From solitary cells to 60-square-metre luxury suites in Nara, Japan

Hoshino Resorts is preparing to open its latest and most unusual property behind the red-brick walls of a Meiji-era prison dating back to 1908: HOSHINOYA Nara Prison, which is set to welcome guests at the end of June 2026. Located in the eponymous city, which is better known for its free-roaming deer and UNESCO-listed temples than its penitentiary past, the property will be the ninth in the Hoshinoya portfolio.

It will be the first luxury hotel in Japan to be created from a former prison. The building is one of the so-called ‘Five Great Prisons’ constructed during the Meiji era when Japan was modernising its judicial system. Of the five, Nara is the only one to survive in its original form; the others were either demolished or altered beyond recognition over time.

In 2017, the complex was designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan, a status that imposed strict preservation obligations on any future development. Though it was not until 2024 that the final design details attracted widespread international attention, the transformation was set in motion in 2017, following an agreement with the Ministry of Justice.

This explains the inclusion of the Nara Prison Museum on site, which will allow visitors to explore the facility’s history through guided tours and exhibitions – a reflection of the kintsugi philosophy, in which “scars of a difficult past” are woven into the experience rather than concealed.

Designed by architect Keijiro Yamashita, the prison has a radial layout inspired by the Pennsylvania System, with a central administrative building that extends outwards in a fan formation to enable surveillance from a single point. The facility operated for more than a century before closing in 2017 when the Japanese Ministry of Justice decommissioned it.

Those hesitant at the idea of sleeping behind former bars may be reassured by the extensive refurbishments and renovations. Azusa Sekkei led the architectural redesign, while the Onsite Planning and Design Office handled the landscape planning. The focus was on keeping the structure’s defining elements, namely its red-brick façades and exposed steel frameworks, while softening the interiors at the same time.

The 48 suites were created by combining nine to eleven former solitary cells to form rooms measuring approximately 50 to 60 square metres. Original brick walls and steel beams remain visible, contrasting with wooden panelling, warm lighting and soft textiles. Each suite has distinct sleeping, dining and living areas that subtly reference the building’s former layout without replicating its austerity.

The former dining hall has been reimagined as a restaurant serving Japanese-French fusion cuisine, and communal spaces now function as a guest lounge.

Founded in 1914 with the opening of its first ryokan in Nagano Prefecture, Hoshino Resorts remains family-run into its fourth generation. Today, the group operates over 60 properties across six brands in Japan and abroad.

Room rates start from ¥147,000 (approximately €800) per night. Reservations have been open since January. Ahead of the hotel’s official opening, the on-site museum is scheduled to open to the public on 27 April. The café will serve Western-influenced Meiji-era dishes inspired by early 20th-century culinary exchanges, and the museum shop will offer souvenirs and historical publications related to the site’s past.