Yunoshimakan

A 1931 wooden resort inn that hosted two emperors — red-carpeted corridors, a Showa-era bar and Hida beef at 4.9 — but also a maze of stairs and a persistent musty smell

Yunoshimakan opened in 1931 as a grand resort — billiards, a dance hall, tennis courts — and its wooden main building, entrance and connecting corridor have been registered cultural properties since 2010. Emperor Showa stayed in 1958 and the present Emperor Emeritus in 1976. Japanese guests love the atmosphere: red-carpeted corridors and a spiral staircase that bloggers compare to Spirited Away, a self-guided building tour with a stamp rally, free billiards and coffee, and the old Club Moonlight bar. Food is the other highlight — dinner scores 4.9 across 1,459 reviews on one major site, built around Hida beef — along with gentle, alkaline spring water that fills every room bath. The weaknesses are those of a 95-year-old complex: several 2026 reviewers complained of a strong musty or mouldy smell (the inn says it is consulting specialists), draughty original windows, insects in the open-air baths, a building 'like a maze' with stairs appearing at random, a 20-step climb to one open-air bath, thin walls in the main building, and a large bath where the water is partly recirculated and loses its scent. Tattooed guests are generally refused in the large baths. Expect around ¥30,000 per person with two meals.