, they were flexible and let us change the timings.  Food was healthy - some meat, some fish, lots of vegetables, and western style dessert! One of the waitresses with slightly better English had a flashcard to explain what some of the meals were.  They used unpolished rice that was purplish in colour, slightly salted - yum!  For breakfast, it was several courses as well.  And when we checked out, we were given rice balls (the purplish rice again) to take away with us. 

Staff had minimal English.  A lot of sign language was used, but no issues there. Maybe because of the language, the staff don't really interact.  Even the waitress telling us about the meal - she did her job in a lukewarm way, answered our questions and left us alone.  They didn't check in on us during the meal, and only came when we were done.

No wifi, no internet - great for a complete break.  No lifts in the building but it's not too tall a building.

Yes, I would recommend this ryokan although it is a distance from the town itself. Although my room overlooked the street, there was little traffic after dark to disturb us.

It would be unfair to compare this ryokan to its counterparts in big cities (yufuin/kurokawa) so in that context this is a good ryokan in small town Takachiho. We booked via japanican (prepaid).  Location is some six miles from the city, the inside building is clean and it has ofuro (communal bath for women and men each). Food is home made and good, probably ten courses. Small bus was provided to bring us to watch kagura dance and back to ryokan. The only 'complain', breakfast choices are too early, either 7 or 7.30 and dinner are either 6 or 6.30, which is too early too for us. The lady in the house send us away with onigiri, very thoughtful. Looking back,  I probably prefer to stay closer to town, but the ryokan itself is a special little gem in remote Takachiho.

Takachiho

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How Japanese hotel should be

Good stay in a modest family-run ryokan

Clean, quiet, comfortable 

Wonderful food, wonderful stay

Friendly and clean ryokan in small town

A Ryokan you will remember for a long time

Breakfast included

Free Internet

Transfer

Suitable for children

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Conference hall

Spa Services

Ski slope nearby

Beach nearby

Air-conditioning

Pets allowed

Jacuzzi

Private Bathroom

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Smoking allowed

Electric car charging

Hana Ryokan Iwatoya

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