Kokuya Ryokan Shibu Onsen — Attraction in Yamanouchi

We’ve been planning to visit Japan for several years now and finally pulled the trigger and booked our flights. We spent several weekends looking over guides and suggestions when my husband came across a blog post about the Snow Monkeys and suddenly we needed a place to stay.

That’s when I came across the Kokuya ryokan. And I’m so glad I did. We booked one of the rooms with the private open air bath (onsen) with the traditional tatami suite. We weren’t really sure what to expect but we were over the moon with our accommodations.

We arrived about an hour before check in but the staff was quick to take our bag and then supply us with a map of the local area and a break down of nearby sights. (We highly suggest visiting the World Peace Temple) When we returned for our actual check in the staff members with infinitely patient with the language barrier and took their time explaining not only what e could expect while staying with them they also ensured we had shuttle service to the monkey park the next morning as well as luggage service to a cafe near the train station. They even assisted in helping us narrow down what time we needed to be back at the station to get the express train back to Nagano. Once that was settled we were shown to our room and it was absolutely stunning.

With in minutes we were in the onsen sipping sake and enjoying the cool November evening while soaking up the heat of the spring water. Between our soaks we lounged about in the suite in the yakatas that the hotel supplied, you can wear them throughout the inn as well as the ryokan neighborhood. On top of the access to onsens in the inn they also supply you with access to the various public onsens up and down the ryokan neighborhood. We had to pass as my husband has a full sleeve tattoo and such body artwork is often forbidden in the onsens.

When it was time for dinner, which you can specify when checking in, we headed to the dinning room where you either dine at a traditional Japanese table or western. You’re then treated to a twelve course traditional Japanese meal. The hot pot wagyu beef was amazing, and the pumpkin dumpling had me ready to order a dozen for the room.

With dinner complete we returned to find our room had been been given the turn down service and our futons had been laid out. We spent the rest of the night lounging in the onsen, with more sake until we called it an evening.

In the morning check out was simple and efficient. We were supplied with a gift for the monkeys and a shuttle to the park while our bags were taken to the station for us to retrieve on our way out.

I can’t recommend the Kokuya enough. The room was amazing, the spring even more so. The staff were attentive and quick to follow up an any request or inquiry. The inn itself is beautiful and features a fascinating layout that you just have to see yourself. It also has a private onsen anyone can use, as long as you find no one else in it. So you can still book a room without an onsen and steal a soak in the inn’s individual private onsen, or get to know the locals and other guests and use the public ones either in the inn or through out the neighborhood.

The neighborhood also had a litany of small restaurants and shops to buy local products. Get anything with apples in it. The fresh apple produce in the area is amazing, perfectly sweet and beautifully red. You can find numerous orchards throughout the town with trees just filled with the red fruit.

I wish we had more than one night there, but it was easily one of the most memorable parts of our...

This is a review for the Kuon room experience at Kokuya.

The Kuon is a special new room at Kokuya that just opened last year and provides a premium experience for guests. The room is absolutely gorgeous and comes with its own private entrance and two private onsens and a sauna for guests use. The hard product is gorgeous and clearly new with updated amenities, automated blinds, a projector, and more. The meals were also both wonderfully prepared with the dinner meal rivaling some Michelin starred dinners we’ve had. The chef was fabulous and the local ingredients really shined through.

The soft product for Kuon is more questionable with the very steep price tag for the room (191,000 yen per night for 2 guests or about $1200 USD). While the room’s website boasts a private concierge and upgraded level of service we did not experience that during our stay. The staff was overall very nice but no special effort was made as guests of Kuon - and at times even basic levels of service that you would expect of a Ryokan were missed. Most notably, we discussed with our concierge our schedule to see the snow monkeys the following day and shared our Shinkansen info for after. While unfortunately no cabs were available to book we were able to find an express bus route that would get us to the station in time. The turnaround time would be tight but we’d have about 30 minutes at the Snow Monkey park which worked for us.

Unfortunately, we would not actually get that much time and our schedule was in reality even tighter. Kokuya seemed to poorly plan for the number of guests who would be using the shuttle to the Snow Monkey park. There wasn’t enough room on the shuttle that left on time and Kokuya prioritized larger groups and then ordered a smaller car for the rest of us. Which included me and my husband who at first figured another car was right behind but in reality we had to wait an additional 15-20 minutes for a car due to Kokuya’s poor planning. They didn’t even apologize for this oversight.

We had to sprint up the mountain to see the monkeys and even then only had 15 minutes at the park before needing to hustle back down. We barely made our bus (in fact we only made it because the bus service had a higher level of service than Kokuya and saw us in line and held the bus for us) and didn’t even have time to use the restroom which was unfortunate for the hour long bus ride.

It was a sour end to an otherwise nice visit. When you have guests paying top dollar to stay and boast premium service at absolute minimum you need to honor your timelines and expectations.

Stay in Kuon for the hard product but don’t expect the level of service you would receive at similarly priced accommodations. And give yourself plenty of time for activities and add a...

From the moment you enter Kokuya Ryokan, be prepared to leave the real world behind and fully immerse yourself in the experience. You swap your shoes for slippers at the door and don’t see them again until you leave. You will receive a warm welcome from polite and gentle-mannered staff, get taken up to your beautiful room, and once you’ve changed into your traditional yukata, it’s time to let the relaxation begin. The multi-course dinner will probably be one of the best meals you’ve had in your life, with many unusual textures and flavors to try. The futons are comfortable, and your room is kept toasty warm. There are even skincare products to keep you pampered and moisturized between soaks in the onsen. Honestly, you won’t even need to open your suitcase while you’re there. The staff will take you through all the logistics when you arrive, but there are some things that might be useful to know in advance. - The ryokan sends a shuttle to Yudanaka station at about 15:00 to collect new arrivals, so time your journey to take advantage of this benefit. - The ryokan also offers guests the opportunity to catch a shuttle to the Snow Monkey Park immediately after breakfast the next morning. - After you leave the ryokan, they will take your luggage down to the coffee shop opposite the station, so you don’t need to worry about those logistics. - Trains from Yudanaka back to Nagano leave at 12:30 and 15:30. - The ryokan itself has several private onsens that you can reserve for a 45-minute slot. Because the onsens are on the property, you can go in with your partner or travel companions regardless of gender. It’s a boutique hotel, so you don’t have to worry about not getting access to all the onsens you want. - The ryokan is on the main road of the Shibu Onsen town. The hotel will give you a key so you can wonder down the main road, visiting any of the public onsens you wish - however, with so many gorgeous and more private onsens in the hotel itself, you probably won’t have time or the desire for this. - Also, there is a coffee machine in the room! (I was worried about having to survive without coffee, and this turned out to be an unfounded concern). We had an incredible and totally indulgent time at Kokuya. Experiencing a traditional ryokan is a privilege that you should try at least once if you can. And adding the Snow Monkeys in give the trip a double purpose, making it that much more memorable. The only thing that would have made the trip better is if we had been allowed to linger longer over every course...