Kamenoi Bessou is a ryokan of detached cottages on the shore of Lake Kinrin in Yufuin, Oita, about 5 minutes by taxi from JR Yufuin Station. Before you book, five things matter. Every room has its own free-flowing onsen bath. The main building takes no children of elementary school age or younger and is reached by stairs. Yufu’s bathing tax is 250 yen per person per night. The lowest rate shown was 53,900 yen per adult with two meals. And the Japanese and English booking pages set different online cancellation deadlines, with no cancellation fee published on either.
The inn’s English site is thin and out of date: its news stopped in 2017, and some of its lines contradict the Japanese pages. Where the two disagree, we follow the Japanese site and the booking pages, and say so.
Kamenoi Bessou (Yufuin) at a glance
| Item | What the official pages say |
|---|---|
| Location | By Lake Kinrin, Yufuin; about 5 minutes by taxi from JR Yufuin Station |
| Rooms | 11 cottages and 6 Western-style main-building rooms |
| Onsen | Free-flowing hot spring bath in every room |
| Check-in / out | 15:00 / 11:00; latest check-in 19:00 or 20:00, by plan |
| Main building | No children of elementary school age or younger; stairs to every room |
| Lowest rate shown | 53,900 yen per adult, 2 per room, 2 meals, tax included (booking page, October 5, 2026) |
| Bathing tax | 250 yen per person per night |
| Online cancellation deadline | Japanese page: 8 days before, 23:59; English page: day before, 15:00 |
| Cancellation fee | Not published |
| Payment | Japanese page: at the inn or card prepayment; English page: card prepayment only |
From Kamenoi Bessou’s official sites and booking pages, read October 5, 2026.
What is Kamenoi Bessou, and where is it in Yufuin?
What kind of ryokan is it?
A ryokan built around a large garden. The Japanese rooms page says the grounds cover about 10,000 tsubo, a traditional Japanese unit of land area, with 11 detached cottages and 6 Western-style rooms. The English page says 15 cottages; the Japanese room list shows 11, so we use 11. The garden also holds a restaurant, a tea room, a bar and a souvenir shop. For how futons, yukata and kaiseki dinners work, see our ryokan guide.
Where exactly is it?
The address is 2633-1 Kawakami, Yufuin-cho, Yufu, Oita 879-5102. The site’s header places it on the shore of Lake Kinrin. For the rest of the town, see our Yufuin guide.
How do I contact the inn?
The phone number is 0977-84-3166, the fax 0977-84-2356, and the English access page gives the email address info@kamenoi-bessou.jp.
Getting to Kamenoi Bessou from Yufuin Station, Fukuoka and Oita
How far is it from JR Yufuin Station?
The Japanese access page gives about 5 minutes by taxi or about 25 minutes on foot from JR Yufuin Station, and the same from the bus center in front of the station. The English page says about 7 minutes by taxi. No page mentions a station pickup.
How long is the train from Fukuoka?
The inn gives about 130 minutes from Hakata Station on the JR limited expresses Yufuin no Mori or Yufu. The Japanese page asks you to check JR Kyushu’s service information before you travel. The Japanese and English pages give different times for the express bus from Fukuoka, so we leave those out.
How do I get there from Oita Airport or Beppu?
| From | How | Time the inn gives |
|---|---|---|
| Oita Airport | Express bus to the Yufuin Station bus center | About 60 min |
| Oita Airport | Car: airport road, Oita Expressway, then Route 216 | About 30 + 20 + 10 min |
| Beppu | Local bus via Route 11 | About 60 min |
| Beppu | JR Nippo Line to Oita, then JR Kyudai Line | About 15 + 60 min |
| Yufuin IC | Car via Route 216 | About 10 min |
Official access page (Japanese), read October 5, 2026. Fares are not listed.
If you are combining the trip with Beppu’s hot springs, see our Beppu guide.
Is there parking?
The inn’s pages do not say. No page we read mentions a car park, a fee or a number of spaces, even though the access page gives driving routes. Ask when you book if you are driving.
Kamenoi Bessou rooms: cottage or main building?
What are the cottages like?
