Ryokan and Itinerary Help, Please
 

Hello-
We (husband, 72 and me, 71) will be traveling to Japan in late March/early April with my son (43), DIL (41) and g-kids (6, 6, & 8). We'll be staying in Osaka with my DIL's aunt for the first week and doing daytrips to Kobe, Kyoto, Nara and other nearby destinations. From Osaka, we want to go through Nagoya for a brief visit with DIL's cousin and then on to Nikko. We are thinking of stopping for one night on the way to NIkko from Nagoya for a Ryokan experience. We'll be traveling with a JR pass. Any suggestions as to where would be a good and easy stop in between for our Ryokan experience? We want a traditional and quality experience, but don't need super luxury. I'm also looking for accommodations in NIkko.

Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

Hakone is an obvious choice for a ryokan stay. You'd have the huge bonus of being able to take the Hakone Loop through the national park. You would just take a Hikari shinkansen from Nagoya to Odawara then just a short non-JR train to Hakone-Yumoto station where you could have the ryokan pick you up (if they don't pick up at Odawara). From Odawara you would take the shinkansen to Tokyo and transfer to another shinkansen to Utsunomiya and then a JR local to Nikko.

Inuyama would be a place where I would look for a ryokan, though I don't know if there are any. Inuyama is a half-hour more/less from Nagoya on a Meitetsu line (not JR) and the cost would be ¥570 to ¥930 each way. Inuyama has a nice castle and there is a garden with an ochaya.

I stayed at Hotel Nikko Station 2 and can recommend it. It is a short, easy, walk from Tobu Nikko station which is where you would board the buses you want to use and the tourist info center at that station is where you can get some great info and buy your bus passes. JR Nikko station is a little farther away but definitely close enough to walk. There is also a Hotel Nikko Station Classic which is across the street from JR Nikko.

As an information resource about ryokans, I recommend using
https://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/

You can learn about the types of ryokan and the customs by mousing over "Resources" and then you will see the column on the left titled "Ryokans". A ryokan has a standard form but there are different styles.

Under the "Destinations" tab you would be interested in the Chubu and Kanto regions. Nagoya is in Aichi prefecture and you would also be traveling through Shizuoka. Gifu is nearby.

Kanto is the region that includes Tokyo as well as Hakone (Mt Fuji) and Nikko.

There are many more ryokan in those regions, so you could look - and book - elsewhere. If I find a ryokan at agoda or booking dot com or another OTA then I will try to find a website for that lodging and book with them directly. The ryokans's own website may have better room and meal options.

That looks nice. Did you book it at their website? I see they have a shuttle so you could take your luggage with you instead of leaving it at the Classic or at the station.

In Shinjuku I have only stayed at the Hilton and the Hyatt Regency. Both hotels have shuttles to Shinjuku station and there is a subway stop under the Hyatt. The Hilton is basically across the street and I think there is a tunnel to that subway stop.

You don't need to stay near a JR line in Tokyo. A lodging near a subway or any rail line is good. A location on the Yamanote line would be good. But it depends on where in Tokyo you would visit.

That comment about staying near a JR line makes me wonder if you are thinking that you would be using a JR Pass. You could, but fares are cheap. The pass is really for inter-city travel. What is your itinerary for the whole trip? Maybe we can help you with finding the right national or regional rail passes that you need.

To fit a large family, you might consider looking for hotels with Japanese style rooms. Many hotels have both western style (think beds) and japanese rooms (futons on the floor). You can fit your kids & grandkids into one Japanese room, and you and your husband in another- either japanese or western. They will just bring extra futons into the Japanese rooms. Western rooms can't usually add more than a crib.
Go to Booking.com, type in your dates, and the 2 adults+ 3 children, or 4 adults+3 children and two rooms. On the left find "property type" and click on "ryokan". You'll see them pop up as Japanese-style quadruple room' and say 4 futons (or whatever). Many of these are not what you might think of as a ryokan. You may, or may not get meals, and certainly not the amazing service. They do make you feel like you are in Japan, and are much more comfortable and less expensive for a family.
I haven't been to this one in years, but Ryokan Shigetsu is within walking distance to the Asakusa Kannon temple, is nice, and lots of fun (for kids and adults) shopping. Peek at that to get an example!

Thank you both mrwunrfl and Icuy for your insight. I have taken your advice and looked at Japanese style rooms, ryokans, and further afield. I have some possibilities, and I'm thinking an apartment stay might be the way for us to go. There are a couple that look like they might work and I'm waiting for my grown kids to take a look at them. I know we are booking this late in the game, and things are going fast--I hope to get it locked down soon. My son is taking care of the rail passes, but I think he's arranging for a JR pass for our daytrips out of Osaka, to Nagoya and to Nikko. Once we get to Tokyo, I think we'll get a local pass. Again, thank you both for your help.