Since my parents and Joanna came in Japan for a very long stay (48 hours), we more or less only had time to go to one place. Seiko and I thought that Yunishigawa (湯西川, Tochigi-ken) would be a nice option. Located in the mountains, a little north of Nikko, this place used to be a retreat for the Heike clan. Once holding the power in Kyoto, they had to hide in Tochigi-ken. The present owner of the Heike Bankyu Ryokan is still belonging to the same family.

This ryokan is a very old place - in activity for 330 years. Buildings, located close to a river. Although we all slept in the same room, the place was indeed comfortable.

Dinner was not served in the rooms, as the old tradition would suggest, but rather in a separated building on the other side of the bridge.

The dinner was absolutely gorgeous, although other foreigners found some of it very strange. We also had some nice sake, including a non-filtered one.

Another great feature of the ryokan are the baths. With several inside baths, plus three rotemburo (露天風呂, outside baths) including one konyoku (混浴, mixed bath), we had plenty of places to enjoy both the evening, night and morning baths.

The following morning, we also visited the village - including an open-air museum featuring old houses and traditionnal life.

And then, we headed toward Nikko.