Each cottage, or hanare, has a living room, a bedroom and an onsen bath, and dinner and breakfast are brought to your room. The Japanese site lists them by number:
| Cottage | Type | Bath | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. 7 | Western-style | Open-air | 140 m² |
| No. 100 | Special room | Open-air | 120 m² |
| No. 17 | Japanese-Western | Open-air | 90 m² |
| No. 3, No. 11 | Japanese-Western | Indoor | 85 m² |
| No. 5 | Western-style | Open-air | 80 m² |
| No. 2 | Japanese | Open-air | 80 m² |
| No. 8 | Japanese | Open-air | 75 m² |
| No. 1, No. 16 | Japanese | Open-air | 70 m² |
| No. 15 | Japanese | Indoor | 50 m² |
Official rooms page (Japanese), read October 5, 2026. The booking page gives No. 17 as 93 m².
The booking page lists most cottages for 2 to 4 guests, and No. 15 and No. 16 for 1 to 4; one plan list shows No. 100 for up to 6. No. 17 has stairs inside the room. No. 1, renovated in part in October 2017, has both an open-air and an indoor onsen bath, floor heating, two tatami rooms of 8 and 6 mats, and free wireless internet. The booking page marks most cottages as non-smoking; it does not label No. 1, No. 2 or No. 11 either way, so ask if it matters.
Which cottages are Western-style?
Two. A 2024 notice says No. 5 was rebuilt with a new free-flowing open-air bath in its cedar garden and became a Western-style room. No. 7 is a new special room, with two bedrooms and four beds, a new free-flowing open-air bath and an indoor bath made entirely of hinoki cypress. Its own booking plan allows check-in until 20:00. The inn’s notice and booking page give different dates for when No. 7 was finished.
What are the main-building rooms like?
The six main-building rooms are hotel-style twins with an indoor onsen bath. One is 60 square meters with an open-air bath, four are 45 and one is 40. The booking page marks them all non-smoking and lists each for 1 to 2 or 1 to 3 guests. Meals are served in the main-building restaurant, from the same menu as the cottages.
What is No. 10, Juban-kan?
A January 2026 notice says the inn renovated a room around a private counter where the head chef serves you in person. It is sold only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, to three groups a day, and the booking page limits it to adults, from junior high school age. Dinner on that plan starts at 18:30. It does not appear on the English booking page.
The onsen at Kamenoi Bessou
Is the bath in my room a real hot spring?
Yes. The Japanese rooms page says every guest room has a free-flowing onsen bath, with water straight from the source. The spa page says the inn sends natural, free-flowing water from a source in its own garden, and that you can enjoy the smooth water all night. Cottages have either an open-air bath or an indoor bath; main-building rooms have an indoor onsen bath, and the 60-square-meter room adds an open-air one.
Is there a shared bath?
No page describes one. One booking-page photo is captioned as a large open-air bath, but the site gives no text, hours or rules for it. The inn does not state the spring type, bath hours or any private bath you can book.
Can I use the baths with a tattoo?
No page we read gives a tattoo rule, in Japanese or English. What the pages do say is that every room has its own onsen bath. If you would want to use a shared bath, ask the inn before you book. Our tattoos and onsen guide covers the wider picture.
Dinner and breakfast at Kamenoi Bessou
Where are meals served?
In the cottages, kaiseki dinner is brought to your room, and breakfast too, with a choice of Japanese or Western. In the main building, both meals are served in the main-building restaurant. From the second night you can choose a kaiseki course or a hot pot course. If you ask, the inn can also serve dinner at Yunodake An, the restaurant in its garden. The English site still says the main building serves no dinner; the Japanese site and both booking pages show dinner plans, so we follow them.
What about children’s meals?
The Japanese cottage plan says there are three children’s dinner menus with different portions and dishes, and asks you to phone for details. The English booking page says children of elementary school age or younger may not use the main-building restaurant.
What else is in the garden?
| Place | Hours |
|---|---|
| Yunodake An (restaurant) | 11:00 to 21:00, last order; 70 seats; closed irregularly about twice a year |
| Tea room | 9:00 to 17:00 |
| Bar, in a relocated late-Edo sake brewery | 17:00 to 24:00 |
| Souvenir shop | 9:00 to 19:00 |
Official facility pages (Japanese), read October 5, 2026.
Yunodake An’s phone number is 0977-84-2970. The pages give no meal times for guests and say nothing about allergies, vegetarian or halal food, so raise any needs when you book.
Check-in, rates and taxes at Kamenoi Bessou
What time are check-in and checkout?
The Japanese rooms page gives check-in at 15:00 and checkout at 11:00. The latest check-in time differs by booking page: 19:00 on the regular Japanese plans, and 20:00 on the English booking page and the No. 7 plan. The inn publishes no rule for arriving late without notice, so call if you will be after the time on your plan.
