Notoya Ryokan

Shopping in Japan: deliver to your ryokan, collect at a konbini, send bags ahead

Japan SIM, eSIM or pocket Wi-Fi? What to buy before you fly and where to pick it up

Things to do nearby

Ginzan Onsen: sights, experiences and seasonal events from Trip Gacha, our sister site.

Ginzan Onsen Gas-Lamp Village

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Sources

The real blog posts and stay reports this article draws on

Featured in our guides

Side-by-side comparisons that include this ryokan.

Hiking near Japan's mountain onsen: bear bells, trail shoes and rain gear for short walks

What to carry for short hikes and forest walks around mountain onsen such as Nyuto, Okukinu, Sukayu and the Hakkoda area: official bear-safety advice from the Ministry of the Environment and the prefectures (including why bear spray can't go on a plane), footwear and trekking poles, rain layers and what the Japan Meteorological Agency says about thunder, water, snacks and cash where shops are scarce, headlamps and first aid — with what to buy on Amazon.co.jp or Rakuten and what some inns lend.

What to pack for a winter onsen trip in Japan: heat packs, snow boots and warm layers

A category-by-category packing list for a snowy onsen ryokan trip in Japan from December to March: kairo heat packs (and what the maker and air-safety authorities say about flying with them), snow boots and slip-on ice grips, thermal layers, gloves and hats, lip and skin care for dry air, and a waterproof bag for walking between baths — with what to buy on Amazon.co.jp or Rakuten and what some inns lend.

Freezing at a mountain onsen ryokan in Japan? How to stay warm tonight

Cold room, icy corridor or a snowy walk to the outdoor bath? What to ask the front desk for, which inns in our directory run cold and which lend coats, boots or blankets, buying kairo heat packs and warm innerwear at a konbini today, avoiding low-temperature burns, the official advice on bathing in cold weather, ordering warm gear to your ryokan, and winter tyres, chains and shuttles.

Snow-country ryokan: where to soak in winter

Nine ryokan in Japan's snow country where Japanese stay reports describe bathing from December to March, one that closes for winter, and the winter catches: roads closed to cars, shuttle-only access, chains, cold corridors and baths shut for snow.

Photo credits

Kamikochi, Matsumoto, Nagano · ウィキ太郎 / Public domain
AEON Style store, Okinawa · Naha Mama Pavilionz / CC0
Notoya Ryokan, Ginzan Onsen (Obanazawa, Yamagata) · さかおり / CC BY-SA 4.0
Lamp no Yado Aoni Onsen · Raita Futo / CC BY 2.0

More Consensus Reports

Ginzan OnsenPremium

Ginzan Onsen, Obanazawa, Yamagata

4.2/5

9 sources

Ginzan Onsen Fujiya

銀山温泉藤屋

Kengo Kuma's eight-room inn in the heart of Ginzan — five private onsen baths, and a design that sometimes forgets practicality

Design-Led

HakoneClassic

Tonosawa, Hakone — on the Hayakawa river, a 5-minute bus ride from Hakone-Yumoto Station (1 minute's walk from the Kami-Tonosawa stop) or a 10-minute walk from Tonosawa Station on the Hakone Tozan Railway

3.8/5

10 sources

Tonosawa Ichinoyu Honkan

塔ノ沢一の湯本館

A wooden inn founded in 1630 and now a registered cultural property, run by Hakone's budget Ichinoyu group: free-flowing baths in some rooms, simmered kinmedai and free drinks at low prices — but no lift, no showers in the shared baths, and many rooms share toilets

Historic Ryokan
Private Onsen Rooms

HakoneClassic

Kowakudani, Hakone — on the slope above the Hōraien azalea garden, right by the Hōraien bus stop (about 20 minutes by bus from Hakone-Yumoto) and close to Hakone Kowakien Yunessun

4.1/5

10 sources

Hakone Kowakien Mikawaya Ryokan

箱根小涌園三河屋旅館

The 1883 inn credited with starting Kowakudani Onsen: a cultural-property main building, a 16,000㎡ azalea garden and its own spring — book a room with a private open-air bath, because the bath-less twins, lukewarm water and slow service on busy nights are the recurring complaints

Historic Ryokan
Private Onsen Rooms

HakoneClassic

Kowakudani, Hakone — in woodland above Route 1, 0.7 km (about 15 minutes' uphill walk) from Kowakudani Station on the Hakone Tozan Railway, with a free station shuttle between 14:00 and 17:00

4.1/5

9 sources

Hakone Kowakudani Onsen Mizunoto (Kyoritsu Resort)

箱根小涌谷温泉水の音

Kyoritsu Resort's big Kowakudani inn: two different springs, three free private garden baths and freebies from ice lollies to late-night ramen at a mid-range price — but service is patchy, dinner slots go fast, and only some room baths use onsen water

Private Onsen Rooms
Easy From Tokyo

HakoneClassic

Hakone-Yumoto — across the Hayakawa river from Route 1, a 7-minute walk from Hakone-Yumoto Station (about 85 minutes from Shinjuku by Odakyu Romancecar)

4.2/5

10 sources

Hakone Yumoto Onsen Yoshiike Ryokan

箱根湯本温泉吉池旅館

A big 64-room inn wrapped around a 33,000㎡ garden that was once a Mitsubishi family villa, with six of its own free-flowing springs, seven minutes' walk from Hakone-Yumoto Station — but some rooms are dated, 'garden-side' doesn't always mean a view, and part of the Sansō wing is under renovation until January 2027

Private Onsen Rooms
Historic Ryokan

Lake HamanaValue

Kanzanji Onsen, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka — on Lake Hamana's Uchiura inlet, opposite the Hamanako Bay Street bus stop (about 45–60 minutes by bus from Hamamatsu Station) and walking distance from the Kanzanji Ropeway and Pal Pal amusement park

4.0/5

10 sources

Hotel Kikusuitei

浜名湖かんざんじ温泉ホテル鞠水亭

A plain Shōwa-era onsen inn on Lake Hamana where every room faces the water, dinner is a Yufuin-designed kaiseki with eel or abalone, and cheap weekday bookings are often upgraded — but the baths are recirculated and shared with day visitors, and the building shows its age