Hotels Near Yamanami Highway Observatory in Kokonoe

I stayed with my eldest son's family of 4 who live in Kumamoto.They said they had never stayed at Kurokawa Onsen even though they had lived in Kumamoto for about 6 years, so they came all the way from Saitama to pay all the expenses to us.I wonder what's going on. (lol) The accommodation was a large inn in Kurokawa Onsen, but we entered the hot springs at 4pm, 8pm, and 7am the next day, but for some reason we had almost exclusive access to the hot springs.We had a large indoor bath surrounded by a bamboo grove, and a Japanese cypress bath. There are three hot springs: two, an open-air bath, and a hot spring with an open-air bath that can be used by visitors.The second one was probably the best.The quality of the spring water is simple.The room was an ordinary Japanese-style room, but you could hear the sound of a waterfall from the river flowing beside it. The meal was a buffet, and the tuna sushi with red vinegar was excellent.Afterwards, we had various types of skewers, amberjack sashimi, roast beef, and my elementary school grandson ate 5 rolls of eel, which was overeating.There were all-you-can-drink shochu drinks. We were able to compare the drinks! The shochu from Kurokawa Onsen was delicious, and the breakfast buffet included natto and milk that were locally produced and delicious.At night, we got to see Jupiter and the moon through an astronomical telescope, and my grandson was impressed! I didn't go for a walk around the city due to the cold weather, so I just stayed at the inn, but I was able to take it easy.I think this is an inn that families can enjoy together.

I like the hideaway atmosphere of the standard Western-style room, but this time I made a last-minute reservation, so there were no rooms with a good view available, so I booked a Deluxe Western-style room for the first time. As far as I could find this room, there was no introduction image, so I was excited until the day to see what it would be like. When I was guided, it was the farthest corner room from the front desk, and the hotel said it was the room with the best view. It was certainly a wonderful view that overlooked the grassland far away. The area is slightly larger than the standard room, but there are no steps and the ceiling is high overall, so there is a sense of openness. The window was also a large sweep window, and there was a cute small window unique to the corner room. There is a large public bath, so I didn't use it, but the bathtub in the room is much larger than the standard one, and it might be good for children to play in the pool. This time as well, I enjoyed coffee while listening to the chirping of wild birds, ate delicious bread, and enjoyed the starry sky.

I booked a single room without meals, but for a single room, it was very large and comfortable to use. Each room also had a wifi and had a large bath. Of course, the bath and toilet are separate 々, and it was very nice to be able to use a proper hot spring. It also had a large refrigerator and a compact safe, so I was very relieved. The air conditioner is quiet and comfortable. There was also a large parking lot, so I was able to park easily even in a large non-foil passenger car. It was a small supermarket in ２～３ minutes by car, so I stayed without meals, but I didn't have any trouble eating. I definitely wanted to use it again.

We found a good deal on the web site, which included discounts for having proof of vaccines, plus coupons totaling ¥8,000. I think the coupons were part of the ”Go To Travel” campaign. These coupons could only be used in Oita prefecture, by the next day. The hotel has a grand, luxurious appearance and feel, but also feels dated. After check-in, we took the shuttle bus to the outside onsen (about 5 minutes away). This was included in the price (I am not sure if it is actually owned by the hotel. There is a fee for people who are not staying at the hotel). This onsen was glorious! All the baths are outside, surrounded by trees and nature. The only caveat is that there were many stairs going down to the onsen. I did not expect that at all, and it was not easy on my knees (no problem for my partner). The other onsen in the hotel (there were two) also involved walking (it is as large hotel), and some stairs too. The floors in the onsen seemed more slippery than I remember any other onsen I have visited before. Dinner was buffet style. Due to COVID restrictions, we had to get our temperature checked, and wear plastic gloves while serving ourselves (there was a box at the table, and a container for disposal of them). The seating was partitioned, and it was very comfortable. Even though it was a buffet, there were 3 choices for seating: 5:00 pm, 6:30 pm and 8:00 pm, with a 90 minute limit. The food was good, but my partner had to stand in line at a station for freshly prepared meat for 30 minutes. Breakfast was served in the same place as dinner. We got a lower-priced deal, and our room was on the 1st floor. The hallway was a little dark compared to the other floors (which we had to access for the front desk/entrance to the hotel and to get to the dining area and the onsen). To me, there was a musty smell that my partner did not notice. The place is older, and it is right next to the river, and it was the middle of Japanese (humid) summer, and I assume not all the rooms are like this. There was a can of roach spray in the closet (which thankful we did not need!), and requests not to open the windows to prevent bugs from getting in the room. The sound and site of the river outside the window was wonderful. The beds (two twin beds) were comfortable and we got a good night's sleep. It was my partner's 50th birthday, so we mentioned this to see if they had any thing special (even for an extra charge). They gave a card and a plastic rose (I think the rose was for the birthday), but said they did not have anything else. The water pot already had hot water in it when we arrived. I appreciate that. They also had the kind of coffee in which you open the single pack, put it over the cup (good size, not tiny like some places) and pour hot water on it (like a one cup drip coffee- not instant). I often travel with these types of coffee packs as a lot of hotels in Kyushu only have instant coffee or none at all in the rooms. The

