“Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel,” located at the entrance to the Bikan Historical Area.
A small hotel with the dignified character of a weekend house, it opened on December 1, 1963, based on the concept of its founder, Ohara Soichiro. It is one of Kurashiki’s signature hotels.
As of 2021, the hotel boasts a history of more than 50 years, but it is a relatively new, Showa-era building in the Bikan Historical Area, which preserves the streetscape of the Edo period for the present day.
The reinforced-concrete building may feel modern, but it does not feel “out of place.”
Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel offers more than just the function of a hotel; even in the Reiwa era, it has a charm that makes you feel it would be a loss if it were not there.
In this article, we take a closer look at Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel as an architectural work.
The information presented is as of the article’s publication in August 2021. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What is Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel?
Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel opened on December 1, 1963.
As the Mizushima coastal industrial zone developed rapidly in the 1950s, local business leaders and government officials established the hotel in response to growing calls for “an international-standard hotel in Kurashiki.”
For more than 50 years since then, it has been one of Kurashiki’s signature hotels, used by nearby residents and, almost without fail, by VIPs from Japan and overseas whenever they visit Kurashiki.
Here is a brief summary of the building’s history, including renovation work.
| Year | Details |
|---|---|
| 1963 | Main building opens |
| 1981 | Renovation and refurbishment of the main building’s front desk, lobby, cloakroom, function rooms, and dining room |
| 1982 | Repainting of all Western-style guest rooms in the main building; fire-prevention work and boiler replacement in the main building |
| 1983 | Banquet hall added to the east side of the main building and named “Suisho-no-Ma” |
| 1987 | “Restaurant Wisteria” opens on the first floor of the main building New “Annex” building opens |
| 1997 | Renovation work carried out throughout the building, including the exterior walls of the main building |
| 1999 | Cleaning and restoration of Shiko Munakata’s print “The Great World Fence [Kon]—From Humanity to the Gods” |
| 2004 | Replacement and renovation of the main building’s water supply, hot-water supply, and drainage pipes, which had been in place since its opening (carried out over a three-year plan through March 2006) Renovation of guest rooms and bathrooms |
| 2008 | Renovation of the main building’s exterior walls Renovation of five deluxe guest rooms |
| 2009 | Renovation of the wedding hall to make it suitable for multiple uses |
| 2012 | First phase of the main building renovation plan Complete renovation of all guest rooms on the third floor of the main building and the banquet hall (Oka-no-Ma) |
| 2013 | Second phase of the main building renovation plan Complete renovation of all guest rooms on the second floor of the main building and the banquet hall (renamed from Suisho-no-Ma to Fuji-no-Ma), as well as renovation of the electrical room |
| 2019 | Reopens after renovation For the first time since opening in 1963, the entire hotel closed to undergo work to extend the building’s service life. Reopened on August 8 |
In recent years, the hotel has continued operating while undergoing renovation work roughly once every few years.
Open for more than 50 years: the hotel building itself has become like a “cultural property”
Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel faces the main street in front of JR Kurashiki Station.
It is seen more often than the Bikan Historical Area, and when I think of a “building that feels like Kurashiki,” the first one that comes to mind is Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel.
That is because I like the hotel’s design: monochrome and simple, yet elegant.
During the work to extend the building’s service life in 2019, the exterior walls were cleaned, including the eaves, and the white walls were cleaned and treated to prevent mold.
Apparently, the plan was to replace all the “belly-band roof tiles (colored tiles), which draw on Kurashiki’s traditional style.”
However, because they are now difficult to obtain, 200 damaged tiles were relocated from areas out of sight.
The unique measurement system, “KM (Kurashiki Module)”
Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel was designed by Shizutaro Urabe, an architect from Kurashiki.
He reportedly designed it with an eye to harmony between the old streetscape and the new building (Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel) from the time it opened. Although it is a reinforced-concrete (RC) building, steeply sloping eaves called “wall eaves” are layered across each floor.
At first glance, they look a little like a “roof.”
By bringing the building’s dimensions together according to a consistent standard, a neat and beautiful form is achieved.
Urabe independently revised these dimensions and apparently called them the “KM (Kurashiki Module).”
The proportions are what is known as the “golden ratio”; the wall eaves, white walls, and windows on the exterior are also dimensioned according to consistent KM ratios, giving the building beautiful proportions.
The building’s interior
Next, let’s take a look at the building’s interior.
