Where to Stay– category –

Morizuya is a 12-room wooden ryokan in central Kinosaki Onsen, next door to the Ichi-no-yu bathhouse, known for its cave bath. Before you book: English bookings are a request form confirmed by email, cancellation fees start 4 days out, and you pay at the inn. From the official pages.

Minoriso is a hot-spring inn in Gero Onsen, Gifu, with 24-hour indoor baths and Hida beef grilled over charcoal at an old farmhouse hearth. Before you book: there is no outdoor bath, not every room has its own toilet, and booking is in Japanese only. From the official pages.

Hotel Edoya in Yushima, near Ueno and Akihabara, before you book: 45 of its 49 rooms are tatami rooms with futons, the front desk is closed from 2:30 to 4:45 a.m., a 6th-floor public bath with open-air tubs runs 3 p.m. to 10 a.m., breakfast is free, and there are mahjong rooms you can book overnight. From the official pages.

Sansou Murata in Yufuin before you book: 12 private villas, each with its own hot-spring bath indoors but no open-air or shared bath; rates per person with dinner and breakfast from 74,800 yen; online booking for 2 to 8 adults only; last check-in 6:30 p.m. on the Japanese site; and a closure on October 13 and 14, 2026. From the official pages.

Hotel Nikko Kumamoto, a 10-minute walk from Kumamoto Castle, before you book: there is no public bath, gym or pool, no hotel parking (three partner car parks), a 13% service charge plus Kumamoto's 200-yen accommodation tax, a castle view only on request, and a 50,000-yen smoking charge. From the official pages.

Tsuchiya Ryokan is an adults-only inn of Japanese cuisine, art and architecture in Kinosaki Onsen. Before you book: no one aged 12 or under can stay, two private baths are free without booking, dinner starts at 18:00 for everyone, and the doors close at 23:00. From the official pages.

Oyado Nonohana is an eight-room inn in the hills above Kurokawa Onsen, and every room has its own hot-spring bath fed from the inn's spring. Before you book: six rooms take no children, one-night stays only, and the English page shows old prices. From the official pages.

Sasara is a 44-room inn in Gero Onsen with 20 rooms that have their own outdoor bath and hot-spring water everywhere, 24 hours. Before you book: tattoos are refused in the large baths, the English pages show old prices, and the inn closes on December 1 and 2, 2026. From the official pages.

Naraya Ryokan is a nine-room wooden inn in Nozawa Onsen, founded in the Taisho era, with its own hot spring cared for by a resident spring keeper. Before you book: no elevator, winter bookings are not taken by phone, and the village charges an accommodation tax of 3.5 percent. From the official pages.

Kaede no Shoja is an adults' inn of detached rooms in Yufuin, each with its own indoor bath, outdoor bath and stone sauna. Before you book: meals are served in your room, the shared private outdoor bath has been closed since 2021, and the bathing tax is 250 yen. From the official pages.

Kurashiki Ivy Square, the red-brick former spinning mill by the Bikan Historical Quarter, before you book: there is no English website, the main door locks at 11 p.m. and the west gate at 10 p.m., call if you arrive after 8 p.m., the bath is heated water rather than onsen, and smoking in a room costs 30,000 yen. From the official pages.

Hiiragiya Ryokan in central Kyoto before you book: rates are per person with dinner and breakfast, there is no onsen or large bath but every room has its own wooden tub, dinner starts at 6 or 7 p.m. in your room, diet requests need 3 days, and cancellation is free until 4 days before. From the official pages.