Asakichi Ryokan

Asakichi Ryokan: A Restaurant Inn on the Furuichi Slope

Asakichi Ryokan (麻吉旅館) is a late Edo-period restaurant inn in Nakanocho, Ise City, Mie Prefecture, whose five buildings, the Main Building, the Juenro banquet wing, the Storehouse, the Front Storehouse and the Meigetsu and Sekko Rooms, were entered on the national register as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties on 9 February 2005.

Nakanocho lies along the pilgrim road between the Outer and Inner Shrines of Ise Jingu, in the district long known as Furuichi. Ise City describes Asakichi as a ryotei that entertained worshippers after their pilgrimage, the release from ritual abstinence known as shojin-otoshi. The inn's own account places Furuichi among the great pleasure quarters of the Edo period, ranked with Yoshiwara in Edo, Shimabara in Kyoto, Shinmachi in Osaka and Maruyama in Nagasaki, and says Asakichi opened there as a restaurant rather than a brothel house.

Nobody knows exactly when it started. The earliest record the inn points to is a street map of Furuichi dated 1782 that already shows the name Asakichi. The name is thought to come from Asaya Kichibei, a hereditary name passed down to successive owners until roughly the Taisho era, and Jippensha Ikku mentions Asakichi in Tokaidochu Hizakurige, when his two travellers set off for Furuichi.

Five Buildings Stacked on a Hillside

The buildings climb a steep slope in steps. Ise City calls the arrangement kakezukuri, a way of building out over sloping ground, and says that counted from the bottom the complex reaches 5 storeys. The Agency for Cultural Affairs registers each building separately: the Main Building and Juenro as timber structures of 3 storeys, partly 2, the Storehouse as a fireproof dozo of 3 storeys, partly 2, the Front Storehouse as a 2-storey dozo, and the Meigetsu and Sekko Rooms as a single-storey timber wing. There is no single 5-storey frame; buildings on different ground levels overlap, and from the foot of the slope they read as one tall mass.

The Main Building stands along the lane, with its main entrance on the third floor. The Juenro banquet wing lies to its west, the Storehouse to the southeast with its ridge turned to follow the bend of the lane, and the Meigetsu and Sekko Rooms to the east, joined by a covered passage. Only the Front Storehouse stands across the lane, linked to the third floor of the Main Building by an overhead corridor. A stone-stepped lane runs between the buildings, so the way they overlap changes with every few steps up or down.

The Agency dates all five to the late Edo period, between 1830 and 1867. Citing the Ise City history, Ise City notes that much of what survives was rebuilt in 1839, which falls within that range.

The five registrations carry consecutive numbers, 24-0052 to 24-0056, all under the criterion of contributing to the historic landscape of the country. Entrance and guest rooms, a banquet hall, a detached study wing and two storehouses survive together around a single lane.

Staying and Visiting

Asakichi Ryokan still operates as an inn and is owned by Asakichi Co., Ltd. There are no visitor hours or admission fees; in practice only overnight guests go inside. The inn has 6 guest rooms, 4 with bath and toilet and 2 with toilet only. There are 2 heated baths (not hot springs), open 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Check-in runs from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., the doors are locked and lights go out at 10 p.m., and check-out is at 10 a.m. Cash and credit cards are accepted, and the building is entirely non-smoking.

Expect many stairs and changes of level. The inn asks guests with heavy luggage or limited mobility to say so when booking, and will try to give them a room with fewer stairs. Bookings are taken through the official website or by phone on 0596-22-4101.

By bus, take a service marked via Furuichi Kaido, bound for Uratacho or Naiku-mae, from the stops outside Iseshi Station (JR and Kintetsu) or Kintetsu Ujiyamada Station, and get off at Nakanocho, 1 minute from the door. Buses are not frequent, so check the timetable first. Kintetsu Isuzugawa Station is a 15-minute walk away, and a taxi from Iseshi or Ujiyamada takes about 10 minutes. Drivers should allow about 1.2 kilometres from the Ise-nishi interchange exit; the car park next to the inn is free for guests. Map apps may route you to Asaka Tsuzura Inari Shrine, which is right next door, so simply follow the directions.

Without staying, you can still see the exterior from the lane that runs between the buildings. It is also an everyday route for local residents, so keep to the side when you stop to look. Ask the inn before taking photographs indoors.