Yamaichi Bekkan

This small inn is located just near the ferry dock but is peaceful and quiet. The rooms are spacious and air-conditioned and you are close to all amenities on the island, which is great when all the tourists head home in the afternoon as you then basically have the island to yourself. The absolute highlight though is the hospitality shown by the proprietor Shinko and her family, who go out of their way to make you feel comfortable. The traditional Japanese meals they serve are the best I have ever had, which each course (there were eight!) perfectly presented along with an explanation of what you were eating and where it had been sourced from. Our hosts went out of their way to speak with us in English and insisted on getting a photo with us on our departure to pin on their wall. This is one of the most scenic islands in Japan and, coupled with the reception we received, it was somewhere that we wished we could have stayed at longer.

I would definitely recommend staying on the island and staying here. It is located near the ferry port but it's a peaceful setting and very quiet at night. The rooms are normal for a ryokan - quite small but with a private bathroom and air conditioning. So far, so normal. What set it apart is the superb food and the lovely landlady and her team. There is a choice of western or Japanese - both beautifully presented. Dinner was seven course - again beautifully presented with an explanation of every course. I think these were the best Japanese meals that I have tasted. And the landlany is just so lovely. Genuinely pleased to see everyone and just so happy all the time. This palce just leaves you feeling very happy with life.

What a smiling happy lady running this place, and her son too. We assume it was dad in the kitchen . If it was, he seems happy too and the food he was turning out was stunning. People were coming here to eat from neighbouring hotels with fancy restaurants...what is that telling you? Well located opposite the ferry terminal and a five minute walk to the temple and floating gate. Its basic, but immaculately clean and the futon on the floor was better than most. The bathroom could have done with updating but there was plenty of hot water and everything worked. For the Welsh visitors. The son is a rugby fan and has a little note with 'Cymru am byth' pinned up behind the counter. We were also trying to get him to remember 'Sut Mae' for future Welsh guests. Not sure how successful we were.