*Prices include tax.
An extraordinary experience in a snowy midwinter world
Nagisa Ichikawa's pick: Ougato Hotel (Nagano Prefecture)
I love the snowy winter scenery. I often go hiking in snowy mountains, snowshoe hiking, and skiing, which are activities that even beginners can do. When I went snowshoe hiking in Utsukushigahara, Nagano Prefecture, I took a break at the cafe attached to the hotel and was captivated by the warm atmosphere of the Ogato Hotel.
We were driven to the Utsukushigahara Highlands, covered in pure white snow, by a car that picked us up from Matsumoto Station. The temperature outside was below zero. In the numbing cold, we were greeted by the warm hospitality of the hotel staff, and we took a deep breath.
When we arrived, we found out that a snowmobile cruise was taking place around the snow fields of Utsukushigahara. Since I had hiked here before on snowshoes, I decided to take the snowmobile on the way there and borrow snowshoes on the way back. Normally, snowshoe hikes are done from early morning until noon, but being able to enjoy the snow fields right up until sunset was an experience that was only possible by staying overnight here.
Snowmobile Cruising
Walking on snow with snowshoes
Dinner and breakfast are included, so you don't have to worry about meals. The menu, which makes use of local ingredients and seasonal bounty, was a uniquely soothing experience. There are many repeat customers, and it was also impressive to hear the staff say "It's been a while." During breakfast, the morning sun shining into the restaurant was truly beautiful, and one staff member suggested, "Would you like to move to a seat by the window?" The staff members were neither too close nor too far away, making for a comfortable service.
In addition to snowmobile experiences, there are plenty of free events held within the hotel, such as stargazing and sunrise viewing tours, that allow you to fully enjoy the location, which is "nothing" except the hotel and the snow fields. The warm hotel, where you can feel the staff's ingenuity everywhere, such as the cute decorations and warm bamboo tea, also has a wide range of public spaces, such as a cafe, drink counter, terrace, and free space where you can spend your time as you like.
The weather is changeable on the mountain, so rather than making a lot of plans in advance, we recommend spending your time doing what you feel like doing here and now. Drink coffee in the observation lounge, take a relaxing bath with a view of the mountains, or go outside and enjoy the cold like we did. We hope you will experience the extraordinary experience of spending time in a snowy world in the middle of winter at Ogato Hotel.
Ogato Hotel
| address | ： | 8964 Iriyamabe, Matsumoto City, Nagano Prefecture |
|---|---|---|
| phone | ： | 0263-50-8765 |
| Fee | ： | Accommodation: From 18,900 yen including breakfast and dinner |
| web | ： | https://www.ougatou.jp/ |
Nagisa Ichikawa
After studying fashion design, she worked in PR for overseas luxury brands before going independent in 2013. As a creative consultant, she is involved in communication design, content planning, production and direction for companies/brands and services both in Japan and overseas. She also devotes herself to creating personal work that expresses her own perspective, viewpoint and interests through photography, video, writing and other means. She enjoys digital products that offer a glimpse into the future and are made with care.
X (old Twitter): @nagiko726
Instagram: @nagiko
A lush space on a remote island where you can surrender yourself to nature
"Entô" (Shimane Prefecture), selected by YUMI KUROTANI
Entô is located on the nature-rich Oki Island in Shimane Prefecture. You take two flights from Haneda Airport to Itami Airport, then to Oki World Geopark Airport, then a bus from the airport to the port, and then a rocking boat to reach Oki Island. The word Entô (distant island) is appropriate, and you really feel like you've come to a faraway island.
The beautiful nature of Oki Island and the time spent at Entô are well worth the long journey and will leave you feeling enriched.
When you open the door to your room, you can see the beautiful ocean through the large glass window that covers the entire wall. It's so beautiful it takes your breath away. The inside and outside are in harmony, and you feel like you're surrendering yourself to nature and being part of the earth.
Husband standing in front of the window in the room
All the designs in the space seem modern, but they also blend in with nature and bring out the sea. I like how the window frames and interiors fit in comfortably and allow you to feel the beautiful nature directly.
Your senses will be sharpened and time will flow more gently.
The hotel also has a library with an exciting selection, so you can take your favorite books back to your room and read them, or watch the boats passing by and the beautiful sparkling waters. I spent most of my time on Oki Island relaxing at Entô.
For dinner, we enjoyed a seasonal course meal that can only be enjoyed on Oki Island. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and drinks while feeling the gentle breeze on the water and watching the sun sink into the sea.
Then, at the recommendation of the hotel staff, we went on an underwater cruise. We boarded a semi-submersible boat and at night we saw the fantastical light of bioluminescent plankton that glowed a delicate blue that was too delicate to capture in a photograph, and during the day we watched schools of fish swimming among the seaweed from the windows at the bottom of the boat. It was an irreplaceable time that made us feel connected to the earth.
