With rural Japan experiencing severe depopulation, unstaffed railway stations and vacant properties are being turned into places for tourists to stay – and it is proving a success.

Transport operators are working with local communities to repurpose quiet outposts into hubs of activity, injecting new life into surrounding areas with their creativity.

In the tranquil countryside of Shizuoka prefecture, central Japan, a disused part of the unstaffed Futamata-Hommachi Station has been converted into a one-room hotel, giving travellers a unique perspective on rural Japanese life.

Inn My Life was opened by Akihito Nakatani in May 2019 to encourage people to explore his hometown of Tenryu, whose once-thriving forestry industry has faded.

Two young guests at Inn My Life, a lodging in a disused part of unstaffed Futamata-Hommachi Station in Shizuoka prefecture, wave at a passing train. Photo: Instagram/inn_my_life

Two young guests at Inn My Life, a lodging in a disused part of unstaffed Futamata-Hommachi Station in Shizuoka prefecture, wave at a passing train. Photo: Instagram/inn_my_life

“For a place to become a tourist destination, it needs attention-grabbing accommodation and attractions. If we can create successful examples, local people might be encouraged to do the same, eventually turning the area into a viable tourist spot,” the 34-year-old said.

Nakatani, who used to run a real estate business renovating buildings in Tokyo, decided to return to Tenryu around 10 years ago to do something similar in his hometown.