55 Best Hotels in Japan

The town's oldest Western-style hotel welcomes guests with a black-tile lobby and dramatic Japanese wood-block prints. The rooms are dated, but large. Ask for one in the newer annex at the back of the building overlooking the garden. The location is ideal—just around the corner from the Ohara Art Museum, a 10-minute walk on the main road leading southeast from the station.

A swanky ryokan near the Matsue Shinji-ko Onsen Station (for easy access to the shrine of Izumo Taisha), Naniwa Issui is envied for its amazing views out over the big lake and for its hot spring. The seven mind-blowing deluxe rooms on the fourth floor have private tubs to soak in out on the balconies. Naniwa offers impeccable service and serves fabulous Matsue seafood. In season, the delightful lounge-side garden becomes a beer and cocktail patio. Excellent barrier-free rooms are also available.

In a neighborhood with many traditional buildings, this ryokan that's an easy distance from the city center has a welcoming staff and serves delightful kaiseki (multicourse meals). Dining takes place in a downstairs room, and there's a comfortable lounge with computer terminals and laptop ports. The large Japanese-style public baths (separate areas for men and women) stay open late, so taking a late-night dip is no problem, though Japanese guests generally bathe before the evening meal. The rooms are comfortable but not exceptional.

Dark wooden beams, shadowy corridors, and well-chosen antiques transform a modern canal-side building into a comfortable, old-fashioned Japanese inn—a rarity in Otaru. The traditionally clad staff bow low on the raised straw matting in the reception area, and the first-floor restaurant has seating with a canal view. The charm of the public areas continues into the newly renovated lounge area, where reading materials are available, adjacent to the lobby. The eighth-floor Japanese bathroom has several indoor and open-air onsen baths as well as a sauna. The hotel's breakfast includes up to 40 different options made by their chefs with ingredients from Hokkaido.

Stretching along a sandy beach, this resort hotel is peerless for its comfort, service, luxury, and access to the sights. Pick your favorite room from a variety of Western and Japanese arrangements with unique character; the Japanese website has pictures of every room. Ask for a beachside room, so the sound of the surf can lull you to sleep. The waves at the beach are too rough for swimming, but there's a fun restaurant on the dunes.

Considering its view over the sea, spacious rooms, and proximity to Hagi's old town, Mihagi is a great option. The hotel's public hot spring is modern and has a variety of baths with views over the beach. Meals are based around fresh, local seafood and the region's Wagyu beef. 

This charming hillside ryokan has been around for more than a century, and it owes its longevity to its having the best views on the island. Every room is blessed with a panorama of the famous gate, the shrine, and the pagodas—and all are backed by the sea, lush trees, or mountains. The friendly English-speaking owners provide excellent service and food, though the Western-style dining area and hotel's concrete exterior detract from the experience somewhat. Getting to the quiet east side of the bay requires a bit of a stroll—or ask the tourist office to arrange a van to pick you up. A private (no extra charge) outdoor bath on a sheltered overhanging corner has great views, so don't forget to reserve your 30-minute slot of pure Zen when you check in. Down in the basement there are more baths, open 24 hours. 

A bit of a miniature miracle, the Ryokan Seryo is in the semirural village of Ohara, near the Sanzen-in Temple. The rooms are spacious with views of beautiful gardens and access to natural hot-spring baths in the rooms. Breakfast and the kaiseki dinner includes mountain vegetables and seasonal specialties like wild boar stew in winter, and is served on a veranda overlooking the koi pond. Two new rooms have outdoor baths with memorable mountain views. The hotel is a 70-minute bus ride from Kyoto Station or from buses leaving from the Kokusai Kaikan subway station, 20 minutes away.

An excellent base for exploring Osaka, the Miyako is also handy when you plan on taking day trips to Kyoto and Nara—the Kintetsu Ue-hon-machi Station next door offers quick access to both cities. Osaka Castle and Tenno-ji Temple are each a 15-minute walk away. The Miyako is comfortable and stylish with a staff who are attentive without being obsequious. As an added bonus, a new shopping center and theater are connected to the hotel.

A half-hour bus ride from JR Morioka Station takes you to this quiet hot-spring town and its upscale (and expensive), traditional ryokan, which serves two meals a day in your tatami room. If you're coming here, you're coming to get away, relax, and not have to think. The walls around the premises obstruct what seem like they could be picturesque mountain views, but rooms peer out on a Japanese garden where goldfish swim in a pond. Some rooms have a private outdoor bath and some rooms, unlike many ryokan, have beds.

Perched just above the bay, the Shimoda Tokyu has impressive views of the Pacific from one side (where rooms cost more) and mountains from the other. Unlike at most Japanese resort hotels, the lobby here is full of character and warmth, with an airy layout and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bay. Prices are significantly higher in midsummer.

Plush interiors, hot-spring baths, pool, play area for kids, excellent dining options—as far as Japanese resort hotels go, it doesn't get much better than this. Located at the very top of Utoro's hotel zone, Daiichi offers sensational hot-spring sunset views. Mountain-facing windows look over small vegetable fields, where bear and deer can be spotted chowing down at dusk. Hotel guests do the same at over-the-top buffets. English speakers are on duty in the evening at the tour desk. The west wing was renovated in 2022.

On the site of the rebellious Saigo Takamori's last stand against the emperor in 1877, this hotel sits high enough to provide enviable views but not so far away to be too inconvenient. It's famous for its hot-spring baths and fantastic views of both Kagoshima and Sakurajima volcano, though rooms with these views are much more expensive. It's a 10-minute taxi ride from JR Kagoshima Chuo Station, or you can use the free shuttle-bus service.

