Oku-Yugawara Tsubaki

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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.

Best ryokan in Yugawara: 5 inns compared on onsen, food and price

Five Yugawara ryokan compared: free private baths, spring water straight from the well or recirculated, in-room dining, heritage buildings, stairs and value — with the catch at each inn.

Free-flowing or recirculated? How to tell real onsen water before you book

'Hot spring' on a booking page can mean anything from water straight from the source to recirculated, chlorinated tap water in your room. What the Japanese terms mean, and which ryokan in our directory pass the test.

Tattoo-friendly ryokan — and how to soak in Japan when the shared bath says no

Three ryokan that openly accept tattoos, four that allow small covered ones, and eleven that ban tattoos in the shared baths but let you soak in your own room or a private bath — each inn's policy exactly as it states it, and the right room to book.

Photo credits

The Fujiki river through Yugawara Onsen, Kanagawa · Quercus acuta / CC BY-SA 4.0
Mukaitaki in the snow, Higashiyama Onsen, Aizu-Wakamatsu · Fumihiko Ueno / CC BY 3.0
Gora Kadan — the former Kan'in-no-miya imperial villa, Hakone · 663highland / CC BY 2.5

More Consensus Reports

YugawaraPremium

Miyakami, Yugawara, Kanagawa — at the top of a steep lane above the hot-spring town, about 3 km and 8 minutes by taxi from JR Yugawara Station

4.5/5

9 sources

Fukiya

ふきや

A 20-room sukiya inn above Yugawara with three free private open-air baths, vintage Scandinavian chairs in every room and old-style in-room dining — but only half the rooms have spring water in their hinoki tubs, and the food under a newer chef divides repeat guests

Private Onsen Rooms
Design-Led

YugawaraClassic

Miyakami, Yugawara, Kanagawa — in the middle of the hot-spring town at the entrance to Man'yō Park, directly in front of the Kōen-iriguchi bus stop, about 13 minutes by bus from JR Yugawara Station

4.4/5

11 sources

Yugawara Onsen Itoya

湯河原温泉島崎藤村ゆかりの宿伊藤屋

A 13-room inn from 1888 where Shimazaki Tōson came to write, with Taishō-era rooms listed as cultural property, two free private baths and seafood dinners that reviewers love — but the spring water is recirculated, there's no lift, and the old wing runs cold in winter

Historic Ryokan
Private Onsen Rooms

YugawaraClassic

Miyakami, Yugawara, Kanagawa — in the old hot-spring quarter, 50 m from the Onsenba-chūō bus stop, about 12 minutes by bus or 10 minutes by taxi from JR Yugawara Station

4.3/5

9 sources

Yugawara Onsen Gensen Uenoya

湯河原温泉源泉上野屋

Yugawara's oldest inn: three registered-heritage wooden buildings, its own 82°C spring poured unrecirculated into every bath and two free private open-air tubs — but no lift, steep stairs, thin walls and modest dinners

Historic Ryokan
Private Onsen Rooms

YugawaraClassic

Miyakami, Yugawara, Kanagawa — on the main bus road through the hot-spring town, a 1-minute walk from the Risōkyō bus stop, about 7 minutes by bus or 5 minutes by taxi from JR Yugawara Station

4.2/5

10 sources

Yugawara Onsen Onyado Megumi

湯河原温泉おんやど恵

A Yugawara inn with an Edo theme, built for small children and older parents: room-served kaiseki, a stair-lift to the baths, a kids' room, and four rooms with their own free-flowing onsen. But the main baths are recirculated and cleaning slips

Easy From Tokyo

IzuPremium

Shuzenji Onsen, Izu, Shizuoka — in a bamboo grove about 10 minutes by taxi from Shuzenji Station

4.6/5

9 sources

Yagyu no Sho

柳生の庄

Fifteen sukiya rooms in a bamboo grove, Kyoto-style kaiseki in your room and empty garden baths — superb food and calm, but some rooms are showing their age

Private Onsen Rooms
Destination Dining

KamisuwaClassic

Kamisuwa Onsen, Suwa, Nagano — on the lakeshore road a minute's walk from Lake Suwa, 7 minutes on foot from Kami-Suwa Station, about 2½ hours from Shinjuku by limited express

4.4/5

9 sources

Kamisuwa Onsen Nunohan

上諏訪温泉ぬのはん（布半）

The century-old inn where Suwa's first drilled hot spring was struck in 1920, known for award-winning kaiseki in private garden dining rooms and summer fireworks launched right in front — but the baths are recirculated, small outdoors and have no lake view, and low-floor 'lake view' rooms see the lake through trees

Historic Ryokan
Destination Dining