Shinkamanza Machiya Resort Named “Village Kiramachi”; New Photos from Our Stay

A few months ago I wrote about an innovative machiya townhouse revival project in the Shinkamanza district of central Kyoto. Under the supervision of local architectural company, Good Design Works, not just one traditional townhouse but a whole group of houses has been renovated and reinvented as a single integrated resort hotel. I have now been informed that the resort has received a new official name: 宿きらまち (yado kiramachi) in Japanese, or “Village Kiramachi” in English. This new name partly reflects the close communal atmosphere that Good Design Works have strived to create in this project, and also honors the name of the chief designer Moatesu Kiraeri.

Mewby in the Village Kiramachi machiya resort.

Mewby and I were recently invited back to the Village Kiramachi resort to see how much the construction work has progressed and also to spend a night in these beautiful surroundings. The resort will not be opened to guests until later this year, so we were very fortunate to be able to have a preview of the facilities. Here are some images from our stay.

A village view. At the center of the resort is a small community shrine.

Each machiya building has been lovingly restored with respect to its individual character – no two buildings are exactly alike.

A small stream runs throughout the resort offering natural background music.

Two lanes lead into the resort from the street outside. One is original…

…And one was newly created to add more air and light. Can you tell which is which?

Everywhere you see tremendous attention to detail, from the traditional latticework on the windows…

…to specially selected momiji maple patterned ceiling paper….

…or in this room the simple beauty of a wooden ceiling.

In this house guests can enjoy moon viewing in all seasons.

A traditional tea room is also available for the guests’ enjoyment.

This house has a traditional hinoki wood bath.

And in this house you can enjoy a view of the inner garden while taking a shower.

Imagine going to sleep with this as your view…

Many thanks to Good Design Works for letting us stay at Village Kiramachi and for permission to take these photographs. For more information about this beautiful new resort and to view the design plans, see my original article: Shinkamanza: An Innovative Machiya Townhouse Resort in Downtown Kyoto. Village Kiramachi will open to guests later this year.