A forest cabin
in old Tokyo
MoriKoYa — 森小屋, literally "forest cabin" — is a twelve-suite luxury apartment hotel in the heart of Nishi-Asakusa, Tokyo. Built for families and slow travellers who want to live in Tokyo, not just visit it.
We built MoriKoYa because we couldn't find it — a place in Asakusa that felt like home, not a transaction.
Why we built MoriKoYa
Asakusa had thousands of hotel rooms — and almost none designed for families who wanted to stay for a week, cook breakfast together, and walk to the temple every morning as if they lived here. MoriKoYa was built to be that place.
Tokyo's hotel market offered two things: small rooms for solo travellers, or large chain hotels for tour groups. Families of four to eight — the people most eager to experience Japan deeply — had almost nothing. Airbnb filled the gap awkwardly. We wanted to do it properly: licensed, designed, with a full kitchen, a private hinoki onsen, and someone at the front desk who speaks Japanese and knows every restaurant in the neighbourhood.
We looked at Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Omotesando. None of them had what Asakusa has: a neighbourhood that still functions as it did a century ago. Century-old shops. A supermarket one minute from the door. Sensoji Temple five minutes away, almost empty at dawn. Life Supermarket open until midnight. The Tsukuba Express line to Akihabara in eleven minutes. Asakusa is the last part of Tokyo that feels genuinely lived-in — and we wanted our guests to live in it.
MoriKoYa is a fully licensed hotel under Japan's 旅館業法 (Ryokan Business Act) — not a short-term rental platform listing. Every suite meets Japan's 建築基準法 fire and safety standards. The hinoki (檜) onsen in each suite uses a custom water-temperature system built to Japanese public bath standards, adapted for private use. The kitchen is equipped for a family of eight. These details cost more to build. We built them anyway.
- Full kitchen — cook sushi from the Life Supermarket sashimi counter next door
- Private hinoki onsen in every suite — no shared bath, no booking slots
- Kaiseki breakfast included — not a continental tray, a proper Japanese morning
- Staff call restaurants in Japanese — we handle the reservations you can't make
- Tatami room + modern amenities — wabi-sabi aesthetics with good WiFi
- 12 suites only — we know every guest by name before they arrive
Affluent Western families spending 5–10 nights exploring Tokyo as a base. High-net-worth travellers from China, Korea, and Japan who want something more personal than a five-star chain. Design couples spending a long weekend in Asakusa. Grandparents, parents, and children travelling together who need separate bedrooms and a shared table.
What they have in common: they are not rushing. They want to be somewhere, not everywhere. MoriKoYa was built for them.
The way we think about hospitality
Every decision at MoriKoYa — from the wood used in the onsen to the way we write a restaurant reservation in Japanese — comes from a single belief: that travel at its best makes you feel at home somewhere you've never been.
一期一会
Each encounter, once in a lifetime. We treat every guest's stay as unrepeatable — because it is. No two weeks in Asakusa will ever be the same, and our job is to make yours unforgettable.
間 · 余白
Japanese aesthetics values what is absent as much as what is present. MoriKoYa's suites are curated with restraint — tatami, stone, cypress, natural light. Nothing unnecessary. Everything intentional.
侘び寂び
Beauty found in imperfection and transience. The worn edge of a century-old shop counter. The unpredictable pattern of steam rising from an onsen. We don't smooth everything away.
誠実
We don't over-promise or under-deliver. If we recommend a restaurant, we've eaten there. If we say the temple is quiet at dawn, we walk there ourselves. Trust is the only currency that matters.
- Aman Kyoto— the way nature is brought inside without losing warmth
- Park Hyatt Tokyo— understated luxury that ages beautifully
- MIMARU SUITES Asakusa— the apartment hotel model done right for Tokyo families
- Edo-period machiya townhouses— the original live-work residential aesthetic of old Asakusa
Nine floors of Nishi-Asakusa
A nine-storey reinforced concrete building in the residential heart of Nishi-Asakusa — two minutes from the Tsukuba Express station, five minutes from Senso-ji, one minute from the Life Supermarket. Fourteen suites. No shared corridors. No lobby crowds.
