Staying at a ryokan with children

Each inn sets its own age

There is no national rule. Some inns take guests of any age, babies included; some take children only in certain rooms; many of the smaller, quieter ones set a minimum age. On our list Beniya Mukayu takes no children under 7, Nishimuraya Honkan none under 10, Kinnotake Sengokuhara none under 12, Akan Tsuruga Bessou Hinanoza only guests of junior-high-school age and over, and Auberge Tokito no one under 16.

Several split the difference by room. At Kamenoi Bessou children are welcome in the cottages but not in the main building; at asaba from age 7, or any age in the Villa Tenko; at Tsuruko young children stay only in the Chihaku annex. The list shows where every inn we know stands.

Rooms, futons and rates

A tatami room suits young children better than most hotel rooms: there is space to play, nothing to fall from, and the futons are laid side by side so the family sleeps together. Under-sixes can often share bedding without a charge for it: at Azumi Setoda one child under 6 may share a bed; at Sanso Murata children of 6 and under stay free.

Rates are set per person and change with age. At many inns children pay the adult rate from 13, as at Gora Kadan and Fufu Nikko; at Sanyo-so from primary-school age. Ask what a child's rate includes, since it may come with or without dinner and bedding, as at Yachiyo.

Sekitei

Suimeiso at Wataya Besso

Kanshukuen Eshikoto

Dinner with children

A two-hour kaiseki is long for a small child, and many inns make a shorter dinner instead. Suimeiso at Wataya Besso serves a children's kaiseki from primary-school age, Yagyu-no-Sho one for ages 8 to 12, and Sekitei and Ryokan Yoyokaku children's menus; at Iki Retreat Kairi Murakami there is no children's menu, but rice and soup are free. At Fufu's inns the teppanyaki dinner is for children of ten and over.

In-room dining is easiest with young children: no one minds the noise, and they can leave the table between courses. Where dinner is in a restaurant, some inns seat families apart: The Hiramatsu Ginoza has a separate area, and Kanshukuen Eshikoto a private room.

Children in the baths

Two rules catch families out. Babies still in nappies are usually not allowed in shared baths: at Kofuyuden Beniya they bathe in the room bath only, and Fufu Atami and Sanyo-so do not allow them in the shared baths. And beyond a certain age children must use the bath for their own sex, so a father cannot take a daughter into the men's bath: from 7 at Gora Kadan Fuji, from 6 at Moku no Sho.

A room with its own bath, or a family bath you reserve, solves both, which is why families often choose an inn where every room has one.

Keeping the peace

Ryokans are quiet places, with thin walls, paper screens and long wooden corridors that carry sound. Kofuyuden Beniya welcomes children and asks for quiet in the corridors; at Takanawa Hanakohro under-13s are not allowed in the lounges after 17:00. A detached villa or cottage, as at Takefue, Sanso Murata or Wanosato's detached rooms, gives a family room to be a family.