Japanese-Style Bed and Breakfast: Pensions in the Kannabe Highlands

Looking for some good old-fashioned hospitality with a touch of adventure?

Consider your search complete with a stay at a “pension” in the Kannabe Highlands, a mountain and ski resort town just south of Kinosaki Onsen!

What is a “pension?” How is it different from a hotel or a ryokan in Kinosaki Onsen?

Pensions are a type of accommodation originating in Europe, now popular with tourists visiting Japanese mountain towns and countryside villages.

Staying at a Japanese pension, like staying at a ryokan, is all about the experience.

Pensions are normally furnished with European-style furniture and decor with a storybook vibe, perfectly fitting alongside the lush green settings these whimsical accommodations call home.

Cuisine served at pensions, like a ryokan, normally consists of both breakfast and dinner. The difference lies in the menu - while a ryokan will almost always serve an exclusively Japanese palate, a pension usually serves European or American-style meals such as beef and veggies for dinner, and bread and omelets for breakfast.

Shared spaces and shared bathrooms are the norm at pension accommodations.

The Kannabe Highlands just south of Kinosaki Onsen flourishes with pensions spread across its mountainous terrain, catering to winter skiers and green season adventurers alike.

Find your home away from home

Moonside

Just 3 minutes away by waling from Mango Bus Stop, Moonside is an ideal accommodation for groups looking to hit the slopes at the nearby Oku Kannabe and Manba Ski Resorts, or explore the area during the green season.

Western-style rooms with beds make up most of the room options, but some offer Japanese ambiance with futons instead of a bed.

After a day of outdoor fun, guests can relax in a reservable private bath and then kick back in the second floor loft lounge with forest views.

Dinner in the window-walled dining hall consists of crab or wagyu beef depending on the season while breakfast is a smorgasbord of tidbits including omelets, breads, and yogurt.

Kitamura

This cozy log cabin-inspired pension welcomes guests with western and Japanese-style rooms, a private bath, and scrumptious meal plans ranging from seafood, beef, and crab courses depending on the season.

For lunch, a visit to the on-site restaurant Agri Garden will send you off with a belly full of pasta, soup, and salad.

A rustic fusion of European and Japanese influences decorate the pension interior, with a large Japanese irori hearth surrounded by charming woodland knickknacks.

Travelers with a canine companion can also spend the night with their four-legged friends worry-free!

Special plans for dog owners are regularly available.

Albireo

For a night looking up at the country stars, Alibreo, just a minute’s walk from Yamada Bus Stop, is an ideal accommodation.

Spend the evening peering into the cosmos through Albireo’s state-of-the-art 60 cm reflective telescope, free to use by all guests!

Reach for the stars with special maisonette rooms, where guests can take off to the second floor for a good night’s sleep.

Along with western and Japanese-style rooms, Albireo provides authentic French cuisine courtesy of their in-house chef who studied in France.

Outdoor barbecue plans are also an option for a group meal!

Snow Land

Snow Land is a pension that not only boasts magical powdery scenes in the winter, but also stunning florals during the green season.

Although this pension is just a minute’s walk from Yamada Bus Stop, don’t forget to treat yourself to some beef, crab, or hunted game for dinner after a day of adventuring!

Western and Japanese-style rooms, will help you drift off into a peaceful sleep while a buffet breakfast awaits you in the morning.