Traveling is fun because you can take in a lot of information, but when you're busy, I feel that the most important thing is to have time to reset and truly rest.
When you place yourself in this rich space, your mind and body will feel refreshed and you will be enveloped in a gentle feeling. And you will feel a surge of energy to do your best again the next day.
Entô
| address | ： | 1375-1 Fukui, Ama-cho, Oki-gun, Shimane Prefecture |
|---|---|---|
| phone | ： | 08514-2-1000 |
| Fee | ： | Accommodation: Breakfast included: from 31,970 yen |
| web | ： | https://ento-oki.jp/ |
YUMI KUROTANI
Art director, photographer, and visual designer. Graduated from Tama Art University with a major in interior design. Studied abroad at Aalto University in Finland while in school. Joined Shiseido's Creative Headquarters as a designer after graduating. Became independent in 2023. Works on advertising visuals and spatial art direction for beauty brands and other brands.
Instagram: @yumi.kurotani
Hot springs not just for soaking, but for spending time
Shoko Ryuzaki's pick: Wasurenosato Gajoen (Kagoshima Prefecture)
Even though I had a lot of manuscripts to write, I suddenly felt like going somewhere far away. I stayed at Wasurenosato Gajoen, which was founded in 1970 and is located in Kirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture. On this day, I headed from Miyazaki Airport, changed trains, and arrived at a small station, from which I took a 15-minute taxi ride. At the entrance to this small inn, located further inside the lush hot spring town, there was a sign that read, "Chickens have priority beyond this point."
The inn had a different feel to it than a hot spring inn, resort, or traditional Japanese inn. The stone-paved road was uneven, undulating, branching, and forming a topography, and several thatched-roof houses were clustered together, as if the entire inn was a single village. By the roadside, by the fireplace, at the well, wild flowers were arranged everywhere, and radishes were drying in the sun, just like the scenery of a Japanese rural village in my mind. At my feet, a moss-covered Jizo statue looked up at me and smiled.
Upon entering the room and opening the shoji screens in the living room, we found a semi-open-air hot spring gushing forth in a space connected to the grounds. A large stone bath carved into a huge rock over several years. A daybed with a view of jade green leaves outside the window. This was not a hot spring to soak in, but a place to spend time.
I would write my manuscript while lying on the daybed with my PC, and when I got tired I would go into the hot springs. When I got too hot, I would get out, put on my yukata, and write my manuscript on the daybed again. In this way, I would repeatedly go back and forth between the bath and the daybed, and continue writing my manuscript all day long.
A place that can be considered both a bathroom and a living room
Private baths such as "Waterfall Bath" and "Ramune Bath" are also available.
Taking a bath and writing a manuscript are just ordinary actions that are an extension of my daily life. However, when ordinary everyday activities are carried out in an extraordinary space, the extraordinary stands out precisely because they are ordinary actions. If travel is shaped not by what you do but by how you are, then perhaps this is why people want retreats where they can continue to be in an extraordinary space, rather than sightseeing trips. Wasure-no-sato Gajoen has created such a stay in its simple atmosphere.
It's possible that this place has been a scene of such retreats for decades.
Wasurenosato Gajoen
| address | ： | 4230 Yado Kubota, Makizono-cho, Kirishima City, Kagoshima Prefecture |
|---|---|---|
| phone | ： | 0995-77-2114 |
| Fee | ： | Accommodation: From 52,950 yen including breakfast and dinner |
| web | ： | https://gajoen.jp/ |
Shoko Ryuzaki
After establishing Suisei Co., Ltd. (formerly L&G GLOBAL BUSINESS, Inc.) in 2015, he opened HOTEL SHE, KYOTO in 2016, HOTEL SHE, OSAKA in 2017, Korinkyo in 2021, and the postpartum care resort CAFUNE in May 2022. In addition, he develops and operates the hotel's own reservation SaaS "CHILLNN" and provides consulting services for tourism businesses and local governments.
X (old Twitter): @shokoryuzaki
Instagram: @shokoryuzaki
Refresh yourself with something out of the ordinary and get the energy you need for the next day.
Even though it's a retreat, you can do nothing, try something you discovered there, or try something you haven't had a chance to do yet. How you spend your time is up to each individual. Spending time at a hotel that gives you a sense of the extraordinary will surely give you the strength to face your daily life the next day.
Domestic Discount Fares Skymate
Limited to ages 12 and over and under 25!
Extremely affordable discount fares available for booking from the day of departure (4 hours before departure)
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The contents published are accurate at the time of publication and are subject to change.
