THE TRIP
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The short answer
At a glance
The open-air bath at a Takayama ryokan, ginkgo leaves on the floor and the water still.
If you only remember one thing, let it be this: in Takayama, choose the inn first and plan the days around it. I’d have you at Kachoan for an easy, central first night, or at Wanosato if the evening itself is the trip. Pack slip-on shoes, because you’ll be taking them off all day, and arrive hungry.
Here’s the thing about Takayama: I don’t want you in a hotel. This is a mountain town where the inn really is the point of the evening, with a kaiseki dinner brought to your room, Hida beef grilling at the table, and a bath you can sink into outdoors while the valley goes cold and quiet around you. I walked these streets in November, with ginkgo leaves on every doorstep, and I came home sure that the ryokan night is the part of a Japan trip people talk about first.
So think of this short list as a map of moods. One is in the old town and easy, one is out in the forest and special, and one has a private open-air bath in the room. Two nights is what I’d give any of them, because one night gets you the old street and a bowl of noodles, and two gets you the morning markets too. If you want the town itself first, my Takayama Rolodex has all of it, and the Takayama Primer is the place to start if you’re still deciding.
The window of a ryokan room, where the afternoon slows right down.
Leaves on the water: the reason I send people to Takayama in November.
Honjin Hiranoya Kachoan · in the old town · my first call
This is the ryokan I book most for Takayama, and it’s easy to see why. You’re in the middle of town, a short walk from the Sanmachi Suji streets and the morning markets, the kitchen takes dinner seriously, and with about twenty rooms it still feels like being looked after rather than processed. If you’ve never stayed in a ryokan before, this is where I’d start you.
One detail I’d ask about when we book: the open-air rooftop bath, with the Hida mountains in front of you, belongs to the Kofukan annex, and one listing describes that rooftop side as the men’s bath, so I’d confirm which baths are open to you and at what hours. The inn’s own page is the place to check today’s rates. Book dinner in the inn, because that’s half the reason to come.
Wanosato · twenty minutes outside town · the splurge
When a client wants the one that feels like a secret, this is where my mind goes. Wanosato is a roughly 160-year-old thatched inn out in the forest by the river, and the Michelin Guide gives it One Key, which it calls a very special stay. It’s suites only, some in private annex villas, so it feels more like being looked after in somebody’s very beautiful farmhouse than checking into anywhere. Its own booking page lists suites from about ¥41,800 per person with two to a room at the time I looked, so check it for your dates. The inn runs a free shuttle from the station, and you have to reserve a seat, so do that when you book. I haven’t slept here myself, so I’m telling you what the inn and Michelin say, and I’d happily put your questions to the owners.
Futari Shizuka Hakuun · in the hills above town · a bath of your own
If the private outdoor bath is what you want to spend the money on, and honestly I think it is, this is the small inn I’d look at next. Listings describe about eighteen rooms, a view down over the valley, and rooms with their own open-air bath, five minutes from the station by shuttle. I haven’t stayed here either, so it’s one I’d confirm with the inn directly before I put you in it, especially which room types have the bath, because those are the ones that go first.
Book the bath, not just the room
Most people compare ryokans by the photos of the rooms, and I’d gently steer you towards the bath instead. A room with its own outdoor bath is the whole point of a late October or November night here, with yellow leaves on the water and nowhere to be, so it’s worth asking for it by name when you book. These are small inns with few of those rooms, and they go a long way ahead for the autumn weeks and for the festival dates, 14 and 15 April and 9 and 10 October, so I’d hold yours as early as you can. If you have tattoos, tell the inn when you book: a private bath is nearly always the easy answer.
The loveliest part of Takayama is the hour after dinner, when you pad back to your room in a yukata, the futon has been laid out, and the whole mountain is quiet. I can’t wait for you to have that. When I plan these for clients, my clients typically enjoy a welcome gift and room upgrades wherever they apply.
Asked often
Where should I stay in Takayama?
In a ryokan, ideally one with a bath of its own. Kachoan is my easy first call in the old town, and Wanosato is the one to splurge on.
Is it better to stay in a ryokan or a hotel in Takayama?
A ryokan, every time. A good chunk of the “ryokans” near the station are really small hotels with tatami rooms and a shared bath, which is fine, but it’s the dinner and the bath that make the night.
How many nights do I need in Takayama?
Two. One night gets you the old street and a bowl of noodles; two gets you the morning markets as well, and Shirakawa-go if you’d like it.
When should I book a ryokan in Takayama?
As early as your dates are fixed, and a year ahead for the April and October festival days.
Is it better to stay in the old town or near the station?
The old town, so the markets and Sanmachi Suji are on your doorstep before the coaches arrive. Everything in town is within about twenty minutes on foot anyway.
Which Takayama ryokan allow tattoos?
Many do in a private bath, so say so when you book and ask for a room with its own bath or a bath you can reserve by the hour.
Want the right room and the right train? Inquire about a private Takayama stay
Pair it with two days in Takayama, the morning market postcard and my Japan Rolodex.
The red Nakabashi bridge, a short walk from the old town inns.