Travel Experiences Honored for Inclusion, Diversity

By Heather Howard / Japan News Staff Writer

10:54 JST, March 13, 2026

Travel destinations and experiences that foster inclusion, diversity and sustainability were celebrated recently at the 2026 Japan Travel Awards, with this year’s top prize going to a ryokan Japanese-style inn run by the descendants of a feudal lord.

Winners gathered at the Tokyo American Club in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in February for the presentation ceremony. A record 206 entries were submitted for this year’s awards, with prizes given in 11 categories overall.

Building family memories

The 2026 Grand Prix was awarded to Ryokan Ohana, an inn and ryotei restaurant founded by members of the Tachibana family in Yanagawa, Fukuoka Prefecture. Once feudal lords and later members of the modern aristocracy, the Tachibanas’ history in Yanagawa stretches back more than 400 years. The family first took up residence at the site that now houses Ohana in 1738.

“This was my grandparents’ home, and I loved it when all our relatives would gather here once a year,” said current proprietor Chizuka Tachibana, the 18th-generation head of the Tachibana family. “When guests use it now, I feel that this place of our family’s memories is becoming part of their memories as well. It’s adding to its history over time.”

Among the cultural features to be found on the Ohana grounds are the Shoto-en Garden, an ornamental pond garden surrounded by black pine trees, and the Tachibana Museum. Today, the inn is the only place in Japan where guests can stay overnight in a national place of scenic beauty, a designation granted to the entire Ohana site in 2011.

As part of its efforts to have guests relax “as if this was their home,” Ohana does not have age limits barring small children as some ryokan do. “Cultural properties have an image of ‘don’t touch that’ or ‘don’t run,’” Tachibana said. “But we’re using what was originally a home, so when children are running around the Grand Hall, when they’re having a wonderful time, it makes us feel ‘today has been a good day.’”

Ohana was also praised by the Japan Travel Awards for its consideration for its staff. Unusually for a ryokan, the facility is closed every year on Jan. 1 and 2, for example, and its regular employees are required to take 10 consecutive days off each year to refresh themselves.

“People can’t give to others if they don’t give to themselves,” Tachibana said.

Kimono for everyone

Kimono styling and photography service InKimono in Asakusa, Tokyo, received two prizes at the 2026 awards — best accessible travel and best LGBTQ+ travel. Founder Stasia Matsumoto was praised for enabling guests with mobility needs “to fully participate with dignity and care” and for “personalized styling that affirms identity rather than assumptions.”

Matsumoto chooses from her vast collection of kimono to create unique outfits for each photo session that she shoots, taking into account customers’ personal style and requests. She also explains about the garments clients will wear in their choice of Japanese, English or Polish, telling them about such features as the patterns and level of formality.

For clients using a wheelchair, Matsumoto draws on her specialized training in wheelchair kitsuke kimono styling, using for example a pre-tied obi sash to eliminate the need for wrapping it around the body. She will also visit the client at their accommodation or home, having scouted the surrounding area ahead of time for suitable shooting locations.

In addition to visible LGBTQ+-friendly signage at Matsumoto’s studio, she also makes it clear through her website and social media that all are welcome.

“It’s important for a business to … highlight it on the website themselves; don’t wait for people to ask,” said Matsumoto. “A lot of people, I think, shy away from voicing their opinions because they worry that ‘I’m going to lose followers, I’m going to lose clients.’

“When you voice your opinions, people who share the same opinions … will follow you. So, you create your community of people who share the same values.”

Epic natural beauty

The award for best sustainable travel went to the Ento accommodation facility located in Ama in the Oki Islands of Shimane Prefecture, which were designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark in 2013. Awards judge Joy Jarman-Walsh, a sustainable travel consultant and educator, praised Ento as “an outstanding example of sustainable hospitality — stylish, inclusive, and accessible, while actively supporting the local community and economy.”

As part of these efforts, most of the ingredients used in Ento’s dining are sourced from local producers.

