Sakurai, Japan
Auberge de Senvie
Hilltop culinary inn
Sakurai, Japan
Opened
2015
Price
$$$
Rated for
Local Design LuxeOutside the door
The house
HirakawaHilltop culinary inn
This nine-room rural inn is built for dining, serving multi-course French dinners made with heirloom vegetables from the plain below.
What it’s good at
Notable
French multi-course dinners center on Yamato heirloom vegetables overlooking Mount Miwa.
Listed
Contemporary timber architecture uses Yoshino wood framing views over the Yamato Plain.
Listed
Deep soaking bathtubs and private terraces overlook the surrounding Nara farming fields.
What they say
Michelin Selected
Michelin
The auberge’s 9 rooms and suites are handsome, laid-back, and luxurious, with a pronounced European accent in the decoration.
Tucked away
A place apart: the property is the destination.
On a rural hilltop above the Yamato Plain, overlooking Mount Miwa and farming fields.
The rooms
Interiors use pale Yoshino timber, and private terraces look out across the farmland toward Mount Miwa.
Restaurant
AUBERGE de SENVIE
Floor-to-ceiling windows look across the valley, and French dinners draw on local ingredients like Miwa somen and regional sake.
At the table
The evening lounge has an open fireplace and a Yoshino cypress bar counter for post-dinner drinks.
How it began
Nara Prefecture built the inn on the grounds of its agricultural college to support local farming and train culinary students.
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Our shorthand
How we rate hotels.
The medals
Gold
Extremely rare. Sets the global standard.
Silver
Brilliant execution. And we’re picky.
Bronze
They did this well. You’ll notice.
Listed
A defining trait. Makes the hotel what it is.
The eight vibes
Design
Built around a vision. Even the door handles have a designer.
Luxe
Cared for at every turn. The bath is drawn before you ask.
Local
It could only be here. You wake up knowing where you are.
Social
Where the city goes out. The bar is full and the night is young.
Heritage
A building with a story. Once a palace, a monastery, a station.
Wellness
You leave feeling new. Rest, sweat, soak and sleep like a stone.
Classic
The city grew up with it. Same rituals, same regulars, same bar.
Resort
A world of its own. Something to do from breakfast to nightcap.
The scene
Lively
Where things happen: restaurants, shops, people.
Central
Well-located: walkable to some things, a short ride to more.
Quiet
Away from the crowds. Getting around takes intention.
Secluded
A place apart: the property is the destination.