Translation guide
A small hotel or lodging, often in a traditional or rural setting. In Japanese, the most common equivalent is 旅館 (ryokan), but other words exist depending on the style and context.
A Japanese-style inn with tatami rooms, futon bedding, and often meals and hot springs.
The standard word for a traditional Japanese inn. Often associated with hot springs and kaiseki meals.
I stayed at an inn in Hakone.
A family-run, budget-friendly inn, often in rural or coastal areas. More casual than a ryokan.
I ate fresh fish dishes at the inn.
An inn with hot spring baths. Often used interchangeably with ryokan when the inn has onsen.
I relaxed at a hot spring inn.
A small, cozy lodging in a Western style, like a bed and breakfast or country inn.
An old-fashioned or poetic term for any place offering lodging, like in stories or RPGs.
旅館 (ryokan) is a traditional Japanese inn with tatami and futons, while ホテル (hoteru) is a Western-style hotel. Use 旅館 for the cultural experience, ホテル for standard hotels.
At a ryokan, you wear a yukata.
Hotels have beds.
The English word 'inn' can sound quaint or historical. In modern Japanese, specify the type: 旅館 for traditional, ペンション for Western-style, or 民宿 for budget. Using 宿 (yado) alone may sound vague or archaic.
The innkeeper was kind.