Questions & Answers
Honest answers to the things travelers actually ask us — what the session is, what it isn't, how the hours work, and what happens when we knock on your door.
01 — The session & your comfort
A male therapist, a hotel room, often in the evening. That combination raises questions, and they deserve a straight answer rather than silence.
Yes. This is professional bodywork only. You stay fully clothed throughout, no oils are used, and we explain what we'll be working on before we begin. Any request outside this will end the session.
Solo travelers are welcome, women traveling alone included.
Before anything begins we sit and talk through which areas you'd like worked on and what the session will involve, so nothing during the hour comes as a surprise. You can ask to stop, or to change the focus, at any point without explaining why.
If you would rather keep the door on the latch, the curtains open, a light on, or a traveling companion in the room, that is completely fine — just say so. None of it changes the session.
Naoya Yokomori — a Japanese bodywork practitioner and craniosacral therapist. He is male, and he is the only practitioner: the person who replies to your message is the person who arrives at your door.
He has run Ease Garden, a bodywork practice in Nakagyo-ku, central Kyoto, since 2009, and holds professional liability insurance.
No. You stay fully clothed for the entire session.
Loose, comfortable clothing is ideal — whatever you'd relax in at your hotel is perfect. No oils, lotions or creams are used, so there is nothing to wash off afterwards and no reason to shower.
No — though many guests find us while looking for a massage in Kyoto.
A massage usually works the whole body in a set way for relaxation, often with oil. Japanese bodywork (Seitai) reads your body’s condition and works where it’s needed: sometimes firm, deep pressure, sometimes the lightest touch, or long moments where the hands simply rest. Everything is done through your clothing, with no oils.
Shiatsu is one of the best-known forms of Japanese bodywork, built mainly on rhythmic finger and palm pressure.
Seitai, the tradition we work in, draws on several Japanese styles, shiatsu-like pressure among them, but places more weight on breath, stillness and how the whole body responds. We also bring in craniosacral therapy, a very light touch around the head and spine. If you have enjoyed shiatsu before, think of this as its quieter relative.
Pressure isn’t chosen on request. Depending on your body’s condition, some areas may receive firm, deep pressure and others a very light touch — the practitioner decides what each area needs.
Unlike a massage, the aim isn’t to work the whole body evenly for relaxation. You can always ask us to ease off or stop, and we will.
The idea is close. Reiki was founded in Japan by Mikao Usui in 1922 and later spread worldwide from Hawaii. It grew out of the same era of Japanese hands-on care (te-ate) as Seitai, and yuki, the quiet hands-on practice we use, shares that spirit: the hands rest, and the body is given time to settle.
The clear difference is that yuki is part of Seitai technique. It is directed to specific points on the body, such as a particular vertebra in the neck, or points similar to those used in acupressure and along the meridians, and the practitioner works through them with set postures and breathing.
The session also goes beyond yuki: Seitai works with posture, breath and movement, including firm pressure and stretching where your body needs it.
English. Japanese is of course welcome too.
If you are pregnant, recovering from a recent injury or operation, or under treatment for a medical condition, please tell us when you book so the session can be adapted.
If it isn't appropriate for you, we will say so plainly rather than take the booking. This is not medical treatment and it isn't offered as a substitute for it.
02 — Hours & booking
10:00–22:30, last session starts 21:00 (later by arrangement).
Closed Fridays. Mornings before 13:00: book by 21:00 the previous day.
22:30 is the time we finish, not the latest start — the 21:00 cut-off is set so that even a 90-minute session ends by 22:30. If you need a later start, ask; it can often be arranged.
Yes, and mornings are often the best time to have one. Jet lag tends to wake travelers at four or five in the morning, and the hours that follow are usually the hardest part of the day.
The one condition: a session before 13:00 needs to be booked by 21:00 the previous day. We don't take same-morning calls. In practice most people message us the night before anyway.
WhatsApp is fastest: +81 80-3822-0776. Send us:
Email works too, for questions: ease.gdn@gmail.com. Your booking is confirmed once we reply with an agreed date and time — we normally answer within a few hours during opening hours.
We don't answer phone calls. We receive a high volume of spam calls, and as a one-person practice we are usually with a client. Please message us on Instagram, WhatsApp or by email — we reply between sessions.
A day or two ahead gives you the widest choice of times. Same-day bookings are often possible for the afternoon and evening — message us and we'll tell you honestly what's still open.
No travel fee in: Gion · Higashiyama · Okazaki · Kawaramachi & Pontocho · Karasuma & Shijo · Nijo Castle · Imperial Palace area · Kyoto Station · Arashiyama.
Hotels, machiya townhouses and apartment rentals are all fine. Staying somewhere else in Kyoto? Send us your hotel and we'll tell you either way before you commit.
Yes. The same sessions are available at our studio in Nakagyo-ku, central Kyoto, by appointment and at the same prices.
Some guests prefer it — if your room is small, if you're sharing it, or if you would simply rather come to us than have someone visit. Tell us when you message, and we'll send the address and directions once your time is confirmed.
03 — On the day
We arrive a few minutes before your start time and begin with a short conversation — how you've been traveling, how you're sleeping, where the body feels heavy. From that you choose your areas of focus: one concept for 60 minutes, two for 75, three for 90.
You then lie down, fully clothed, on your bed or on a mat on the floor, whichever suits the room. The work itself is quiet and unhurried; most people say very little.
Afterwards we pack up and leave you where you are. There is no journey home — that is much of the point of an in-room session.
Nothing. No towels, no mat, no oils — we bring what's needed and work with your bed or the floor.
Two small things help: loose clothing, and avoiding a heavy meal in the hour beforehand. Drink some water afterwards.
No. Kyoto rooms are often compact, so the session works with the space you already have — your bed, or a mat on the floor. Nothing is moved or rearranged without asking.
Most hotels have no issue with a visitor coming up to your room. A few prefer to be told in advance, so if you're unsure, a word at the front desk when you check in saves any awkwardness at the door later.
We arrive quietly, in plain clothes, carrying a small bag — not a trolley of equipment.
Yes — the Pair Offer, ¥20,000, covers two 60-minute sessions one after the other in the same room. It applies to 60-minute sessions only.
Whoever isn't being worked on can rest in the room or step out; either is fine.
04 — Price, payment & changes
No travel fee, no late-evening surcharge, no weekend surcharge. The price you're quoted is the price you pay. Foreign-currency figures on our price page are rough guides only; payment is in yen.
In the room, at the end of the session. Cash in yen, or major international cards — Visa, Mastercard, American Express, JCB — plus Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Nothing is charged in advance and no deposit is taken.
Free up to 12 hours before your session. Within 12 hours, 50%. No-show, or turning us away at the door, 100%.
Plans change when you travel. If something comes up, message us on WhatsApp — we would much rather move your session than charge you for it.
There is one practitioner, Naoya Yokomori, so we can't offer a choice. We would rather tell you that here than have it be a surprise at your door.
Something we haven't answered? Ask us on Instagram or WhatsApp — a question costs you nothing and there is no obligation to book.
Message us with your question, your hotel and your dates.
We'll tell you honestly whether this is right for you.
