Neko Yado Research is an independently operated website that introduces travel to meet resident cats living at inns, through firsthand stay reports and research based on public information. The articles are written by Nekosen.
We organize the information you need when choosing an inn, together with its sources: not only whether cats live there, but where guests can meet them, where interaction is possible, and whether there are examples of cats visiting guest rooms.
Firsthand stay reports and research on inns we have not visited
We have not stayed at every inn listed on this site. We distinguish experiences at inns we have visited from information researched through official websites and other sources.
- Stay reports record what we saw and experienced during a visit, along with photographs we took. They do not guarantee the same experience.
- Research articles organize publicly available official guidance and verifiable material about inns we have not visited. We do not invent experiences or evaluations of the inn.
- Cat-inn guides cover choosing an inn, preparing a booking, interacting with cats, and photography precautions. Each inn’s rules and the cats’ choices come first.
You can read about actual stays in our reports on Shichirigawa Onsen, Pension Atca, and Hanahana no Sato.
Choose an inn by checking the level of interaction with cats
The cat-inn directory lets you find candidates by region and level of interaction with cats.
| Category | What has been confirmed |
|---|---|
| A | Examples of resident cats visiting guest rooms, or plans that offer such visits |
| B | Interaction is possible inside the inn or in a dedicated space |
| C | Resident cats are present, but the extent of interaction is unconfirmed |
A, B, and C do not indicate the quality of an inn or a ranking of recommendations. Guests may not be able to meet the cats because of their health, mood, or need for rest. We also publish our detailed classification criteria.
Checking photographs and information
We distinguish photographs of the actual inns and cats from illustrative images that convey an atmosphere. Illustrative images do not depict the guest rooms or cats living at the inn concerned. When accepting contributed photographs, we check the photographer’s rights, permission to publish, consent from people in the image, and the inn’s photography rules.
Even when we use AI for research or organizing text, we do not present unconfirmed information as a firsthand stay. Our policy is to distinguish what official information confirms, what we learn through interviews, and what remains unconfirmed. See our interview and editorial policy.
Corrections and photograph contributions
Which cats live at an inn, business operations, accommodation plans, and transport arrangements can change. Before booking, check each inn’s current official guidance. If information on this site has changed or is incorrect, please contact us with the inn’s name, article URL, and the official announcement that supports the correction.
Our photograph contribution guide explains how to contribute images. Our privacy policy explains how we handle personal information.
Connecting inns and travelers
We develop this website around finding inns, stay reports, and comparative research. On note, we cover the background to running the site and our thoughts on cat-inn culture. On Qiita, we publish detailed practical accounts of technologies we have actually used and tested. Each medium provides information useful to its own readers. Links between them appear where they help explain the subject or its background.
Our guide for inn owners introduces information useful for managing an inn’s web presence.