The Arcana Hotel is a new favourite for Tokyoites in search of weekend retreats. Located on the Izu Peninsula, this old ryokan has been refurbished with the help of Osaka furniture design company Graf. Monocle's Asia Bureau…
The governor of Tokyo, Yoichi Masuzoe, is in hot water for his extravagant spending habits. Ever since the Japanese Communist party revealed last month that Masuzoe had spent more than ¥213m (€1.7m) on overseas trips since…
Sankara Hotel & Spa is a new eco-friendly island hideaway surrounded by ancient forests and mountains off the coast of Kyushu. It offers detached villas and a cultural blend of Balinese design and impeccable Japanese hos…
It’s called the ‘art of inn-keeping’ for a good reason. If you’re not a natural host/designer/lighting director/logistician all rolled into one then you’ll need to spend years honing the craft of creating an environment…
Every new year needs a fresh manifesto, so while you’re kicked back, lying low, chasing the sun or even hard at it, we’ve developed a pick and mix of ideas to create your own to-do list for a happy 2009. If you’re partic…
