Ryokans of Japan are lying vacant as country keeps tourists away

Tuesday, August 9, 2022

The graceful figure of a kimono-clad general manager, Taisuke Yajima, he was looking gloomily at a £6,000 Japanese cedar bathtub. He is wilting somewhat in the hot and humid summer of Kyoto. The wooden tub is empty save for a shallow lozenge of water. The scent of cedar and rose incense are floating everywhere, passing through the air of these inherited Japanese chambers.

Mr. Yajima explained that not using it regularly, these traditional Japanese baths get cracked, so the water you see is a need. And as each one is skillfully made by hand, that would be an offense whatsoever.

His charge belongs obviously to “machiya” country, where usually timbered, elegantly refurbished, restaurants, homes, and hotels can be found in the Gion district of Kyoto.

This particular century-old machiya, once a refined geisha-totting restaurant, is at present a small-sized luxury hotel.

However, its surviving in spite of difficult circumstances. Sowaka and its cedar baths are in urgent need of tourists to cater. However, what can be done, is a big question. Thanks to a constantly closed-door policy to control virus spread, afraid local travellers and a strong seventh wave of Covid in the country, this machiya – a delicately reinstated poem to Japanese crafts genius – is deprived of tourists for days on end.

As contrasting to other financially well-off nations, Japan since April 2020, has sealed its borders endlessly against individual travellers in spite of its relatively lower death rates from Covid.

« Back to Page

• Japan’s Shinkansen trains to get ‘private rooms’ with doors

• Discovering the Charm of Fushimi Jikkokubune Boat Cruise in Kyoto, Japan

• Japan National Tourism Organization teams up with AllKnown Marketers to boost India-Japan tourism

• Japan hosted 3.1 million tourists in cherry blossom season

• UNESCO World Heritage Sites to Visit in Asia to Explore Rich History and Culture