With its central location and modern design, the Solest Takachiho is a great option for those who want to spend a night exploring the town. The rooms are a fusion of Japanese and Scandinavian design elements, and, unlike a traditional ryokan, you have 24-hour room service. 

Popular with tour groups, this is not a place where you will find a lot of alpine serenity, but if you are looking for a good, full-service option at a reasonable price point, you'll find it here. Perched on a bluff halfway up one side of the gorge, this hotel has the best views in the park. The hotel has sumptuous baths to take in all the nature. Rooms at the back overlook the parking lot, so those facing the gorge merit the higher prices. There is a free shuttle bus from JR Sapporo Station, four hours away. Dinner and breakfast are usually included in the room price.

Smoothly blending modernity with traditional Japanese aesthetics, the Strings by InterContinental is one of Shinagawa's top-tier hotels, where the lobby features an artful mix of dark wood and stone—as well as a glass bridge that spans a pond—and where the rooms have high-quality linens, natural wood accents, and astounding city views (it can be mesmerizing to watch the trains pass efficiently through Shinagawa Station). Prices in the hotel restaurants tend to be high, but the Shinagawa area has dining options for every budget. Access is a breeze to the Kyoto- and Nagoya-bound shinkansen (bullet train) and direct trains to both Narita and Haneda Airport .

Some rooms at this hillside hot-springs resort outside Kyoto proper have their own rotemburo (outdoor hot tub) overlooking a private garden, but gender-separated communal baths are available to all guests, and meals are included with your room. Though the building's facade is nondescript, the Japanese-style lobby's garden path–like approach and sliding paper door suggest Old Kyoto. Seasonal ingredients form the basis of kaiseki meals that can include crab, sukiyaki, and, in winter, wild boar. The scenic way to get here is aboard the Sagano Torokko train that leaves from Saga Torokko Station in Arashiyama.

This small mountain resort is perched on the rim of the brilliant-blue Taisho Pond. The lobby, restaurant, and bath have large windows with excellent views of the breathtaking landscape. Opt for the spacious Western-style rooms, with their comfortable beds and soft, puffy quilts. The Japanese rooms are not as nice as those found in a ryokan. All rooms have a private bath, but there is a shared Japanese bath as well. Rooms at the back, without a view of the water, are about 10% cheaper.

This more-than-300-year-old Japanese inn has a sophisticated atmosphere and offers soft thermal waters, and in winter, the chance to see Zao's famous winter scenes with some of the "ice monsters" made by snow piling onto trees in frozen pillars sculpted by blizzards. In recent years, the ice monsters are struggling, but the landscapes are still striking. As you approach the inn at the top of a hill, you will be led to the low-beamed interior, which has changed little over centuries. Each room is different, but the most luxurious are the suites in the annex, recently refurbished and each with a private bath; ask about rooms with Japanese-type decor but Western-style beds.

Most of central Tokyo is readily accessible by train from this hotel beside the city's most popular sports facility (check the summer baseball schedule), where entertainments include a small amusement park and a hot-springs spa. Although rooms are a tad tired and awash in beige, they're reasonably sized and feature a sports motif. The 43rd-floor Artist's Cafe offers live music and overlooks the the "Big Egg," home of the Central League's Yomiuri Giants. Batter up!

Just off Cat Street, which connects trendy Shibuya with equally trendy Harajuku (aka Omotesando), this boutique hotel has an open terrace, a lobby-lounge bar, and other common areas where guests have the opportunity to interact with locals and feel a part of Tokyo's creative scene. Each of Trunk's 15 rooms and suites has a unique layout, but all are on the artsy side; some feature an outdoor space. In addition, the hotel offers different experiences like area architecture tours.

Overlooking Sunset Beach, the Pacific Ocean, and the shopping district of Chatan's American Village, the Vessel Hotel Campana Okinawa has the perfect location for those who wish to explore Chatan. The pink and orange exterior with palm trees is more Miami than mainland Japan, but the colorful lighthearted feel fits well with the area's cosmopolitan vibe. There's an open-air public bath where you can relax and enjoy the setting sun; however, as this is central Okinawa, and near the Kadena Air Base, your sunset relaxation may be noisier than expected.

Overlooking the town of Ito and the sea, Yokikan has been catering to visitors for more than a century. Despite being a short taxi ride from the station, this simple, comfortable ryokan feels like a secluded retreat. Take the private cable railway 30 yards up the hillside for impressive views from the open air hot spring bath.

Soak the stresses of the world away as you sit naked in the outdoor pool of the Yumerindo ryokan, eat a multicourse Japanese meal, and retire to your futon for a good night's sleep. You'll be able to listen to birds and the bubbling river as you bathe in the hot-spring waters. In the ryokan's restaurant, you'll be presented with dish after tiny dish of exquisite local delicacies, as is tradition with a kaiseki menu. You'll know you're nearing the end of the meal when you are offered miso soup and rice, which is always the penultimate course before a final seasonal dessert. While you are dining, staff will enter your room to lay out futons on the tatami matting. A futon on tatami is more solid that most mattresses, so it may take some getting used to. 

The old and new are elegantly juxtaposed in this upscale ryokan, where a century-old, four-story wooden building stands next to a newly built luxury lodging. Museum-quality art of the Edo period (1603–1868) is exhibited in public areas. Each room is unique, and all have state-of-the-art amenities like heated towel racks. Some rooms have beds instead of futons. You'll enjoy fine dining in the evenings accompanied by music in the well-restored original building. They claim that the 600-year-old onsen here was used by none other than Date Masamune himself. Beautiful, natural surroundings attract many honeymooners and couples. Call to arrange free pickup from either Shiroishi-Zao Station on the Tohoku Shinkansen line or from Shiroishi Station on the Tohoku main line.