My husband and I spent three nights at Yamaichi Bekkan as part of a tour of Japan in March 2008. That stay was the best part of our trip. The hostess, Shinko-san, made us feel so much at home. She speaks good English, gave us good advice on climbing Mount Misen and visiting Hiroshima, and served great Japanese breakfasts and dinners. The three breakfasts were all different (and all very good), and our 8 or 9 course dinners were delicious. We had a large comfortable tatami mat room, with small bathroom. Very friendly and great value for money.

If you're going to come to Miyajima, it's well worth staying for at least one night - you'll then get to see the island in relative peace and quiet once the hordes have departed!
Yamaichi is directly opposite the ferry terminal. Very friendly welcome, and great traditional rooms to relax in. The highpoint though is surely the food - amazing! Try and have at least one dinner here and you won't be disapointed. Beautifully prepared sushi, most of which looks too immaculate to eat. The western or Japanese breakfasts are also great, all prepared with plenty of care and attention.
Just one point - the fridge in the room is well stocked with beer - but no prices. Be careful, they're expensive!

We struggled to locate this little gem - only to find it across the road from the ferry terminal (so please ask for instructions!)

We were greeted by Shinko - a lovely lady who spoke good english and was very friendly. Our japanese style room overlooked the sea (and the small ferry terminal - although this didn't bother us). It was quite spacious (it was a 4 person room and there were only 2 of us), with a nice balcony and a small, but satisfactory en-suite. There was a TV, but there was so much to do on the island that we didn't switch it on once! The futons were comfortable (especially if you double them up!) and we slept well here.

We had a western breakfast and japanese dinner pre-booked here. Breakfast was spot-on and set us up for the day. Dinner was a great variety of sea food and wonderful. Shinko did her best to explain what each dish was and accommodated our individual needs.

We were only a 10 minute walk from the famous shrine and about a 20 minute walk to the cable car to the top of the mountain. There's lots of touristy shops, although I should warn you that the island really does shut down for the evening. There's also internet in the ferry terminal.

We had the most wonderful two nights stay here and it was the highlight of our trip to Japan. Shinko (the owner) and her son Teppei were so helpful and polite - they really represent the best of Japan. The Ryokan is ideally situated just across the road from the ferry which is ideal if you have any luggage. We opted to have dinner and breakfast included in our stay at Yamaichi Bekkan and the 10 course dinner was simply the best. You will need to go for a walk after this delicious meal but the island is so peaceful at dusk after all the day trippers have gone. The accommodation in the Japanese room is wonderful with lovely views onto the park and the sea. We slept well on the futons and everything was clean and comfortable. One thing we did organise and needed after climbing Mt Misen was for Shinko to see if we could get a Shiatsu massage. She phoned a friend of hers who came to the Ryokan and gave us the best massage - this lady was no youngster but boy she was tough and worked on our sore legs!!
I can still see Shinko & Teppei waving good-bye to us as we walked back to the ferry for our next adventure to Himeji.