Yufuin Sanso Warabino

A 1988 inn rebuilt in concrete after the 2016 earthquake: 13 modern suites in a wooded garden, each with its own free-flowing onsen bath on heated stone floors, and noon check-out — Japanese guests rate it near-perfect, but most baths are indoor tubs with opening windows, not true open-air baths

Sanso Warabino opened in 1988 as an inn of Japanese-style cottages on a 3,500-tsubo wooded plot in Kawakita, away from Yufuin's crowded Yunotsubo street. The 2016 Kumamoto earthquake damaged it badly; it closed and was rebuilt from scratch in earthquake-resistant concrete, reopening in 2019 with the concept 'an inn that wears the Yufuin landscape'. Today there are 13 suites from 57㎡ to 132㎡, floored with heated Hita stone, hung with contemporary art, and each with a bath of 100% free-flowing alkaline spring water from the inn's own source — there are no shared baths. Japanese guests rate it 4.86 across 207 reviews on one major site (rooms and service both 4.91, baths 4.83), and 95 points across 21 ratings on another, with dinner and breakfast at 97. Bloggers who stayed between 2022 and 2026 — several of them repeat guests — praise the silence and birdsong, floor heating that makes air conditioning unnecessary in winter, the free minibar and canelé welcome sweet, the 12:00 check-out, and creative kaiseki built around Oita wagyu, local fish and rice grown by the owners. The catches: the cheaper suites have an indoor tub whose large windows open onto the garden rather than a true open-air bath, and one 2022 blogger's window faced neighbouring houses. A May 2025 solo guest found a stale smell, a stark interior, a bath facing dead leaves and ordinary food; in 2026 others found the spring water slow to cool, dinner short on excitement, the bar's drinks underwhelming and a duvet too heavy, and insects come with the woods. Children under six can't enter the restaurant. Two-meal plans run about ¥58,500–81,000 per person for two sharing.