Hotel Yamaguchiya

The hostess greeted us with a smile. The building has a retro Showa feel, but the rooms have been renovated and the building is clean and comfortable. The hot spring water is free-flowing and circulated, and the open-air bath next to the large bath on the first floor is not available. We went to the indoor bath and open-air bath on the second floor, which are switched between men and women from 9:00 p.m. We were soothed by the mountains in front of us and the sound of the Katashina River flowing below. At night, we looked at the full moon over the mountains, and in the morning, we wanted to stay in the lukewarm water and the refreshing breeze. For dinner, we had the local dish of Gimin-nabe (a hot pot with sukiyaki noodles), miso-marinated pork teppanyaki, sashimi of salmon, konnyaku sashimi, yuba, salt-grilled sweetfish, and more. It was delicious, so we ate a lot of rice. Breakfast was the same as the ryokan menu, but perhaps the rice was cooked well, so it was delicious. It's better to have the good qualities of this old Japanese inn than a large, luxurious inn. We were able to relax and spend a relaxing time.

We stayed here for one night for a ski trip with 8 members of my family and relatives in 3 rooms. When we entered the hot spring town, we were worried about the rather rundown and lonely atmosphere, but as soon as we arrived in front of the inn by car, a man from the inn (a tall, middle-aged man with white hair and glasses) came to us and carefully guided us around, and it was so comfortable that it completely swept away the lonely atmosphere. His customer service skills were so pleasant that I thought he was a true "professional". I was surprised at how pleasant the young people who served us, including this man, were throughout the meal. It's hard to find inns and hotels like this these days, so it reminded me of the nostalgic Showa era when people connected with each other. The food was handmade with "heart" and was beautiful in color, and the spirit of "hospitality" was apparent. In any case, I think it's a wonderful inn with "heart". I would definitely like to use it again when I come to the area for sightseeing or skiing. It's the perfect example of an inn!