Niigata Prefecture Tourism Association Sado Island’s inn “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” has been selected as one of the “Most Wonderful Places in the World 2025” by TIME!

[Niigata Prefecture Tourism Association] Sado Island’s inn “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” has been selected as one of the “Most Wonderful Places in the World 2025″ by TIME! ​
Niigata Prefecture Tourism Association Press release: March 14, 2025 NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayamacho, an inn on Sado Island, has been selected as one of the “Most Wonderful Places in the World 2025” by TIME! “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” on Sado Island has been selected as one of “The World’s Greatest Places 2025” announced by the American international news magazine “TIME”.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-1203ca02edc5a234e594afd1a095aae4-560×645.jpg
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-a35bc164f3a46624a4cd1747da6294d1-675×900.jpg On March 13, 2025 (local time), the American international news magazine TIME announced that Sado Island’s NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa was selected in the Places to Stay category of The World’s Greatest Places of 2025. Kanayama Town”was selected. Also selected from Japan are Mirukashi Salon (Saga Prefecture), Kumano Nachi Taisha and Seigantoji Temple (Wakayama Prefecture), and Nintendo Museum (Kyoto Prefecture). The Niigata Prefecture Tourism Association’s efforts to attract inbound tourists have yielded results, and the results of inviting foreign media and foreign writers to Niigata Prefecture, including Sado Island (to be implemented in October 2024), have come to fruition. We believe that this selection will provide a great impetus for the efforts of the “Regional High Value-Added Inbound Tourist Destination Development Project (Sado/Niigata Area),” which was selected by the Japan Tourism Agency in September 2024. Last year (2024), four locations were selected: “Mori Building Digital Art Museum: Epson Team Lab Borderless” (Tokyo), “Guntu” (Seto Inland Sea), “MUJI Hotel GINZA” (Tokyo), and “Haneda Excel Hotel Tokyu” (Tokyo). “TIME” World’s Greatest Places 2025 ・“TIME”“World’s Greatest Places 2025” URL https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2025/ ・“TIME” “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” introduction page in “World’s Greatest Places 2025”
https://time.com/collections/worlds-greatest-places-2025/7263063/nipponia/?filters=asia ■ “TIME” “The World’s Greatest Places of 2025” “TIME” in the United States was launched in 1923 as the world’s first news magazine, and is now an international weekly magazine that boasts 20 million readers in 200 countries around the world. This project started in 2018, and “new destinations you should experience right now” are carefully selected from spots recommended by TIME magazine’s editors,
correspondents, and experts. Selection criteria will be
comprehensively evaluated from the perspectives of quality,
originality, sustainability, innovation, and influence, and spots from a variety of genres will be selected. Targets include a wide range of areas, including tourist destinations, museums, theme parks, hotels, restaurants, and entire regions. ■ “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” and the charm of Sado Island, recognized by the world The reason behind “NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayamacho” being highly evaluated is that both the value of the accommodation and the local area were recognized. In particular, it seems that the city was highly praised for its efforts to utilize the historic townscape while also realizing sustainable tourism. Aikawa, Sado Island, where the inn is located, was once a prosperous gold mining town, and in recognition of its 400-year history, it was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2024. The project was particularly praised for its efforts to reconstruct these precious cultural heritage sites, not just as tourist attractions, but as places that can be experienced through overnight stays, and to transform them into stay-type tourism that allows visitors to deeply experience the history, culture, and nature of Sado Island. ・”NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town” official web page https://nipponia-sado.jp/
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-d47d3bcf3db4a39cd5f610b643a91bdf-3900×2605.jpg NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-24e2054a282bd36f66bf12d92071e0be-3900×2605.jpg NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town Interior view
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-0f3d6d1f1269c2415c62765c20d169a8-3900×2605.jpg NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayamacho Guest Room
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-30be2026e642cc676654f3aacc35d5a6-3900×2925.jpg NIPPONIA Sado Aikawa Kanayama Town Breakfast ■ Sado Island Contents (Japanese translation/summary version) While the construction boom of urban hotels continues in Japan, “Nipponia Hotels” dares to take a different path. Their work involves restoring historical buildings in little-known areas. Nipponia Sado, which opened in Aikawa on Sado Island last summer, is a hotel that embodies this philosophy. This town, which once prospered for gold mining, was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2024. A merchant house with traces of history has been beautifully restored and turned into guest rooms, with shoji screens, tatami mats, and Japanese paper lanterns illuminating the hotel with soft light. Local traditions are alive in every detail, such as the clay walls, floors made from ship materials, and Niigata’s unique built-in interior. At the top of the hill, there is an entire rental property, and in the breakfast space where the breeze blows through, the owner and his wife serve local Sado cuisine. On the island, you can enjoy not only food but also experiences unique to Sado. Take a boat ride through the cove where noctilucent insects twinkle, and observe endangered ibises in the rice fields. There are also tasting tours of famous sake breweries, and “Hokuyuki Sake Brewery,” created by world-famous chef Nobu and actor Robert De Niro, is a must-see. In this way, “Nipponia Sado” is a hotel that offers a special stay experience where you can enjoy Sado Island’s rich history and culture with all five senses.
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-50d1154e8e1117c94f4434310a0408fe-2880×2160.jpg Hangiri (Taraibune). You can see noctilucent insects on the night cruise
https://prcdn.freetls.fastly.net/release_image/90796/401/90796-401-5f9289da78978cacc0598470c5c96e80-2317×1578.jpg Ibises can sometimes be seen in rice fields, especially in the Shinbo area. [Contact information regarding this matter] Niigata Prefecture Tourism Association (Shirai, Terao) Address: 4-1 Shinkocho, Chuo-ku, Niigata City, Niigata Prefecture TEL: 025-283-1188 (Weekdays 8:30-17:15) URL: Niigata sightseeing navigation
https://niigata-kankou.or.jp/ E-mail: umasa@niigata-kankou.or.jp