Eleven suites across floors 2–8. Each suite is 60㎡+, configured as 2LDK — two private bedrooms, a full living room, a complete kitchen, and a private hinoki onsen bathroom. Sleeps up to 6 guests comfortably. All suites face the Nishi-Asakusa streetscape.
One penthouse suite on the 9th floor. 90㎡+, configured as 3LDK — three private bedrooms with separate lockable doors, a large dining table for eight, the same complete kitchen and private hinoki onsen. Designed for three-generation family travel. Best views in the building.
These are not upgrades — they are standard in every room at MoriKoYa:
- — Private hinoki (檜) onsen with thermostat control
- — Full kitchen — IH cooktop, fridge, rice cooker, full dishware
- — Kaiseki breakfast included in nightly rate
- — Tatami area with traditional floor cushions
- — Yukata set for all guests on arrival
- — Balcony overlooking Nishi-Asakusa street
- — High-speed WiFi, smart TV, Bluetooth speaker
- — Artisan bath products, premium toiletries set
- 1 min walk — Life Supermarket (09:00–24:00)
- 2 min walk — Tsukuba Express Asakusa Station
- 4 min walk — Hoppy Street izakayas
- 5 min walk — Senso-ji Kaminarimon gate
- 7 min walk — Asakusa Station (Ginza Line, multiple lines)
- 11 min by train — Akihabara (TX direct)
- 15 min walk — Tokyo Skytree
MoriKoYa operates under a hotel licence issued under Japan's 旅館業法 (Ryokan Business Act). All suites comply with 建築基準法 (Building Standards Act) fire and safety requirements. The building is reinforced concrete (RC) construction, 9 floors above grade, certified to current seismic standards.
We are not a民泊 (minpaku) listing or short-term rental platform. We are a fully licensed boutique hotel operated by a dedicated hotel management company based in Tokyo.
The people who make MoriKoYa work
Fourteen suites. A small, dedicated team who know the neighbourhood better than any guidebook. Every person on staff has lived in or near Asakusa. Every restaurant recommendation comes from personal experience.
Keiko has managed boutique hotels in Asakusa for eleven years, previously at a ryokan on Nakamise-dori. She speaks Japanese, English, and conversational Mandarin. She has personally eaten at every restaurant we recommend — including the ones that require three weeks' notice. If you have a restaurant request, she's the person making the call.
Ryo grew up three streets from MoriKoYa. He knows every festival in the neighbourhood calendar, every shortcut through the back lanes, and every stall on Nakamise-dori by the owner's name. He leads our morning temple walks, arranges rickshaw bookings, and prepares the personalised food route maps given to every guest at check-in.
Yuki trained as a kaiseki chef in Kyoto before returning to Tokyo. She designs and prepares our kaiseki breakfast service — seasonal, locally sourced, and presented as a proper Japanese meal rather than a hotel tray. She also curates the welcome amenities basket in each suite, which changes monthly according to what is in season.
Sasha studied Japanese cultural history at Waseda University and worked as an interpreter for several years before joining MoriKoYa. She leads our tea ceremony arrangements, yukata dressing sessions, and calligraphy workshops. She is the person guests email after returning home to say it was the best part of their trip.
Hiroshi manages the building operations — the hinoki onsen water systems, the kitchen equipment, the rooftop garden, and everything that needs to work perfectly every day. He is also the person who knows which tatami restorer in Asakusa does the best work, and which carpenter makes the traditional wooden fixtures we use throughout the suites.
Min-Ji handles direct reservations, OTA coordination, and our partnerships with Korean and Chinese travel agencies. She speaks Korean, Japanese, and English fluently, and manages our 小红书 (Xiaohongshu) and Korean social media presence. She is usually the first person international guests communicate with before arrival.
- Email — hello@morikoyahotel.com (response within 4 hours)
- WeChat — MoriKoYa_Asakusa
- KakaoTalk — MoriKoYa
- Instagram — @morikoya.asakusa
- 小红书 — 森小屋浅草ホテル
Send us your dates, group composition, dietary requirements, and top three restaurants or experiences you want. We confirm availability, make all reservations in Japanese, prepare your personalised maps, and have everything confirmed before you arrive. The more notice you give us, the more we can do.