“Rice cultivation has flourished in these islands since the Heian period [794–late 12th century],” said Yurie Asakawa of Ento’s operating company Ama Inc. “Rice, vegetables, fish and spring water — everything is here.” Ento staff also go out with local fishermen to gather seaweed and grow herbs themselves for the facility’s cuisine, Asakawa said.

Visitors have a wide range of options for enjoying the geopark, including day and night cruises on an observation boat that allows a view of marine life. Guests can also take a guided e-bike tour or use the bikes to explore Ama on their own.

Within the Ento facility is the Geo Room Discover where visitors can learn about the formation of the Earth and the characteristics of the Oki Islands, and the Geo Lounge with a panoramic view and ancient fossils on display. Books from the on-site library can be enjoyed in the lounge or in guests’ own rooms, all of which offer views of the sea.

“We want people to breathe deep,” Asakawa said.

Personal bonds

The prize for best inbound travel went to Secrets d’Artisans Japonais, a service offering bespoke tours to the workshops of traditional Japanese craftsmen. Founder Julie Baud was lauded by the Japan Travel Awards for bridging cultures “through thoughtful storytelling, deep personal relationships with artisans, and careful attention to individual needs.”

Focusing on the Nagoya region, Baud tailors each program to the client, based on factors including visitors’ areas of interest, the particular season and local events. In addition to hands-on experiences with the artisans’ crafts, participants are introduced to local areas as well and visit eateries and shops.

Secrets d’Artisans Japonais is also dedicated to inclusivity, adapting as necessary to dietary needs, neurodivergence and mobility issues. Tours are available in areas ranging from pottery and kimono to the creation of swords and Buddhist altars, and can be conducted in Japanese, English and French.

While many guides focus on the history of traditional arts, Baud said, she puts greater emphasis on artisans’ modern reality. “History is interesting, but talking about daily life realities is much more likely to create a bond and a connection between people,” she said. “I want people first to have fun, because they are on vacation … And I want them to feel like they are friends with the craftsmen.”

“A lot of my customers tell me, ‘We have never seen Japanese people laughing that much.’ And also, I’m translating the dajare [puns], I translate everything,” said Baud. “So, they’re sometimes shocked about all the puns that Japanese can do, that Japanese people love puns. And they love shimoneta [bawdy jokes] as well,” Baud said. “This is where you see, we’re just human after all.”

Special recognition awards

Special recognition awards were also given in a number of categories, with best family travel going to Kitakaruizawa Sweet Grass in Naganohara, Gunma Prefecture. Visitors to this outdoor accommodation and camping facility can choose from a selection of cottages, cabins and tents, some of which are open to dogs and other pets.

A wide variety of activities are available — including arts and crafts, preparing firewood and collecting honey — and there are a number of treehouses on the property as well, one of which guests can stay in.

“The key concept for us is ‘family reconnection,’” said Suguru Fukushima of the operating company Kitamoc.

“When people come to a camping facility, they have to do things together,” like pitching a tent or getting a fire going, Fukushima said. “We hope that they can experience their family bonds through the ‘non-everyday experiences of camping,’ even for a short time, and then return to everyday life.”

The award for best cultural travel was given to the Traditional Cultural Experience Villa Tsutaya in Saku, Nagano Prefecture. Set in a renovated traditional house dating back 110 years, this inn was once a kimono shop and the home in which proprietor Taiji Iwasaki was raised.

The property is rented to one group of guests at a time, and visitors can try their hand at such traditional crafts as Sakiori loom weaving and aizome indigo dyeing, creating a unique souvenir to take home. They can also help prepare rice over a wood fire in a kamado pot, cook fish on the hearth and pound mochi glutinous rice.

Awards judge Lang Hao, a strategic planner at the Shiitake Creative creative agency that launched the awards, praised the warmth and enthusiasm of Iwasaki and his staff. Experiencing their hospitality, Hao said, “was like visiting your grandparents’ home.”

