So, you’ve asked yourself the question, “Is staying at a traditional Japanese inn heaven or hell?” and decided it’s an experience you can’t afford to miss. But how do you find the best ryōkan for your budget and travel plans? And how do you make reservations from half a world away?
You can use your tried-and-true hotel search methods—Google, for example—but when you’re booking accommodations in Japan, do not click on the Google link to make the reservation. Use an app like Agoda or go to the hotel website directly. Many Google booking service links have hidden charges and draconian cancellation policies, not to mention charging you a much higher room rate than the price listed on the hotel website.
My local Tokyo friends and I use the Agoda app, because it’s in English, it allows you to use a credit card not issued by a Japanese bank, they don’t have hidden horrible cancellation policies, and they sometimes have rooms set aside even when the hotel website says “no vacancy.”
You can get Agoda from your phone’s app store. It looks like this:
Here’s how to check out the options and book a ryōkan online in English
First, choose “Hotels” on the tab bar, then enter your destination, check-in and check-out dates, and how many adults per room. Hit “Search.”
Ignore the first search results, because now we’re going to refine the filters to show only ryōkans. Choose your currency from the drop-down menu and drag the sliders to bracket your budget.
Most ryōkans charge by the person, not by the room, because a ryōkan is a destination experience in itself—an amazing breakfast and dinner are included, as well as access to the inn’s garden, its bath and all its amenities. The Agoda app automatically shows a price that reflects the per-person way that ryōkans charge, so when you’re entering your budget, multiply your per-person-per-night budget by the number of people. For example, to book an inn at the $200 level for double occupancy, you’d enter “$400” for one night.
Next, let’s scroll down and set the search filters for finding only ryōkans that deliver that once-in-a-lifetime experience you can only have in Japan. Start with highly-rated ones and be sure you check both breakfast and dinner included, or you’ll end up at a place that looks traditional in the pictures, but lacks the features and services that deliver an authentic ryōkan experience. If you know where you’ll be sightseeing, you may want to choose a neighborhood nearby, but I’d leave that unchecked for now and weigh options later.
Next, scroll down to Property Type and check “Ryokan.” (“Machiya” are a traditional inn-style alternative that’s cheaper because they don’t serve breakfast and dinner, but they also lack the luxurious service, beautiful rooms, the lovely baths and deep cultural vibe of a ryōkan).
I’d leave the next filters unchecked (except maybe “non-smoking”). Some of the top traditional inns only take cash, so if you check anything but “pay now” under Payment Options, your choices will be much more limited and you’ll miss out considering some of the best ones.
Scroll down, and again, check only your dealbreakers.
If you’re unfamiliar with the neighborhoods of the city where you’re staying, you can use your own itinerary of must-see sights to choose something nearby, if that’s important to you.
Now let’s scroll through the results with the filters applied! The price shown on the search page is the cheapest room available that fits your criteria, but you have to click on the ryōkan’s page to get a look at what kind of room that price gets you. Check out the photos of the inn, its food, and its bath, and make sure your must-haves are covered in the list of highlights.
Then scroll down to see the actual rooms available for your dates. Even in the most traditional ryōkans, not all rooms are Japanese style (where you sleep on a futon directly on the tatami mats), so if you want that experience, be sure you book a “Japanese Style” room, not one that merely has a “tatami area.”
Once you decide between the many lovely options, click to book and you’re all set!
I hope this helps you have the ryōkan experience of your dreams. If you’d like to see a couple of the amazing places I’ve stayed at over the years, check out this snow-bound beauty at Zao Onsen, the one perched on a cliff overlooking the vine bridge in Shikoku, and the one with the Japanese garden from hell in Unzen!
More useful info:
Practical Japan travel advice—using the trains, how to travel in Japan with food allergies, where to get cash, and stuff like that—is at Travel Tips and Tricks
If you’d like to see the places I take my friends when they come to Tokyo, all my favorite destinations are on The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
and
Click here for all the other Japan goodness on Jonelle Patrick Writes About Japan:
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Jonelle Patrick writes novels set in Japan, produces the monthly e-magazine Japanagram, and blogs at Only In Japan and The Tokyo Guide I Wish I’d Had
Jonelle Patrick writes about Japan 