Otafuku requires 3 weeks. Asakusa Imahan dinner, 1 week. Most things, 48 hours. Some things — Hoppy Street — you can decide on the day. We'll tell you which is which.
Everything you want to know before you arrive
Honest answers about rooms, pricing, check-in, the onsen, and what to expect. If your question isn't here, email us — we reply within 4 hours.
3BR suite: Up to 8 guests comfortably. For a family of 3 generations — grandparents, parents, 2 children — the 3BR suite is ideal.
3BR suite (9th floor): USD $800–900/night (¥120,000–135,000 JPY).
Rates include kaiseki breakfast for all guests. Peak season (cherry blossom: late March–April; summer festivals: July; Golden Week; New Year) books 4–6 months in advance. We recommend booking directly for the best rate and flexibility.
Direct booking advantages: Best rate (no OTA commission markup), early check-in/late check-out request priority, complimentary pre-arrival planning session with our team, and the ability to communicate your group's preferences in detail before arrival. We recommend direct booking for stays of 3+ nights.
Peak season: 30-day cancellation policy applies. Please check the specific terms on your booking confirmation. We recommend travel insurance for all stays of significant value.
Early check-in / late check-out: Available on request, subject to availability. Please message us 48 hours in advance. We can often accommodate arrival from 13:00 and departure until 14:00 at no extra charge for direct bookings. Luggage storage is available at the property from 09:00 on your arrival day.
We ask that late arrivals (after 22:00) notify us at least 24 hours in advance so we can prepare instructions.
Our private hinoki baths are deep-soak tubs in the traditional Japanese style — designed to sit in, not lie down. Water temperature is thermostat-controlled. This is the bath experience that Japan's finest ryokan are famous for, in your private suite.
- Shower/rinse before entering the soaking tub (standard Japanese bath etiquette)
- Do not add bath salts or oils not provided by MoriKoYa (to protect the hinoki wood)
- Temperature range: 38–42°C recommended for soaking
- Children under 12 should not use the onsen unsupervised
Asakusa is also one of Tokyo's most child-friendly neighbourhoods — flat streets, temple grounds wide enough to run in, food stalls at child height, and a Life Supermarket for formula, baby food, and nappies one minute from the door.
- Baby cot / travel crib — available for children under 2
- High chair — at the dining table
- Children's bath toys and amenities set
- Children's yukata — sizes from 3 years available
- Stroller / pushchair — available for loan during your stay
Please tell us where you want to go, how many people, and your preferred date and time. We recommend giving us:
- Otafuku — 3+ weeks notice
- Asakusa Imahan — 1 week notice
- Komagata Dojo — 48 hours or walk-in
- Tea ceremony (茶道) — private session for your group, English-speaking master
- Kimono / yukata dressing — with or without professional photography
- Morning temple walk — staff-guided, 06:30 daily, complimentary
- Rickshaw (人力車) tour — 30–60 min, English narration
- Shodo calligraphy — 90-min English class
- Sushi rolling class — families welcome from age 4
- Wagashi (sweet) making — children's favourite
- Narita Airport to MoriKoYa: ~¥20,000–25,000 (60–90 min)
- Haneda Airport to MoriKoYa: ~¥8,000–12,000 (30–45 min)
- Email: hello@morikoyahotel.com
- WeChat: MoriKoYa_Asakusa
- KakaoTalk: MoriKoYa
- Languages: English · Japanese · Chinese · Korean
MoriKoYa is a small hotel. We have fourteen suites and we know every guest by name before they arrive. Peak season dates — cherry blossom, Golden Week, the July fireworks — book 4–6 months in advance.
Book directly for the best rate, maximum flexibility, and access to our pre-arrival planning service. If you have any doubt about whether MoriKoYa is right for your group, email us. We'll tell you honestly.
Fourteen suites in old Tokyo
MoriKoYa. Nishi-Asakusa. Private hinoki onsen, full kitchen, kaiseki breakfast, five minutes from Senso-ji.