Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan in Unzen Hot Spring, Nagasaki Prefecture Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan in Unzen Onsen, Nagasaki Prefecture, Receives the Good Design Award 2023

We are pleased to announce that Unzen Onsen Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan (Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan Co., Ltd. 320 Unzen, Obama-cho, Unzen City, Nagasaki Prefecture), designed and built by Hikone Architects, Shota Kano and an.a studio, has received the Good Design Award for 2023 (sponsored by the Japan Institute of Design Promotion). The award is presented to the "Unzen's Must-Have Ryokan".

The ryokan was highly evaluated for its "pursuit of a ryokan that is a must in Unzen, a ryokan that has been here for a long time, a ryokan that blends in with the magnificent landscape, and a ryokan that makes even its visitors a part of nature.

Good Design Award Logo

Facility Overview

Facility Name

Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan (320 Unzen, Obama-cho, Unzen City, Nagasaki Prefecture)

<Details

https://www.miyazaki-ryokan.co.jp/

Design Points

The architectural design incorporates Unzen's unique natural environment, which includes a Japanese garden, hell, and mountains in the national park.

Architectural plan to coexist with the nature of Unzen and the hot spring resort area.

A total design that inherits the local character and history of the long-established ryokan.

Producer

Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan Corporation Koichi Miyazaki, Chizuko Miyazaki

Director〉 Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan Co.

Yuya Hayashida, Prime Concept Inc.

Designer

Akira Hikone, Shota Kano, Hikone Architects & Engineers, Inc.

Atsuko Saito, an.a studio Inc.

Shigeru Hirabayashi, Shigeru Hirabayashi & Kankyo Kenchiku Kenkyujo

■Background of Design

Unzen Onsen used to be a summer resort and one of the most popular hot spring resorts in Japan, but since the beginning of the Heisei era, the area has lost its liveliness compared to its heyday due to the eruption of Mount Fugendake and a decrease in group tourists. However, since the beginning of the Heisei Era, the eruption of Mt. Fugendake and the decrease in group tourists, Unzen has lost its prosperity compared to its heyday. However, as Japan's first national park and resort, Unzen's history as a hot spring resort, and its unique and magnificent scenery, various efforts have been made in recent years to make the most of Unzen's unique characteristics.

In the planning of this project, we also sought to create a ryokan that can only be experienced in Unzen and contribute to the liveliness of the hot spring resort area, maximize the use of Unzen's unique landscape and environment, and respect the local character and history of the long-established ryokan.

The facility consists of a main building with common areas and guest rooms, a bathhouse, and a corridor connecting them. The old garden was left as it was, while the green space was increased to make the most of the landscape and coexist with nature. The sulfur spring that emanates from the hell is used for hot springs and heat exchange, but it also causes deterioration of the building and facilities, so it was carefully and meticulously planned.

■Design Process and Results

The lobby, dining room, guest rooms, and other user areas open to the garden, hell, and mountains, bringing the magnificent nature into the architecture through openings and semi-exterior spaces. By setting the rooms dark and focusing on aligning the walls and ceiling surfaces inside and out, we created a continuous space between inside and outside, with the scenery plunging into the rooms at various locations.

All guest rooms have spacious balconies, which, together with the open design and composition, amplify the sense of oneness with nature and enrich the lodging experience. On the road side of the first floor, located at the end of the Unzen Hot Springs Hell Tour, a café and benches were placed for use by non-guests to improve circulation and stay in the hot spring resort area, which has few accommodation facilities. In order to connect with the local community, furniture, displays, tableware, and meals, which directly affect guest satisfaction, are made in Kyushu, Nagasaki, and Unzen, and to carry on the history of the ryokan that was loved by many people, we incorporated elements that have not changed since its establishment, such as the use of signboards and glass works inside, the preservation of the symbolic garden and pine trees outside, and the façade. The exterior of the building incorporates elements that have remained unchanged since its founding, including the preservation of the iconic garden and pine trees, and the façade.

Evaluation comments by the Good Design Award jury

Ryokan inns in hot spring resorts with long histories are undergoing a wave of change. In today's world, where group incentive tours have completely disappeared, inns are no longer chosen for their uniform hospitality, but rather for their hospitality in providing individual guests with experiences and services that can only be obtained here. In pursuit of a ryokan that is a must in Unzen, we have created a space that blends in with the magnificent landscape as if it has been here for a long time, and we have devised many ways to make even visitors a part of nature. The beautiful and elegant openings cut through the scenery that can be felt by all five senses, which may differ from floor to floor in terms of the intensity of the greenery or the scent of sulfur.

Good Design Award Website

https://www.g-mark.org/gallery/winners/14977

Designer

Exterior

Rooms

Other Facilities

■What is the Good Design Award?

The Good Design Award is an activity to evaluate and promote Japan's leading designs, succeeding the Good Design Product Selection System established in 1957. As a global design award with the participation of many domestic and international companies and organizations, the Good Design Awards are held annually with the aim of improving the quality of life and utilizing design to solve social issues and themes. The symbol of the award, the "G Mark," is widely known as a symbol of excellent design.

http://www.g-mark.org/

Unzen Miyazaki Ryokan, Unzen Onsen

<Location

320 Unzen, Kohama-cho, Unzen City, Nagasaki 854-0621

<Official website

http://www.miyazaki-ryokan.co.jp/

Number of guest rooms

39 rooms

Facilities

Public baths (indoor and outdoor), sauna, water bath, 3 private baths, lounge for special guests, main dining room overlooking the garden, salon for guests, cafe, store.