Three timber storeys holding Japanese and Western rooms
Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) is a guest wing of a hot-spring inn at Yumoto in Higashiyamamachi, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture, built about 1935 and listed as a Registered Tangible Cultural Property on 20 December 1996. It is three storeys of timber under a tiled roof, covering 360 square metres.
It is the youngest of the four listed buildings here and the only one of three storeys: the entrance wing has two, the hanare one, the other guest wing two. On a site that falls away steeply, the difference in height is also a response to the ground.
Its registration number is 07-0004, the fourth in Fukushima Prefecture.
Why it was listed
Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) was listed as a model of design.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs notes rooms in the Sukiya-zukuri manner alongside a Western-style conference room and calls the building a good example of the level of craft of its day. That it does not hold to a single manner is itself the finding.
Like the older guest wing, it is said to be the work of a master carpenter from Tokyo with much of the fitting-out done by local craftsmen. The same pairing built here across some forty years, from the 1890s to the mid-1930s.
Design that changes room by room
What to watch for is how the treatment changes from room to room. Rooms in the sukiya manner and a Western conference room sit in one wing. For about 1935, mixing the two was what inn architecture was doing.
Three storeys is a good deal for a timber inn. Stacking three floors over 360 square metres means the views improve as you climb. This wing does not stand at the top of the slope, and the height makes up for that.
Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) is one of the wings that enclose the inner garden. Rather than reading it alone, look at how its roof overlaps those of the neighbouring wing and the entrance building.
Visiting
Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) is a working guest wing, and only staying guests go inside. The conference room included, the interior is space that guests use.
It stands back from the road, which sees little more than part of its roof. The three-storey height reads when you look up at the stacked roofs from the street through Higashiyama Onsen.
Directions and the terms on which the inn operates are set out on the page for Mukaitaki.
- 📍 Plan Your Visit to Fukushima
- Find tours, activities & transport passes near Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others)
- [ Aizu-Wakamatsu Castle & Ouchi-juku Village Tours ]
Q&A
- How many floors does this Mukaitaki guest wing have?
- Three timber storeys, the only building of three on the site.
- When was Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) built?
- About 1935, which makes it the youngest of the four listed buildings here.
- How are its rooms finished?
- Differently from one to the next: rooms in the sukiya manner share the wing with a Western-style conference room.
- Can this wing be visited?
- It is a working guest wing, so only staying guests go inside. From the road little more than part of the roof shows.
- What is its registration number?
- 07-0004, listed on 20 December 1996.
Basic Information
| Name | Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) |
|---|---|
| Location | 200 Kawamukae, Yumoto, Higashiyama-cho, Aizuwakamatsu City, Fukushima Prefecture |
| Designation | Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Structure) |
| Year Designated | Registered 1996 (Heisei 8) |
| Quantity | 1 building |
| Dimensions | Timber frame, 3 storeys, tiled roof, building area 360 square metres |
| Owner | Mukaitaki Co., Ltd. |
| Public Access | Exterior from within the grounds; interior is space for staying guests |
References
- National Cultural Properties Database: Mukaitaki Guest Wing (Conference Room, Kiku Room and Others) (Agency for Cultural Affairs)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/heritage/detail/101/00000024
- Registered Tangible Cultural Property (Aizu Higashiyama Onsen Mukaitaki)
- https://www.mukaitaki.com/cultural_assets/
Last verified: 2026.09.17
