Iseya Ryokan in Narai–post town along the Nakasendo Highway

Narai is one the post-towns along the Nakasendo Highway that is well preserved like Magome and Tsumago. There are many historical buildings, craft shops, stores and inns along the one kilometer stretch of the preserved main street. After doing the hike across the Torii-touge Pass, we chose to spend the night at the Iseya Ryokan.

Front entrance of the Iseya Ryokan at dusk.

 

Lobby area of Iseya Ryokan.

 

Model of Iseya Ryokan.

Traditional paper umbrellas at the lobby – have not seen these for a long time

The ryokan is bigger than it looked from the outside. We stayed at a two storey building behind the main building, linked by an inner courtyard garden with a nice Koi pond.  There were at least 4 Japanese style rooms, with shared WCs and a row of wash basins outside. There is a heater but no air-conditioners in the room. This was not an issue for our stay in Spring. The windows in our room is 3 layered -  layer of sliding glass panes, layer of sliding wire mesh screen to keep out the bugs and a paper–lined layer that provided privacy but also lets in light. In spring, we just opened the glass windows to let in natural cool air.

Inner courtyard garden with a nice Koi pond.

Iseya offers shared bathing facilities. There are two bathrooms with ofuros that can be used privately. The water in the bath is hot! Perfect for relaxation after a day of walking the Nakasendo.

 

Shared bath facility that can be used privately as a couple or family.

 

Kaiseki dinner was served at the main building and we get to see all the guests. The delicious dinner included carp sashimi, deep fried river trout, chawanmushi, grilled egg plant with miso paste, cold soba, 3 types of mushrooms and peach jelly. The raw carp meat is crunchy and goes well with the wasabi and soyu sauce.

Unlike other ryokans where futons would be laid out for us in our rooms while we were having dinner, we were required to deploy the futons in the rooms ourselves at the Iseya. Not that difficult to deploy. Thankfully, we just need to leave the futons on the tatami mats when we leave.

After a good night sleep, a nice Japanese breakfast was served the next morning.

Overall, Iseya is a good place to stay while visiting Narai. Friendly and helpful staff that speaks English, delicious meals, shared bathroom facilities that can be used privately are some of the positives.

 

The owner snapped photos of all the ryokan’s guests before departure and posted them on the ryokan’s website.