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esigned with sustainability and comfort in mind, Kitoki Inn’s drawing feature is most certainly the open-air, onsen-style bathhouse where its owners, husband and wife team Mitsumi Kawai and Rob Leadley, hope to bring an inviting environment in which to immerse yourself in the healing calm provided by the rich rainforest nearby.

Kawai and Leadley are dedicated to paying homage to the natural resources available to them, while paying respect to the unceded territory of the Squamish people.

To help them do this, they recruited Bowen-based jewelry designer Miki Tanaka and industrial designer Bob Schultz to help draw up the signage while Squamish area-based company Van Urban Timber, takes on the millwork for Kitoki’s interiors.

The interiors will combine minimalist elements borrowed from Japanese culture and contemporary elements from the Inn’s West Coast home. 

Each cabin also features a private deck perfect for stargazing, while the comfy beds inside serve as a place to lay back and restore, all while taking in the custom woodwork and decorative touches from local artisans around you. 

The onsen, which is situated on a secluded bluff, boasts views of the forest and will give guests a restorative and peaceful spa experience. Taking inspiration from the traditional hot springs in Japan, the Kitoki Inn bathhouse is a quietly calm atmosphere to soak and refresh. After a rinse in the hydrotherapy shower, guests can relax in the garden by the wood-burning fireplace. The boathouse is open-air but is artfully covered so it can be used year round, rain or shine. 

Kawai and Leadley are hopeful that their secluded spot will encourage guests to take the time to reconnect with themselves at the arms of nature. 

While Kitoki isn’t slated to open until later this summer, they are currently taking reservations online (and they’re booking up quick!) With so many of us working from home and often in small, cramped spaces, nothing sounds better than disconnecting from everyday life and reconnecting with ourselves and nature. Kitoki Inn, here we come.