This friendly, contemporary ryokan (inn) aims to please. The 11 stylish, large Japanese- and Western-style rooms have private facilities, including a stone or wooden bathtub, and the top-floor common bath has views of Tōdai-ji and Wakakusa-yama. The newer Bettei is a better choice than the original (though still friendly) Hotel New Wakasa next door.
Wakasa Bettei
Nara
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
22.21 MILES
The covered Nishiki Market (Nishiki-kōji Ichiba) is one of Kyoto’s real highlights, especially if you have an interest in cooking and dining. Commonly…
18.43 MILES
This César Pelli–designed tower, which opened in March 2014, is Japan's tallest building (300m, 60 storeys). The observatory on the 16th floor is free,…
24.46 MILES
The thick green bamboo stalks seem to continue endlessly in every direction and there’s a strange quality to the light at this famous bamboo grove, which…
0.35 MILES
Nara's star attraction is its Daibutsu (Great Buddha), one of the largest bronze statues in the world. It was unveiled in 752, upon the completion of the…
29.56 MILES
Located atop 848m-high Hiei-zan (the mountain that dominates the skyline in the northeast of the city), the Enryaku-ji complex is an entire world of…
7.51 MILES
Hōryū-ji was founded in 607 by Prince Shōtoku, considered by many to be the patron saint of Japanese Buddhism. It's renowned not only as one of the oldest…
21.36 MILES
A buzzing hive of activity perched on a hill overlooking the basin of Kyoto, Kiyomizu-dera is one of Kyoto's most popular and most enjoyable temples. It…
29.84 MILES
Located high on a thickly wooded mountain, Kurama-dera is one of the few temples in modern Japan that manages to retain an air of real spirituality. This…
Nearby Nara attractions
0.27 MILES
This garden was once part of Kofuku-ji and since 1919 has been a public garden, laid out in traditional fashion along paths around a pond. Most attractive…
2. Isui-en & Neiraku Art Museum
0.3 MILES
Isui-en is an elegant garden in two parts: one created in the 17th century, in the style of an Edo-period (1603–1868) strolling garden, and another added…
3. Kōfuku-ji National Treasure Museum
0.32 MILES
Reopened in 2018, this compact museum houses Kōfuku-ji's most important works of art, many of which date to the 8th century (and have managed to survive…
0.34 MILES
This world-class museum of Buddhist art is divided into two sections. Built in 1894 and strikingly renovated in 2016, the Nara Buddhist Sculpture Hall &…
0.35 MILES
Nara's star attraction is its Daibutsu (Great Buddha), one of the largest bronze statues in the world. It was unveiled in 752, upon the completion of the…
0.35 MILES
The most recent building on the grounds of Tōdai-ji is the contemporary museum built to display more of the temple's important artwork and relics.
0.37 MILES
Kōfuku-ji was founded in Kyoto in 669 and relocated here in 710. The original Nara temple complex had 175 buildings, though much has been lost over the…
0.37 MILES
Kōfuku-ji's Tōkondō is a National Treasure dating from 726 and rebuilt in 1415 (but paying homage to older structures). It houses several important…