Kanaguya

A magical hot spring resort. I have been to many “older” traditional establishments and this one is definitely the most impressive. It’s really out of this world. The multiple private baths are absolutely fantastic, we did almost all of them and each had a unique feeling. The dining hall is absolutely stunning. Don’t hesitate!

It's was a pleasant small village where everything is within walking distance . Ryokan is definitely WOW factor with very interesting structure and indoor onsens.

Highlight of our Japan trip. Such a special ryoken and loveliest staff. The onsens were fabulous, the rooms were traditional and very clean, food was delicious and varied. We felt very cared for and I couldn’t recommend this experience enough.

This is the best thing we did in Japan. The room was traditional and comfortable with a beautiful view of the town, the town and ryokan’s dozen baths were curative, beautiful, and unique. Take it slow, explore the town, enjoy the incredible food. They were able to accommodate my friend’s gluten intolerance easily and without disruption. The area offers incredible hiking, so taking a day trip is easy.

This is a very small town and although we’ve seen many foreigners visiting this town and this hotel on Youtube (one of the reasons we decided to stay here), it is very foreigner ‘unfriendly’ to say the least. It seemed hotel staff only spoke Japanese, so if you don’t speak it, it will be very difficult to enjoy the amenities. Staff were nice, but not very flexible (strictly by the rules, we supposed) thus not as accommodating as other ryokans we’ve stayed in. Dinner was very nicely presented and tasty…so many dishes that we couldn’t finish all (& we are big eaters) …felt bad leaving food untouched :(. The 9 Onsen tour was on my Bucket List and we got that done in less than an hour not by choice but because the water was soooooooo hot that we couldn’t even stick our feet in…almost scorched the bottom of my feet from. Very disappointing :(.

I’m shocked by any reviews of this architectural treasure where it’s not being given it’s fair marks. No, it’s not a 5 star hotel, but it is 5 stars in a unique very Japanese experience teeming with history!! The rooms are simple but elegant and super clean. The provided dinner and breakfast are excellent and again — another experience in tradition of this culture. Don’t skip the history tour of the Ryokan. It’s very informative and gives you insight to all the unique floors, windows and lighting. It’s very easy to get lost inside this place!! It’s like a fun house wrapped in a tree house laid out like a maze and it takes a few (ok — a LOT) of trips around the horn to find your way anywhere. I felt a personal victory when I finally found my way back to my room! So let’s talk about the hot springs, cuz that’s probably why you’re here right? HOT is an understatement. The water in these baths is about 120ºF. That is really hot and if you are like me and find a hot tub at 104º a little too warm, good luck with these! After 10+ minutes, I managed to get halfway in, but I couldn’t take it very long. The interior baths of the Ryokan were beautiful, but we preferred the outside rooftop one just because the cold night air helped with the overall tolerability of that hot water. Venturing out about the town at night in your robe and wooden shoes is also part of the adventure. It’s so cute when the village is lit up. You get a public bath map and a master key from the Inn that lets you access any of those public baths as you walk around. After seeing the cool baths of the inn, the ***** ones were just OK. There’s a foot soak spot however that we loved. It has a cold water faucet you can turn on while in there to make the water temp just perfect for you!!! I just loved our stop here. It’s a 1 night/2 max stay if you’re on a travel itinerary around Japan.