Gôra Kadan Retains Michelin's Three Keys as Sister Property Gôra Kadan Fuji Opens

Gôra Kadan occupies a genuinely unusual piece of history in Hakone: the former summer villa of Prince Kan'in-no-miya Kotohito, a member of Japan's imperial family, used as a private retreat until 1948 before it reopened as a ryokan in 1952. In 1992, it became the first Japanese property admitted to Relais & Châteaux, a distinction it has held for more than three decades.

The Michelin Guide has recognized the property with its highest Key rating, Three Keys, in both 2024 and 2025, placing it among a small group of Japanese ryokan considered the very top tier of the country's hospitality. Guests move between rooms in traditional shoin-zukuri style and newer villa suites, including Bettei Suite Shinonome, added in August 2025, each with configurations of private open-air onsen baths drawing on Hakone's volcanic hot springs.

The property's dining program pairs Kaiseki Kadan, led by Chef Keiji Takase with a monthly-changing seasonal menu, alongside Sushi Kadan, an Edomae sushi restaurant supervised by Ginza's renowned Sushi Yoshitake, set on the second floor of the historic former imperial residence. In July 2025, the brand expanded with Gôra Kadan Fuji, a sister ryokan beneath Mount Fuji, extending the same imperial-villa-inspired hospitality to a second address.

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