A ryokan with the feel of an old film movie that is very cost-effective... I wanted to stay there when I came to Tsuetate before, but I couldn't sleep because I was leaving for another city on my schedule, so I ended up staying for one night this time. It is a ryokan that is often said to be full of charm. Even though it was difficult for those who like modern style, I also really liked it. Breakfast and dinner were good, and the generous amount of rice was also good. I also enjoyed the public bathhouse, which was used like my private house, whenever I felt like it. I'll go again next time haha

I thought it was self-service and no one was there. I didn't expect that there was someone to greet you at check-in. Someone told you the precautions. I thought the hotel was old, so I was prepared for it to be dirty. Fortunately, it was very clean. There are supermarkets and restaurants nearby. It is very close to the JR station. I rented a private hot spring. I agreed with the front desk and registered. I can soak in it at will. It is quite clean. If possible, it is better to bring a disposable quilt cover. There are still some places that are not covered by their quilt cover. There are not many sockets, so you need to bring a multi-plug one. The quilt is based on the number of guests. Small disposable cups are given. Remember to buy some at the supermarket.

We booked 2x Japanese rooms for 3 nights, over the rugby period. Obviously all hotels were charging a premium, but having booked 12 months in advance, at a cost of virtually £2,000 (excluding breakfast and dinner), I expected the hotel to be pretty good. The staff were very pleasant, but the communication was a problem - appreciate that this is our fault as much as theirs! The rooms were very shabby in our opinion, the furniture was badly marked and it didn't seem very clean. The worst problem was the smell in one of the rooms though, the staff told us it was from the tatami matting, but it clearly wasn't, as the other room had the same floorcovering and didn't smell. We ended up thinking it was the drains - but it was very unpleasant. The bathroom was pretty basic, and not well maintained - dirty grout around the tub etc. We stayed at 5 other hotels in Japan, and generally the standard was as expected - this was the only disappointment when considering cost vs. quality. The futons were more comfortable that I had expected - I slept really well.

This is the failure of the blind hotel selection for this trip to Japan. . In fact, there are many other hotel options in the town. Fortunately, the surrounding environment heals and does not affect the overall travel mood. The so-called private bath is as small as a single bathtub, and the only outdoor hot spring time is very short. I didn't know that the scheduled dinner was not in the hotel until I arrived. I needed to take a car, and I didn't explain it in advance. It is very similar to a simple ABB standard hotel, which is very different from the expected hot spring hotel. It is also far from the station. The advantage is that it is very close to Jinlin Lake. Get up early and go for a walk. The environment of the town is so beautiful The attitude of the service staff is very good. After 9 o'clock, they get off work and ask for self service. At this price, I can't complain, and I won't choose it next time

Yufuin, who wanted to stay before. Renewed with the total design of etsuji Mitooka who worked on the luxury sightseeing train. It is an inn, but it has a chair and bed, simple but nice design, and it was perfect for us who did not like people coming in and out of the room. The meal was more comfortable and good than the room meal because it was served in another room. The dishes were also devised and beautiful and delicious. When I asked the young female staff, I was impressed by the answer to everything except the dishes. We couldn't leave food, so we were full of pots, because we had a lot of pots. The inn had a lot of dinner and breakfast, so the inn continued for two days was a little bit painful when it was old. The bath was a family, and there was a large open-air bath and I was able to relax. It was conveniently located to walk around Lake Jinpu and Yuno Tsubo Kaido Road, and it was fun to enjoy shopping and enjoy it. I would like to stay when I visit Yufuin someday.

My family of four planned a trip to Fukuoka and decided to visit Yufuin to experience outdoor onsen. I came across Yufuin Gettouan during my research, and its beauty and tranquility really spoke to me. We only stayed one night because of the lack of availability (and also because it's really expensive), but we really wish we would have stayed longer. There was a ”once in a decade” snowstorm (which seems to occur more frequently than once a decade) when we took the Yufuin no Mori from Fukuoka to Yufuin. As always, fresh white snow makes everything more beautiful (at least in my opinion), and despite my high expectations, I was absolutely blown away by the beauty and serenity of this ryokan. We stayed in a main villa because the annex villas didn't allow kids, but it still has its own private outdoor onsen. Unfortunately, we didn't realize that there was no indoor shower/bathtub in the villa. Since we were not brave enough to take a shower outdoor in snowy conditions, we ended up going to the public bath to take a shower before heading back to the villa and hopping into the private outdoor onsen. It's an unbelievable experience watching the snow falls while being submerged in a cozy onsen! Service and meals were both exceptional, and I would have gone into more details if not for the 1500-character limit on TripAdvisor. If you are looking for a traditional onsen ryokan experience, you really can't go wrong with Yufuin Gettouan. My only regret was only staying for one night.