The best social impact award was given to F-ATRAs, a regional revitalization startup in Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture, honored by the Japan Travel Awards for using tourism “as a tool for education, dialogue, and long-term recovery.”

Among other offerings, F-ATRAs provides educational group tours primarily for middle school to college students. Ranging from one to three days in length, the specific itinerary can be customized as needed and interpretation is available in English and Korean. In addition to destinations connected to the 2011 disaster, including the remains of Ukedo Elementary School and The Great East Japan Earthquake and Nuclear Disaster Memorial Museum, options also include an Obori Soma ware pottery kiln founded in 1760 and a farm using cutting-edge technology to grow strawberries.

“I want people to see this region not only through the lens of a nuclear disaster, but to discover the richness of its culture, the strength of its people as they move toward recovery, and the value of the land itself,” founder Tatsuhiro Yamane said by email.

“When visitors from outside experience the value of this place and put it into words, I hope that the people who live here will also rediscover that value themselves,” Yamane said. “I especially want to create an environment in which the children growing up here — including my own daughters — can take pride in their hometown and grow up feeling its richness and beauty.”

The 2026 prize for best educational experience went to the Miyakojima Dugong Research Tour in Miyakojima, Okinawa Prefecture. Participants travel out in a traditional wooden sabani boat to survey seagrass beds and search for traces of dugong, marine mammals with a plump appearance similar to their manatee cousins but with a fluke-shaped tail like a dolphin.

Other activities on the tour include searching for sea turtles and planting seagrass.

How many dugong live around Okinawa is unknown and sightings are extremely rare, according to Mumi Kikuchi, founder of tour operator Chikyu Lab. Knowledge of the dugong is limited even among local residents, and Kikuchi aims first and foremost to boost awareness of and interest in the animals.

“If people join this tour, I think they’ll come away with many more questions and mysteries,” said Kikuchi, a scientist with experience researching manatee in Africa and the Amazon River. “I want visitors to leave not entirely satisfied — to return again and again, explore unknown things on their own, and deepen their interest in wildlife and nature. I believe that will lead to environmental conservation.”

The best tourism development prize went to Ozu Castle Stay in Ozu, Ehime Prefecture, a program offering guests the chance to stay overnight in a restored castle tower. Ozu Castle Stay was praised by the Japan Travel Awards as a “powerful catalyst for citywide revitalization” that “serves as a gateway to Ozu itself, activating a wide network of local residents, artisans, businesses, and institutions.”

As part of those efforts, guests enter the castle in a recreation of an entry ceremony for a feudal lord, themselves clad in armor or kimono. Their arrival is marked with such fanfare as the firing of matchlock rifles by the Ozu-han Teppotai (Ozu domain gun corps) and a performance of kagura traditional dance.

“We also use local ingredients in our dinner and breakfast, which helps to fuel the local economy,” said Asuka Miyoshi of operator Kita Management.

Ozu Castle Stay also offers a number of customized programs to further enjoy Ozu, including traveling on a riverboat or visiting such cultural assets as Nyohoji Temple. Guests can even request a display of fireworks.

The Klook award, sponsored by the online travel company of that name, was given to Kinosaki E-Transport Tours in Hyogo Prefecture, a service that allows travelers to explore the wider Kinosaki area on electronic scooters, bicycles and tuk-tuks.

Four recommended routes include such sites as Genbudo Cave Park, which is part of a UNESCO Global Geopark, the tattoo-friendly Kinosaki Onsen Town and various coastal areas.

“We created routes where visitors can experience sights, including archetypal landscapes and ways of life, that you only find in the Japanese countryside,” tour operator Daigo Obayashi said by email. “Also, Kinosaki Onsen is close to the Sea of Japan, and it’s the first place where the nationally protected Oriental stork was successfully reintroduced into the wild.”

“These elements — the sea, mountains, rivers, hot springs, and the care shown to the natural environment — are local resources. Our priority is to offer an experience people can enjoy at their own pace, by themselves in a leisurely way.”