Staying at Mifuneyama Rakuen Hotel!
A different world from the moment you step inside
In Saga, we stayed at Mifuneyama Rakuen Hotel. The hotel collaborates with teamLab, and several of their works are displayed throughout the property.
The moment I walked through the entrance, I was stunned by the space opening up before me.
I had casually assumed there would be a dedicated exhibition room, so I never expected the lobby itself—the very place where you check in—to be staged like this.
Because of the artwork, even the check-in counter was dimly lit, so I ended up using a MUJI flashlight, haha.
The lamps weren’t just blinking at random; the light moved from one illuminated lamp to the next, as if drawing a continuous line through the space.
This work, Forest and Spiral of Resonating Lamps: One Stroke, had a similar version on display at teamLab Borderless back when it was in Odaiba, but it apparently isn’t exhibited at the new Azabudai Hills location.
When it was in Odaiba, there was a time limit for entering, so I had to rush to take photos. Here, though, you can take your time and enjoy it without any restrictions, which is great.
Come to think of it, there used to be a version arranged like Rapunzel lanterns too, right?
Next to it was a space called EN TEA HOUSE – Suito-ro where you could enjoy drinks, and we had our welcome drink there.
But we were already running behind schedule, and it was really down to the wire whether we’d make it to the garden and the bath before dinner, so I drank it quickly and headed to the room, lol.
Naikojyo Japanese-Style Room
The room we stayed in was the Naikojyo Japanese-Style Room. It was very spacious—more than enough room even for four people.
Apparently, the building housing this room was relocated from the villa of Naohiro Nabeshima, the 11th lord of the Saga Domain. But it was so seamlessly connected to the hotel that, if no one had told me beforehand, I never would have realized part of it had been moved from an older building.
Maybe its character would have been more apparent from the outside, but I never really got a feel for it since I wasn’t quite sure how to get outside in the first place.
The sink and bath looked like this, and since we used the large public bath, we didn’t use the in-room bath.
The amenities were all from MARKS&WEB.
The toilet felt a little dated, but it was kept clean.
The sauna is absolutely incredible!
Switched between morning and night
After enjoying all the artworks, I hurried to the bath before dinner. (Though in the end, I went again after dinner too… haha.)
The highlight here is definitely the sauna. It has been featured in Sauna Schran many times and has even been inducted into its hall of fame.
There are two bath areas, and the men’s and women’s sides switch between morning and night, so I recommend trying both.
Sorry I can only describe it in words—I couldn’t take photos.
Of course the sauna itself was wonderful, but there was even a lounge, and it was my first time ever sitting around a fireplace and eating marshmallows completely naked, haha.
The enormous wood-fired sauna was especially impressive—I was amazed by how huge it was. It seems you can also visit just for the day, but since it’s pretty expensive, being able to stay overnight and enjoy it multiple times felt incredibly luxurious.
Dinner
Dishes that were fun to look at, too
After rushing through the teamLab exhibits and the baths, it was time for dinner. I was especially grateful that we could choose a later dinner time of 20:00, since dinners at ryokan are often much earlier and that always gives me trouble…
The first things brought out were a pureed seasonal vegetable soup and an assortment of appetizers.
The persimmon wasn’t just used as a serving vessel—the flesh itself was edible too, so I made sure to eat it properly.
Next came the tempura.
Then they brought out white fish baked in puff pastry. Seeing it, I couldn’t help thinking of that pie from Kiki’s Delivery Service.
There was also a steamed dish: a bamboo steamer with A5-grade Saga beef and Takeo Wakakusu pork.
Making the hot pot together at the table
And the final dish to appear was a hot pot loaded with mushrooms. For some reason, this one was done in a style where we cooked it ourselves on a burner placed on the table.
Since the people I was with were used to making hot pot, it wasn’t a problem at all, but I still thought it was pretty unusual to do this much of the cooking ourselves.
The finishing dish was sansho curry. Apparently, the meat used was Saga beef.
That said, I could barely taste the sansho, so it felt a little different from what I had expected.
Dessert was homemade green tea ice cream.
This green tea ice cream was wonderfully rich, and I enjoyed it very much.
Don’t forget the works around the lobby, either
Late at night, the day visitors had finally thinned out, and I was able to take my time viewing the teamLab works around the lobby with far fewer people around.
That said, the lantern installation felt a little underwhelming then—maybe because of a late-night mode, the lamps were glowing with a light closer to white. I think I preferred the colors from the busier hours when people were around.
The final day begins!
A cute basket-style breakfast
At last, it was the final day of our Saga trip. I went to the bath first thing in the morning, enjoyed the sauna again, and then headed to breakfast. Breakfast was served in the same venue as the night before, with side dishes prepared in baskets on the table.
Part of it was buffet-style, and the roast pork and salad were items you went to get yourself.
The miso soup was buffet-style too, and it was an unusual setup where you heated the fried tofu yourself before eating it.
That said, only a limited number could be grilled at once, so if your timing was bad, the line could get pretty long.
The installations that weren’t running the next morning
Before checking out, I went back to see the artworks from the day before, thinking they might be less crowded now.
…but they were turned off, haha.
Still, it made for a striking scene in its own way.
The lanterns in front of the lobby, however, were fully running.
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