Search Palaces in Yamanouchi

This was easily our favourite place we stayed on our Japan trip - the hotel is a traditional Tatami mat style hotel where you sleep on mats and the flooring is reeds. It's in the centre of the Shibu village and all 9 of the public hot spring baths are within walking distance. There is a photo in their reception of the family that started the hotel and the great grandson of the founder and his mother still work there today. They have a bus that drove us around, the picked and dropped us off at...

Good blend of traditional appearance and modern amenities, wonderful staff.

I love love LOVED our stay. I have been telling everyone about. The service was wonderful. The staff were amazing. Of all the accommodation we stayed in during our trip, this place had the most authentic and special vibe to it. From greeting us at arrival, to the moment of check out, I was impressed with every aspect of the stay: the traditional room, the beautiful garden and waterfall, the onsens, the meals and especially, the lovely service. Do yourself a favour, and stay here.

Our stay here in March 2025 was wonderful. The staff could not have been more friendly or helpful, even picked us up from the station without prior arrangement! The food was incredible, traditional Japanese breakfast that set us up for the day and a delicious dinner which when combined with the sake and very comfortable futons ensured a great night’s sleep. Took advantage of the private Onsen which was very relaxing. However with so many public Onsen (including at the hotel) it was a bit of an...

Very relaxing location. Private onsen was a really nice addition.

The whole stay was a great experience. The staff were amazingly helpful. We needed to be picked up from the station and they came. I needed a PowerPoint adapter abd tgey were able to loan me one. We needed to get back to the station earlier than their set time abd tgey accommodated us. Well done guys, it was great.

What a delightful place to stay! Cannot praise the staff enough! They were all so helpful, friendly and accomodating. Some English speaking staff, who were honestly the best we met in our two week stay in Japan. We were told that they don’t get many English-speaking visitors and we were the only ones there, which my teen son and I loved. We love immersing in the Japanese experience when visiting, and this hotel definitely offered this. The rooms were simple but clean and tidy and well...

This was our first time staying at a ryokan and it was a fantastic experience. The staff were so welcoming, the rooms clean & tidy and the food deserved at least 1 Michelin star! Would highly recommend.

Magical. Worth every penny.

Absolutely loved our stay here! The buffet breakfast and dinner included were great and provided a vast range of Japanese, Western and Italian options. The staff went above and beyond to welcome us and our ten month old baby. The rooms were well maintained and spacious for Japan. Gorgeous location, but remember that it is quite a distance away (at least 20 mins by car if not further) from restaurants (for dinner, there are a few lunch options closer)/convenience stores, etc.

We only spent 1 night at Kokuya hotel however I wish we could have stayed longer. We were too shy to make the most of the many private and public onsens available, so we stayed in a room with our own private outside thermal bath which I highly recommend. The staff were fantastic and so accommodating. Without a doubt, they were the nicest I met on my trip.

This is a wonderful place to stay. The rooms are spacious and traditionally themed with a lot of nice touches. The view from the rooms in winter is beautiful. The staff are very friendly, welcoming and accommodating. The breakfast served was also very nice. If you can afford it treat yourself to a room with a private outdoor onsen (we did for one night - very special)

Very welcoming and great experience.

Nice place to stay

Awesome time in a traditional Japanese rhyokan! Onsens, snow monkeys, religious shrines and alpine scenery.

I loved my stay here. The staff were such a delight and the rooms were beautiful. The hotel is located in a beautiful traditional settings and staff were happy to point or take you in the right direction.

Exceptional staff and hospitality willing to accommodate any requests. Very informative and great exposure to traditional ryokan/ onsens. Highly recommended - thank you!

This place was a very cute, homely, with a family owned ryokan vibe. We had a nice spacious room, the biggest we had in our whole trip to Japan, with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. The futons were so comfortable compared to other futons we slept on at other ‘trendy’ ryokans. The onsen was very nice and relaxing, they offered both private and public onsen and amenities. The styling is old fashioned but this added to the charm of the place for me and I would definitely stay here...

Every staff member was very professional and helpful, snacks were great and the private and public onsen was lovely!