How much does a night cost?
On October 5, 2026, the official booking page showed these lowest rates, per adult per night, for two sharing a room with dinner and breakfast, with consumption tax included:
| Plan | Lowest shown, per adult |
|---|---|
| Main building, kaiseki in the restaurant | 53,900 yen (up to 72,600 yen) |
| Cottage, kaiseki in the room | 59,400 yen (up to 107,800 yen) |
| Juban-kan, chef’s counter | 78,650 yen (up to 120,450 yen) |
| No. 7 only | 99,000 yen |
Official booking page (Japanese), plan list without dates, read October 5, 2026. The page calls these approximate. Rates change by date.
The booking page says its prices include consumption tax but does not say whether a service charge is included. A 2025 notice for No. 7 quoted its price with service included and tax excluded, so check the breakdown on your plan.
Is there a bathing tax?
Yes. Every plan carries a note that Yufu City’s bathing tax rose from 150 yen to 250 yen per person per night for stays from October 1, 2024. The note does not say whether it is in the price shown, and no page mentions an accommodation tax.
Booking, cancellation and payment at Kamenoi Bessou
What does it cost to cancel?
The inn does not say. On both the Japanese and the English booking pages, the cancellation-fee field is empty, so the cancellation fees are not published. What the pages do show is a deadline for canceling online, and the two languages disagree:
| Booking page | Cancel or change online until | Book until |
|---|---|---|
| Japanese | 23:59, 8 days before | 20:00 the day before |
| English | 15:00 the day before | 15:00 the day before |
Official booking pages, read October 5, 2026. Times are Japan time.
Our hotel cancellation guide explains how fees work at other places to stay in Japan.
Can I pay at the inn?
It depends on the booking page. The Japanese booking page offers payment at the inn or card prepayment. The English booking page offers card prepayment only. A prepaid booking is arranged by Time Design Co., Ltd., a travel company, and the Japanese page says paying in advance makes your contract an arranged-travel contract with Time Design, so its conditions apply. We did not read them.
Should I book in Japanese or English?
The English booking page showed two plans for us; the Juban-kan and No. 7 plans appear only in Japanese. The “Reservation” button on the English site also opens the Japanese booking page, which has an English switch. Pick the page whose payment and cancellation terms suit you.
Kids at Kamenoi Bessou
Can children stay?
Yes, in the cottages. The booking page has categories for children aged 6 to 12, who eat the same meals as adults, 3 to 5, with no meal or a children’s meal, and 2 and under, with no meal, each with or without bedding. It does not publish the child rates; they appear on the booking screen. The main building and its restaurant are closed to children of elementary school age or younger, and the Juban-kan counter is for junior high school age and up. Compare how other places handle children in our kids stay free guide.
Who Kamenoi Bessou suits
Couples and families who want a cottage with its own onsen bath and dinner in the room, by Lake Kinrin, a short taxi ride from Yufuin Station. It is a harder fit if you need the cancellation fee in writing before you commit, want to pay on arrival through the English booking page, are bringing young children to a main-building room, or need step-free access there.
Frequently asked questions
Does every room at Kamenoi Bessou have its own onsen?
How many rooms does Kamenoi Bessou have?
Can children stay at Kamenoi Bessou?
How much does Kamenoi Bessou cost?
Is there a bathing tax at Kamenoi Bessou?
What is the cancellation policy at Kamenoi Bessou?
Can I pay at Kamenoi Bessou on arrival?
Can I use the onsen at Kamenoi Bessou with a tattoo?
Bottom line (2026): Kamenoi Bessou checks in from 15:00 and out by 11:00, and every room has its own free-flowing onsen bath. The main building takes no children of elementary school age or younger. The lowest rate shown was 53,900 yen per adult with two meals, plus a 250 yen bathing tax. Online cancellation closes 8 days before on the Japanese page and the day before on the English one, and no cancellation fee is published.
Sources
Every rule and figure on this page is from Kamenoi Bessou’s own pages: the Japanese home page, rooms, onsen, cuisine, access and facilities pages, the Yunodake An page and the notices on No. 5 and No. 7; the English home page, rooms, onsen and access pages; and the official booking pages in Japanese and English, including a cottage plan, a main-building plan, the No. 7 plan and an English main-building plan, all read on October 5, 2026. Where the English pages differ from the Japanese, we follow the Japanese. Confirm on the official site before you book.
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