3 Best Hotels in The Japan Alps and the North Chubu Coast, Japan

This rustic alpine lodge is owned by Tokyo's legendary Imperial Hotel, and the service is so exemplary because the staff are borrowed from that establishment for the summer. In the lounge, low wooden beams support the beautifully crafted ceiling, while a central hearth adds a warm glow. Guest rooms have sofas and gorgeous woodwork, and some have balconies. Western and Japanese restaurants are on the premises. You can see the red-tiled, gabled roof of the hotel from Kamikochi's bus terminal in the center of town.

Perched on a cliff overlooking the Sea of Japan, this resort in Aikawa offers ocean views, an open-air hot-spring pool, and comfortable Japanese- or Western-style rooms. What you're really here for, though, is the food: meals consist of fresh sashimi, grilled sazae (a local shellfish), wagyu beef, and vegetable tempura from Sado farms. It's all washed down with some Niigata sake, of course. The hotel is a 50-minute bus ride from Ryotsu; ask in advance about the hotel's shuttle bus.

Established during the Meiji Restoration (1867), this small ryokan is the most lavish lodging in Kanazawa, and guests come from all over Japan as much for the food (breakfast and dinner are included in the rate) as for the stay. The interior blends traditional elegance with innovative designs—a perfect metaphor for the age of Japan's transition into modernity. Antique furnishings and exquisite scrolls and paintings appear throughout the inn. Superb regional Kaga cuisine is served in your room or in the restaurant.