You're sure to love one of these Japanese hot spring hotels.
One of my hobbies is visiting Japan to soak in hot springs and stay at ryokans. I've picked a few from the ones I've stayed at to share with you:
🥢 Best dinner
▪️ Tottori Prefecture, Misasa Onsen, Ryokan Ohashi
The head chef has received the Yellow Ribbon Medal for culinary excellence in Japan. It is Michelin-recommended and continues a tradition of fine dining.
🧎 Best service
▪️ Shizuoka Prefecture, Yugashima Onsen, Shirakabeso
Full kneeling service, welcoming smiles, and a feeling of being right at home. This level of service is rare even in Japan.
♨️ Most beautiful private baths
▪️ Nagano Prefecture, Shirahone Onsen, Konashi no Yu
Private milky-white hot spring baths surrounded by a birch forest. I'm the one who made this place popular.
▪️ Shizuoka Prefecture, Dogashima Onsen, Umibe no Kakureyu Seiryu
Unbeatable sunset ocean views, but the hotel itself is old and not recommended.
♨️ Wildest hot springs
▪️ Aomori Prefecture, Furofushi Onsen, Koganezaki
Mixed-gender seaside bathing with waves crashing right beside you. A must-try in your lifetime.
💯 Best overall
▪️ Hokkaido, Kokoro no Resort Umi no Bettei Furukawa
Taste, rooms, food, ocean views, hot springs, service, foot baths, and smoking rooms all score highly.
🈲 Most beautiful mixed-gender baths
▪️ Akita Prefecture, Nyuto Onsen, Ganiba Onsen (food is bad)
▪️ Gunma Prefecture, Takaragawa Onsen, Osenkaku
These two are also the gold standard for winter snowy hot springs in Japan.
♨️ Most upscale private baths
▪️ Shizuoka Prefecture, Hokkawa Onsen, Boseki
▪️ Hyogo Prefecture, Kinosaki Onsen, Nishimuraya Shogetsutei
♨️ Most private baths
▪️ Gifu Prefecture, Fukuji Onsen, Yumoto Choza
▪️ Hokkaido, Ginkonyu
🈲 Most awkward mixed-gender baths
▪️ Nagano Prefecture, Kakeyu Onsen, Fujiya Ryokan
This might be related to my personal experience. The pool is small and the water is clear.
🏠 Most beautiful architecture
▪️ Gifu Prefecture, Gero Onsen, Yunoshimakan
I've stayed in many registered tangible cultural property ryokans, such as Sekizenkan in Shima Onsen, Chojukan in Hoshi Onsen, and Kanaguya in Shibu Onsen. Personally, I like the wooden architecture complex at Yunoshimakan the best.
☀️ Best sunrise
▪️ Tottori Prefecture, Kaike Onsen, Kaike Shogetsu
You can see both the sunrise and sunset from the hotel, and the food and accommodation standards are both on point.
⛰️ Highest altitude
▪️ Gunma Prefecture, Manza Onsen, Nisshinkan (1,800m)
▪️ Nagano Prefecture, Norikura Kogen Onsen, Mitakeso (1,500m)
▪️ Iwate Prefecture, Toshichi Onsen, Saiunso (1,400m)
▪️ Hokkaido, Tokachidake Onsen, Ryounkaku (1,280m)
㊙️ Best hidden hot spring ryokan
▪️ Tottori Prefecture, Iwai Onsen, Iwaiya
An exquisite little ryokan in the countryside, with ingenuity in every detail and great hot springs.
👘 Oldest
▪️ Awazu Onsen, Hoshi Ryokan
One of the two ryokans in Japan that once held a Guinness World Record. I stayed at the second oldest one, founded in 718. With over 1,300 years of history, it remains timeless.