Talking mountains, men adopted in their mid-20s, and Samurai warriors surround the world's three oldest businesses

Did you know that the three oldest still-running businesses in the world are all Japanese? And that they're all hotels? And that two of them were founded in the same year, about 1.3 millennia ago? They don't try to profit, but merely to break even. They hire inexperienced workers, and train them up on the job. And they never advertise. So how can these places survive both the fall of The Roman Empire and the financial crisis? Let's take a look

Nisiyama Onsen Keiunkan
Nisiyama Onsen Keiunkan
hot springs japan
Vagabondish
Hoshi Ryokan
Hoshi Ryokan
Via House
Sennennoyu Koman
Sennennoyu Koman