Yao-Kumagawa for beginners

History

Our company is actually called Dekita Co.,Ltd., and it manages both the Yao-Kumagawa hotel and the newly opened Sanza-Kumagawa campground. It all started when our CEO, Sota Tokioka, founded Dekita in Tokyo doing work in developing retail facilities up until 2018. Sota, who is originally from Wakasa town where the hotel is located, decided that is was too important to leave the countryside neglected and made the move to support his hometown.

All throughout Japan, not just in southern Fukui, the countryside is falling apart due to declining population. Where once stood beautiful Japanese homes and shops, now collapased and deformed skeletal remains dot the landscape.  Sota and us at Dekita work to revive theses buildings and in turn the local area as well. About 6 years have past since Sota and Dekita arrived in the post town of Kumagawa-juku and since then we've transformed 5 old Japanese buildings, homes and stores, into a shared office, cafe, and lodging.

Sota Tokioka, the boss.

Now, surely you are asking, "but what is Kumagawa-juku?" and allow me to elaborate, if I may. For many hundreds of years, the small post or inn town that is Kumagawa-juku stood in between the old capital of Kyoto and the entrance to the sea, the old Wakasa Province now Obama city and the surrounding towns. Connecting the two points is the "Saba Kaido" or mackerel road, aptly named due to the large amount of mackerel among other seafood that was carried from Obama city to Kyoto, where the emperor lived. In reality, there are many mackerel roads as one would just cause congestion, or so I tell myself, and so over the years many formed and one of the most well known Saba Kaido passes right through Kumagawa-juku.

An important aspect of Kumagawa-juku, as it stands today, is that due to being designated a historical site by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, all buildings, both new and rennovated, must follow strict rules to keep the design as it were hundreds of years ago. This is to preserve the history and atmosphere of Kumagawa-juku, plus the vibes are just great here! That of course applies to our hotel, with each of our four different homes - not rooms - originally being old Japanese buildings within the post town, rennovated to perfection but you wouldn't know they were new without stepping inside.

A quiet day in Kumagawa-juku

What's so special about Yao-Kumagawa?

We believe in valuing the simple things in life. Going for a walk down a quiet street, making breakfast during a slow morning, or just chilling in your own home, each commonplace within Kumagawa-juku. From the vibes to the homes themselves, everything we offer is made with an emphesis on keeping things pure and simple. Many of our guests come from the big cities of Japan, like Kyoto and Osaka, and what we provide is the opporutnity to get away from the everyday hustle and bustle and just sit and do nothing, if thats to your liking. It is true indeed that a majority of our customers choose this, but for those looking to get out and explore, the possibilities are endless - if you just take the time to look.

Futhermore, all of the meals that we offer to you are homemade by local people living right down the road from where you will be staying. When they bring dinner to your room, its not a chef or cook but a person who grew up and spent most of their life in Kumagawa-juku. If you want to talk about authenticity, there isn't anything more authentic than that, let me be clear.

Speaking personally now, before I joined Dekita, I spent a night in one of our four homes "Yamane" for an evening and it went like this: It started with a long walk throughout the streets followed by enjoying dinner for two hours before spending two more in the beautifully designed bath, before finally sitting outside the entrance looking out at the stars. That may seem bland to some, but after a long and busy week of work, that was exactly what I needed to recover. From that point onward I knew that this was the place for me to be.

One of our four rental homes "Yamane", originally a storehouse.

Is there anything else!?

Well, thanks for asking! For those still craving more or for those with multiple stays, there is a plethora of stuff for you to do within Kumagawa-juku and the surrounding towns and cities. Walking Kumagawa-juku from start to finish takes about 30 to 40 minutes if you go slow, and I'd hope you would! On your walk you can take a class to learn how to be a ninja or even create a piece of pottery with a master potter. There are also shrines, temples, museuems, and many delicious restaurants that are unfortuantely only open for lunch. If you want more, ask, and we'll work with you. We at Yao-Kumagawa also offer a cooking class among other activities that you can check out on our homepage!

I'm cooking something delicious using our old Japanese stove.

The nearby Obama city and Wakasa town have many different experiences and places to visit, feel free to reach out to us for more information or when you come to Kumagawa-juku, I'll happily share my long list of cool places you can visit!

Whether you choose us or someone else, when you go to the Japanese countryside, remember to support local businesses as thats one of the biggest ways to revitalize these key areas of Japan.

Thank you for your support and we hope to see you soon!

Best,

Yao-Kumagawa Staff

Nathan Walker

I wrote this article!