Ryokan Kaminaka

About Ryokan Kaminaka

Ryokan Kaminaka (旅館かみなか) is a two-storey wooden inn of the mid-Meiji period in Hanaoka-cho, Takayama City, Gifu Prefecture, whose main building and storehouse were registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Property structures on February 23, 2012. The inn dates its main building to 1888 and still operates as a ryokan (Ryokan Kaminaka).

The Agency for Cultural Affairs dates the main building to the mid-Meiji period, with renovation in 1958, and the storehouse to the Taisho era. The main building faces west onto the street, with the storehouse just to its north.

Two Buildings

The main building is a two-storey timber structure with a building area of 398 square metres under a combination of gabled and hipped sheet-iron roofs. A cusped karahafu canopy marks the central entrance, projecting lattice windows run around both floors, and the interior fittings are carefully worked (Agency for Cultural Affairs).

The two-storey earthen storehouse has a doorway into the main building on each floor and no internal staircase, an unusual arrangement (Agency for Cultural Affairs). Both were registered as buildings that contribute to the historic landscape of the country.

The inn describes the building as retaining traces of its past as a pleasure-quarter house, with playful carvings throughout (Ryokan Kaminaka).

Visiting Ryokan Kaminaka

Ryokan Kaminaka is a working inn, and its interior is seen by staying there; we found no official information on visits by non-guests. It is a 3-minute walk from JR Takayama Station and 7 minutes from the old town (Ryokan Kaminaka). The exterior can be seen from the street.