Mexico City’s Very Own Ryokan

The Ryo Kan Hotel is almost exactly like its Japanese cousins, apart from the fact that the little bubble of calm it offers visitors is in Mexico.

Ryo Kan, a space designed by Regina Galvanduque (a 34-year-old architect who trained at the Parsons School of Design in New York), offers an oasis of peace to those wishing to escape the hustle and bustle of Mexico, be it for a few hours or a few days. The hotel’s design is based on that of original ryokan. Its ten rooms, just like those found in the ryokan that are dotted all over Japan, offer open-plan spaces, neutral colours and tatami mats. There are just a few little Mexican touches to remind visitors of the hotel’s real location, such as a terracotta calavera that lies hidden between vases.

The showstopper can be found on the roof terrace. The tubs filled with hot water recall the principle of onsen and look down on the city below. The place gives a new dimension to the city’s Little Tokyo district which sprung up in the 1970s around the Japanese Embassy and which has been gradually expanding for several years now.