Photo/Illutration An artist’s concept of a traditional private house renovated into a hotel (Provided by Satoyume Co.)

For a new hotel experience set to open this year in the Okutama region, western Tokyo, arriving at a train station there also means arriving at the hotel’s reception desk.

It will be just one of the many experiences to become available from this year at unstaffed stations along a section of the JR Ome Line. Under the plan, old private homes will be redeveloped to become accommodation facilities as well.

The landscape and all other elements along the streets--from the train stations to lodging establishments--will be part of the “interior” of the hotels.

The aim is to turn local challenges into a source of interest in the sparsely populated area along the rail line plagued by shrinking ridership.

The initiative is being undertaken by Satoyume Co., a local revitalization firm based in the capital’s Chiyoda Ward, and East Japan Railway Co. (JR East).

The first accommodation with four twin-bed rooms is scheduled to open in the autumn near Hatonosu Station in Okutama town along the so-called Tokyo Adventure Line around Ome Station and farther west.

A restaurant and a sauna will open in March, prior to the hotel’s opening.

Satoyume and JR East are looking to put in place an additional five to eight lodging facilities, at least, along the line in the future.

Guests will check in at the station building, and they can then enjoy the area’s natural features on their way from the front desk to their hotel situated in a local community beside the tracks.

Under the program’s concept of “the areas along the tracks are hotels,” attractions in the wild are being collectively labeled as a “garden.”

Renovated vacant houses will be utilized for overnight stays. Specialties using agricultural products and freshwater fish caught nearby will be served.

Regional residents are set to play the role of guides as the hotel’s staff.

Satoyume has alike rolled out a rural culture experience project in Kosuge, Yamanashi Prefecture, under which participants can stay at a remodeled abandoned residence.

MICRO TOURISM VENTURE

Working with JR East, Satoyume organized a tour of a community in Okutama town in early 2021 on a trial basis, too, which received a positive response from visitors.

The along-the-tracks zone redevelopment initiative is considered an extension of the earlier experiment in Okutama.

Urban residents are being particularly targeted in the latest move.

“A lot of people did micro-tourism where they visited nearby destinations during the novel coronavirus crisis,” said Masato Kiriyama, a director at Satoyume. “Our hope is that Tokyoites who might have little affection for their hometown will discover there are cozy villages within an hour or two’s reach by train.”

Kiriyama stated that the objective of Satoyume is not simply running a hotel in the Okutama region, which is marked by lush greenery despite its location inside the capital.

Instead, the purpose is to dig up sightseeing resources so that the area’s future can be reshaped through cooperation with residents.

An electric bicycle rental service has likewise been introduced at Hatonosu Station there.

“We will be arranging relaxing packages that are possible only in the countryside,” explained Kiriyama. “We also do not expect guests to directly arrive at the destination from the central part of the capital using a vehicle.”

Among his recommendations are spending time in forests and visiting a wasabi farm as the crop is a local delicacy.

Meanwhile, JR East intends to benefit from the micro-tourism program around stations, as the track operator may be able to stem the continuing decline in ridership there.

The transit density, or the daily average number of passing passengers per kilometer, for the Tokyo Adventure Line was down to 3,420 in fiscal 2022 from 4,043 in fiscal 2007.

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