Kankaso — Hotel in Nara

On any trip to Japan it's worth going to Kankaso or other similar high-end ryokan in the countryside. Staying at Kankaso feels like staying in an amazing, large, 100yr-old Japanese home. This place is totally Japan - as authentic feeling as it gets.||||Like many ryokans, this is run by only a few people - don't expect a front desk staffed 24hrs although they'll generally have someone around if you tell them what time you're arriving. Think of it like a B&B, but better. We arrived after lunch and left our bags to go explore.||||Bathing areas are practically a spa with beautiful views of greenery. The place was fairly empty when we were there so were given a whole bathing room to ourselves.||||This place is like a small garden dream in Japan. Great place for an overnight from Osaka or Kyoto. Great location in Nara for seeing deer and the large Buddha.||||Food was great. Room was great with an unbelievable garden outside - kinda of our own little house with an awesome wooden bathtub, although I'm never comfortable sleeping on futon on the floor.||||Like much of Japan, the place is on the older side and worn, but is clearly well cared for.||||Everyone is very helpful and friendly, although they speak little English. Could be an uncomfortable stay if you don't enjoy trying to communicate with gestures and some basic guidebook Japanese.||||Other than sleeping hours, they come in to your room to bring you food, guide you to breakfast, or setup your futon for sleeping - this level of service could be strange to some but I found it fun.||||Wifi and TV are pretty poor if that matters to you.||||There are other ryokans in nearby Kyoto and elsewhere with more English language abilities, that are more up-to-date, and with more rooms and guests. Some may consider this place slightly more difficult for a variety of reasons, but my wife and I found it much more unique, more enjoyable, and more memorable than any other place we tried. Definitely a highlight of our trip.||||Would stay again for one night, as we did on our last trip. Would recommend to friends and family, assuming they're at least a tiny bit...

On any trip to Japan it's worth going to Kankaso or other similar high-end ryokan in the countryside. Staying at Kankaso feels like staying in an amazing, large, 100yr-old Japanese home. This place is totally Japan - as authentic feeling as it gets.||||Like many ryokans, this is run by only a few people - don't expect a front desk staffed 24hrs although they'll generally have someone around if you tell them what time you're arriving. Think of it like a B&B, but better. We arrived after lunch and left our bags to go explore.||||Bathing areas are practically a spa with beautiful views of greenery. The place was fairly empty when we were there so were given a whole bathing room to ourselves.||||This place is like a small garden dream in Japan. Great place for an overnight from Osaka or Kyoto. Great location in Nara for seeing deer and the large Buddha.||||Food was great. Room was great with an unbelievable garden outside - kinda of our own little house with an awesome wooden bathtub, although I'm never comfortable sleeping on futon on the floor.||||Like much of Japan, the place is on the older side and worn, but is clearly well cared for.||||Everyone is very helpful and friendly, although they speak little English. Could be an uncomfortable stay if you don't enjoy trying to communicate with gestures and some basic guidebook Japanese.||||Other than sleeping hours, they come in to your room to bring you food, guide you to breakfast, or setup your futon for sleeping - this level of service could be strange to some but I found it fun.||||Wifi and TV are pretty poor if that matters to you.||||There are other ryokans in nearby Kyoto and elsewhere with more English language abilities, that are more up-to-date, and with more rooms and guests. Some may consider this place slightly more difficult for a variety of reasons, but my wife and I found it much more unique, more enjoyable, and more memorable than any other place we tried. Definitely a highlight of our trip.||||Would stay again for one night, as we did on our last trip. Would recommend to friends and family, assuming they're at least a tiny bit...

We were lucky enough to be assigned the Kojika Room. (“Kojika” is the Japanese word for “fawn.”) Entered via a covered wooden bridge, the Kojika Room is actually a freestanding building, surrounded by a splendid garden.||||The main room is ten tatami mats in size and during the day furnished only with a large, elegant low table and two seat backs. Shoji screens enclose the room on all sides, but are kept open during the day. Past the screens on two sides are balconies fronted by full-height glass walls that overlook the garden. On one balcony are two western-height chairs and a table. Sitting in these chairs, looking at the stunning garden, we were mesmerized.||||At night the proprietress set out our futons and closed all the shoji screens. We were thus completely enclosed by the screens, tatami mats and futons. It was magical.||||The Kojika Room was one of the two or three most beautiful hotel rooms we’ve ever stayed in. If you’ve seen the movie Mishima, it was like the setting for the first of its four parts.||||The Kojika Room has its own private toilet, sink, Japanese-style shower and onsen, as well as ample storage space.||||The kaiseiki-style dinner and morning breakfast, both served in our room, were mouth-watering — fully the equal of what you’d get at a high-end restaurant.||||The same proprietress, always clad in a stunning kimono, served as our check-in and checkout clerk and dinner server, as well as futon preparer. We found her charming and eager to please. She has very limited English, but we managed to make do. || ||One added touch: the Kanka-so’s small lobby contains an old-fashioned glass cabinet that serves as the ryokan’s gift shop. It contains some amazing items, including many made of deer antler. (The managers of Nara Park regularly crop the male deer’s antlers.)||||Unfortunately, we spent only one night —18 hours — at the Kanka-so. But it was like an...