Morinoouchi Picture Book Museum & Cottage

A cottage with an attached picture book museum, set in woodland on the lower slopes of Mount Ariake

This lodging stands among the trees on a sloping site at the foot of Mount Ariake - also known as Azumi Fuji - in Hotaka Ariake, Azumino, Nagano. The picture book museum Morinoouchi, which opened in 1994, sits on the same grounds and has long shared themes of the preciousness of life and living alongside nature through the works of Kenji Miyazawa. The forest changes its face with each season, and you can take your time here with an outdoor feel to the stay.

Giovanni's Cottage - a small inn with 4 Western-style rooms and 2 Japanese-style tatami rooms

The accommodation building is named Giovanni's Cottage and has just 6 rooms in all: 4 Western-style rooms sleeping up to 4 guests and 2 Japanese-style tatami rooms sleeping up to 6. Each room is a self-contained private space made up of a dining kitchen and a bedroom, so you can spend time alone as a family, much as you would in a holiday house. The rooms are named after Kenji Miyazawa's children's stories and after flowers and stars. Booked in their entirety, the rooms accommodate 28 to 30 guests, which also suits group trips and training retreats. A mini kitchen and a microwave are provided in some rooms by reservation, so you can cook for yourselves. There are also rooms where pets may stay with you, in limited numbers.

About 8,000 picture books and exhibitions of original artwork, a museum children can enjoy

The attached picture book museum holds a collection of about 8,000 volumes, including picture books, children's stories, general reading and reference works, and cottage guests can borrow books from the library to take to their room free of charge. The first-floor exhibition room, a small hall seating about 60 people, hosts special exhibitions along with forest theater performances and concerts, while the second-floor exhibition room shows original picture book artwork and paintings, with the display changed 5 or 6 times a year. Museum admission is 900 yen for adults, 500 yen for elementary and junior high school students and 250 yen for children aged 3 and over; children under 3 enter free of charge, and strollers are welcome inside. Staying guests receive a discount on admission. The museum is open from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (until 4:30 p.m. from December to February) and is closed every Thursday.

Breakfast at the gallery and cafe Polano

Breakfast is served by reservation at the gallery and cafe Polano, named after Kenji Miyazawa's "Polano Square." You can take your time over hand-baked bread and a freshly made cheese omelet while looking out at the green forest. The building also has the picture book store Hoshi Meguri and a corner for craft artists, both of which you can drop into without staying overnight.

Access and parking

About 20 to 30 minutes from Azumino IC (Toyoshina IC) on the Nagano Expressway. About 10 minutes by taxi from Hotaka Station or Ariake Station on the JR Oito Line, and about 20 minutes by taxi from Akashina Station on the JR Shinonoi Line. Free parking for about 30 cars needs no reservation. Check-in is at 3 p.m. (6 p.m. at the latest) and checkout is at 10 a.m., and check-in and checkout outside these hours can be arranged. In addition to the room rate, a cleaning fee of 550 yen per person including tax applies; children under 3 are exempt.