Gora Kadan occupies the grounds of a villa that belonged to Prince Kan’in, a member of the Imperial family, who used it to receive visitors in the hillside village of Gora. The name Gora Kadan dates from 1948, and the property has hosted travelers as a ryokan since the postwar years. It sits inside Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, among forest and hot springs, and is a member of Relais & Châteaux.
The buildings follow the ryokan tradition of low wooden roofs, sliding paper screens, and stone paths, with long glass walls that open the rooms to the gardens and the wooded slopes beyond. Rooms come in tatami and semi-Western styles, and many have their own open-air bath of stone or wood. The MICHELIN Guide has awarded the property Three Keys, its highest distinction for hotels.
Gora Station, the top of the Hakone Tozan Railway, is a short walk away. From there the cable car climbs toward Owakudani and the ropeway down to Lake Ashi, which puts most of Hakone within reach in a morning. Tokyo is around 90 minutes away by train or private car.