As mentioned above, the interior has undergone several renovations over the years.
For example, the air-conditioning system has changed from centralized to individual room controls, so in terms of “function,” it has been updated.
However, the hotel’s character and concept have remained unchanged since it first opened.
Prints by Shiko Munakata
The first thing that catches your eye when you enter the lobby is a “huge print.”
![Shiko Munakata, “The Great World Work [Kon]—From Humanity to the Gods”](https://media.kuratoco.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/23034118/IMG_2779.jpg)
“The Great World Work [Kon]—From Humanity to the Gods,” created by Shiko Munakata for Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel, has been on display since the hotel opened.
The lobby has an open atrium, making the work visible from the second and third floors, where the guest rooms are located.
The “atrium railing” was installed recently as part of the work to extend the building’s service life, but it feels as though it has always been there.
That is proof that the architect and construction company who carried out the renovation worked with harmony in mind.
A hotel surrounded by art
In addition to Shiko Munakata’s print, you can enjoy numerous other works of art at Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel.
“Guardian god – Takahashigawa” by Takako Hojo was displayed as part of the hotel’s reopening in 2019.
Behind Shiko Munakata’s huge print, a work by Shinji Funaki was displayed as part of the renovation.
When the new “Annex” building was completed in 1987, a work by his father, Kenji Funaki, was displayed.
An interior that grows more appealing with time
The wood and stone used mainly in the interior, as well as the asphalt blocks and tiles on the floors, were designed with the idea that they would gain character and charm over time.
The asphalt blocks have a “black sheen,” but they came to have this color as a result of years of waxing, with layer upon layer of wax building up.
During the 2019 (Reiwa 1) renovation to extend the building’s lifespan, the wax that had accumulated over 57 years was painstakingly stripped from every block. It seems that the most severely damaged blocks were then replaced with blocks taken from the underground staff area.
The blocks that were replaced are “brownish,” but this is their original color.
The stairs, handrails, wall clock, and other features have remained unchanged since the hotel first opened, even through renovations.
More than 50 years have passed since its completion, and I feel that it has gained character with age.
The reason this building has become so beloved for so long is probably that the architect and the hotelier worked together on its design.
When designing Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel, Teruhiko Arimori, who became its first manager, was invited first, and Shizutaro Urabe worked on the design together with Manager Arimori.
They had a deep understanding of the considerations required of a hotel, such as the sightlines of people sitting in the lobby and how guests from overseas spend their time in their rooms, and took care over every detail.
From the Writer
When I hear “international hotel,” I imagine lavish, opulent facilities.
Generally, a “building that was luxurious 50 years ago” feels “old-fashioned” today, but Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel does not feel old-fashioned.
Why was Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel designed so that it does not feel “old-fashioned”?
The answer lay in the words of its founder, Ohara Soichiro.
This is a little long, but I’ll quote it here.
I believe that what is desirable is an inn that is simple, sound, practical, warm-hearted, and full of feeling. An inn that seeks to curry favor by treating ordinary people like kings with servile service is spiritually unclean and unpleasant.
(Omitted)
The number of people visiting Kurashiki has grown year by year. Kurashiki is not a famous destination known throughout the land. However, it is a town with the will to live, the will to develop, and, above all, the will to live beautifully and truthfully.
I believe that those who visit Kurashiki come with some understanding of these sentiments. As long as that is so, I believe they need an inn that embodies the spirit of this town.
When the members of the Tuesday Club visited Kurashiki this spring, I felt strongly that our long-held plan was all the more necessary. I believe it would be most desirable to have a small hotel, like a weekend house shared by those who truly love Kurashiki and visit it. And I hope it will itself be a cultural asset in harmony with the town.
Quoted from a passage in “A History of 50 Years of Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel,” written for the plan titled “An Inn with Pub” project at Kurashiki, 1953
- An inn that is simple, sound, practical, warm-hearted, and full of feeling
- A small hotel like a weekend house
- A cultural asset in harmony with the town
Of course, the founder’s words are not the whole story; the hotel’s continued existence for more than 50 years is surely the result of the efforts of those involved, who have carried on his vision.
Learning not only about the hotel’s “function,” but also its historical background and the thoughts invested in it, may give you a different perspective.
We hope you will visit and take a closer look at Kurashiki Kokusai Hotel as a building.
- Article review: Urabe Design Inc.
- Photography: Toshiyuki Sasaki
Kurashiki Architecture Travelogue Archive
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