After serving as a prison for more than 100 years and undergoing seven years of renovations, the longtime home to convicted felons in Nara, Japan, has been transformed into a luxury hotel for lovers of unconventional stays with unique histories.
Open since the end of June, guests comfortable with staying in combined former prison cells can now choose from 48 suites that fit up to two guests each at Hoshinoya Nara Hotel. A mixture of renovations and preserved elements, the rooms include high ceilings, inviting warm wood, and historic red brick. Across the main building and the 25-acre property, guests can also roam the onsite Nara Prison Museum, relax in the common areas, go on a rickshaw ride, take a “fragrance-blending” class, or dine at the onsite restaurant or cafe. The museum, which offers free admission for all ages, invites visitors to dig into the site’s deep history and contemplate the meaning of freedom.
Also notable, the culinary fare pulls inspiration from Japan’s Meiji era (from 1868 to 1912), when the country’s cuisine began taking on Western influences. Per the hotel, expect to see menu items including Scotch eggs, fried prawns, hot pot, “hamburger steak simmered in a Japanese-style miso sauce,” desserts, and more.
What Else Is There To Know About The Hoshinoya Nara Hotel?
The iconic red brick building first opened as a prison in 1908. The hotel’s website describes the building’s style as one where “Classic prison architecture meets modern elegance.” Furthermore, the museum details that the renovated hotel site is “the only fully intact survivor of the five great prisons built in the 1900s.” Those buildings, collectively known as the Meiji Five Great Prisons, include other Western-style Japanese penitentiaries in Chiba, Kanazawa, Kagoshima, and Nagasaki. History and culture buffs may also appreciate that the Japanese tile roofs at Hoshinoya Nara Hotel have contributed toward its distinction as a formally designated Important Cultural Property in Japan since 2017.
Though Hoshinoya Nara Hotel is the newest debut, former prisons turned into guest accommodations can be found across the globe, such as in Canada, Sweden, Germany, and the United States.
