When Rain Turns to Magic: A Ryokan Wedding in Japan

If weddings are about anything, they’re about people.

The extraordinary convergence of lives, histories, and relationships that might only ever share the same room once. That was the gift of this celebration at Jinya… 80+ guests from Australia, the U.S., Japan and beyond, gathered together in a beautifully rain-soaked garden that became mist-filled halls, bound by love, story, and the once-in-a-lifetime chance to all belong in the same place.

Because in the end, it wasn’t the rain or the décor or even the rituals that defined this wedding. It was the people. And the couple they traveled from around the world to celebrate.

And, if there’s one truth we’ve learned from decades of weddings, it’s this: you can’t be married to a single vision. But you can be married to the idea of loving whatever the day presents.

That’s exactly what happened at Jinya on this misty spring day in Kanagawa. The rain came steady and sure, wrapping the ryokan in a kind of cinematic stillness. Windows fogged, koi ponds rippled, the gardens shimmered as if they belonged to another world. And instead of holding onto a vision that no longer reflected, this couple leaned into the beauty of what was unfolding just for them. (Highlight video at the end of the post…)

A Story Which Began in Japan

The bride was Australian. The groom, American. They met years ago on the JET Programme, placed in rural Japanese towns, finding each other in the small adventures and secret rendezvous of early adulthood.

When the program ended, their relationship stretched into long-distance love, with airports and time zones marking their milestones. But they finally came together.

And then, fourteen years later, they returned to Tokyo together. On a summer evening by the Sumida River, outside their old apartment, he set up his camera under the guise of a landscape shot of the Skytree. Instead, he captured a proposal … a moment that brought their story full circle.

So of course, Japan was where they chose to marry.

Why Jinya Ryokan

For the couple, Jinya was more than a venue. It was an invitation for their guests to step into the Japan they had fallen in love with. Tatami rooms. Onsens under the rain. Bamboo groves, koi ponds, and the iconic Totoro tree. A ryokan that feels suspended in time, yet close enough to Tokyo to welcome family and friends from around the world.

For us, Jinya is a place that trusts our process. With a full buyout, we could design an event that honored both cultures, respected traditions, and gave the couple freedom to celebrate exactly as they envisioned. Or, as the day unfolded, exactly as the weather revealed.

The Morning

The day began in quiet, intentional ways. Our bride prepared with her mother, the only other person in the room. No bridal party, no rush. Just intimacy, laughter, and pauses. The groom began in a yukata, enjoying an onsen while rain tapped against the stones, before dressing in a classic tuxedo and fastening the bride’s late father’s watch to his wrist. A quiet and heartfelt nod to the past carried into the future. A gesture that carried the past forward, honoring both memory and absence.

Their first look happened on a villa terrace, framed by mist and rain. Their mothers joined, and this beautiful moment became something else entirely. A merging of families. A still point before the day gathered pace.

The Ceremony

The couple had dreamed of Japanese garden wedding. The rain moved us indoors to Miyabi, but because we always plan for every outcome, this wasn’t a backup. It was simply the next beautiful option in the story.

The ceremony felt cocooned, with foggy windows softening the view of the garden and rain providing its own kind of music. The bride’s uncle presided over a ceremony that was personal, timeless, and deeply meaningful.

For many guests, this was their first time in Japan. The couple wanted them to experience it, not as tourists, but as participants.

Cocktail hour was inspired by Matsuri (Japanese festivals): yakitori skewers, delicate maki onigiri, strawberry daifuku, and a special Jinya manju. Signature cocktails, an Umeshu Cooler for her, a Yuzu Highball for him, carried their personalities into the evening.

At the reception, cultural rituals brought everyone closer:

Kagami biraki: the ceremonial breaking of the sake barrel to open new paths.
Mochi pounding: laughter, drums, guests from aunts and uncles to children taking turns with the mallet.

These weren’t staged moments. They were shared experiences which will live in family stories for generations.

The Reception

Dinner flowed into speeches that bridged continents, voices rising in celebration and memory. Then came the dancing, under the shimmer of the largest disco ball Jinya has ever hosted.

Music crossed eras and borders: Aussie rock classics collided with millennial favorites, every generation joining in. And in the end, every guest was on their feet, singing Land Down Under at the top of their lungs, a chorus of joy uniting accents, families, and friendships. An anthem turned memory.

The Feast

Food mattered deeply to this couple. They are foodies through and through … so the menu wasn’t an afterthought. They worked closely with the incredible Jinya chef to curate a sublime kaiseki-style dinner that celebrated both seasonality and tradition.

Guests began with sesame tofu with lily bulb and a local peanut sauce, followed by delicate yuba with crab and soy. Seasonal sashimi arrived with fresh vegetables, grilled Spanish mackerel paired with sweet potato, and simmered Wagyu beef with eggplant, each dish a balance of refinement and comfort.

The meal ended with a light matcha mousse, musk melon, and strawberries, closing the night on the perfect sweet note.

It wasn’t just dinner. it was a shared journey through Japanese flavors, designed to give their guests a taste of the country that had given them their story.

The People

This wedding was about people.

More than eighty of them, flying in from four or five continents. Family who might never cross paths again. Friends who first knew the couple in small Japanese towns, now celebrating their love in a ryokan garden. Cousins, colleagues, mothers, uncles … each one adding something irreplaceable to the day.

That’s the truth of weddings: décor fades, playlists change, menus evolve. But the people … the people in the room on that one day … that’s what lingers forever. This was their only chance to all belong in the same story. And they did.

The Design

Florals: By Yuki Yoshikawa. A restrained palette of whites and greens, softened with purple accents. Roses, the bride’s favorite, featured.
Cake: A multi-tier, real cake by Shunsuke Kikuchi of Eneko … rare in Japan, where large cakes are often faux. Adorned with sugar-art initials and the couple’s logo, it arrived mid-reception to delight and surprise.

What Stays With Us

What we’ll remember most isn’t that it rained. It’s how the rain transformed the day into something extraordinary. This wedding day was defined by presence. By people. By the willingness to let go of expectations and embrace and love the story as it unfolded.

The mist that made the ryokan ethereal. The closeness of families. The joy of guests discovering Japanese traditions. The laughter of mochi pounding. The disco ball finale. The couple dancing outside, umbrellas abandoned, radiant in the rain. And above all, the unrepeatable moment of eighty-plus people, from across the world, connected and sharing the same room.

For us, that’s the magic. And for this couple, it was everything.

Bride’s Must-Haves

When asked what mattered most, the bride told us:

Seamless planning and coordination.
Photography and video with their mothers, to keep forever.
Guests having the time of their lives.

And that’s exactly what happened.

Grooms’s Must-Haves

A REAL. BIG. CAKE.

Vendors & Credits

Planning: 37 Frames
Photography & Film: 37 Frames
Venue: Jinya Ryokan
Dress: Rosa Clará
Hair & Makeup: Megumi Enokido @enochan114
Florals: Yuki Yoshikawa @yuki__yoshikawa
Cake: Shunsuke Kikuchi // Eneko

Final Reflection

At 37 Frames, we don’t talk about “Plan B.” We plan for every possibility, so that whatever the day brings, it feels intentional, seamless, and true.

This Jinya Ryokan wedding wasn’t about what changed. It was about what mattered most … the people. The connections. The chance to gather every corner of a couple’s world into one room, for one day only.

Because rain may change the scenery, but people are what make the story unforgettable. The truth is, you can’t plan the weather. But you can plan to love the story it writes for you.