Sanso Tensui — Hotel in Hita

Just 30 minutes by direct train from Yufuin and 90 minutes from Hakata Station (in Fukuoka) via the Yufuin-no-Mori train lies Amagase Onsen near Hita, the closest major city. Amagase Onsen is one the "Bungo Major Three Hot Springs (Bungo Province is now what is known as Oita Prefecture), along with Beppu and Yufuin, and is best known for its mixed bathing open-air baths along the river (called Kawayu.) There are several stores in he area that sell "Yuami" clothing, which are water wear that's commonly used in mixed gender baths that allow coverups such as the ones in Amagase Onsen. While not well known among Westerners, Hita and Amagase Onsen do attract a fair number of Asian travelers due to its accessibility. Hita and Amagase Station are along the Yufuin-no-Mori train route that runs from Hakata Station in Fukuoka to Yufuin, so it's many visitors spend a few days in Fukuoka, then traverse through Hita, Yufuin and Beppu, and fly out of Oita Airport or return to Fukuoka.||Aside from enjoying the Kawayu onsen baths, there are some other things to do here. Mamedamachi is a very nicely preserved old town center in Hita, with several old merchant homes now operating as museums, cafes, restaurants and stores. It's not as large as Takayama, Kanazawa or Matsumoto, but it's not overrun with tourists, either. We noticed some Asian tour groups roaming the streets, but it's relatively undiscovered by independent travelers. For those of you interested in Hina dolls, the museum in Mamedamachi is the most impressive one we've ever seen, with awesome displays of the dolls from different eras. Also in the town center is Tezukuri Ohagi Inaka-an, a cafe that serves wonderful Japanese desserts, including Ohagi - sweet rice cakes that are similar to Mochi but quite different in texture. From mid-February to mid-March, Hita really comes alive, as plum blossom viewing reaches its peak during this period. We checked out the Hita Oyama Plum Festival a few years ago (on our way to Beppu), and it's definitely worth experiencing if you happen to be in the area at that time.||Sanso Tensui is the top property in the greater Hita region. If our experience there is any indication, I'd argue that it's easily among the 20 best ryokans in all of Japan, and priced at a fraction of the rates that top properties command in nearby Yufuin. Established in 1998, this 19-room ryokan is surrounded by a moss forest, is located next to a gushing river and impressive waterfall, and the smell of the onsen is just as strong (if not stronger) than the vast majority of hot springs we've experienced. The architecture is traditional rural Japan (it's very charming), but the interior is Taisho-era (similar to Iwanoyu), which isn't to our tastes but it fits really well with the atmosphere here. It's also far enough away from the main part of town that you'll really feel secluded when staying here. The area has a large number of massive boulders, and Sanso Tensui's architects did a masterful job of building the structures around the boulders in an effort to preserve the natural environment. The owner and his wife also own Kaya Usagi (also in Hita) as well as Kurokawa-so in Kurokawa Onsen, a ryokan that we wouldn't mind visiting one day.||We stayed in "Special Suite Kaori", which is an 85m² accommodation and one of the three "special suites" that were created in 2017. All of the special suites feature two (or more) rooms, a spacious terrace, an open-air Onsen as well as an indoor Onsen. Although it's not to our personal tastes, here, the Taisho-era furnishings and decorations gave it a soothing sense of place, and we could tell they put a lot of (unique) thought into the rooms. The bathroom sink uses the remains of an old Singer sewing machine stand, which is a cute touch, and the overall eclectic mix of early 20th Century Japanese and Western aesthetics were interesting without getting in the way of comfort. On the deck of our room was a large, open-air onsen rock bath with views of the forest and the sound of the gushing waterfall (which is only viewable from one of the public onsen.) The only drawback was the bathroom only having one sink. Note that even with the doors closed, the onsen smell (caused by hydrogen sulfide in the spring water) is acute, and may prove to be overpowering to some people. Furthermore, the sound of the river flow and waterfall is extremely audible - if you are sensitive to strong odors or sounds, this might hinder your ability to sleep. For people with such concerns, I suggest you book one of the 5 rooms that do not have onsen.||There are some wonderful bathing options elsewhere on site, beginning with a whopping three different Daiyokujo (gender-segregated public baths.) Takimian is accessed by climbing a long wooden staircase up the side of a hill, and the open-air onsen offers scenic views of the river and Sakura Falls. Hibiki-no-yu (for women) and Take Sansui (for men) are massive rock baths that are set along a picturesque river. Finally, there is an indoor public bath for those that don't want to brave the Winter cold before getting into the onsen.||Then there are five private rental baths that are clustered in the far end of the grounds, all of them face the Goraku River. The most interesting ones are Kamayu, which is a small bath (only big enough for 2) shaped like an Udon noodle bowl and is an onsen jacuzzi, Kawayu and Kiriyu, both of which are big enough for 4 bathers (Kiriyu is slightly larger and might be able to fit more.) These are all free to paid guests and is available for use on a first-come, first-served basis.||For dinner, all three Tokubetsu Shitsu (special rooms) have meals served in their own room, and the same goes for the 5 rooms that do not have in-room onsen - all others dine in the ryokan's main restaurant, which isn't a major negative since all guests at the restaurant get their own koshitsu (private room.) Breakfast for all guests are served at Sanso Tensui's café lounge Hakurakuten. Both meals were incredible; we loved the Yamame Zenryufun-age (Japanese Cherry Trout from Oku Hita fried with whole grains), which had a nice, crispy (but light) texture and juicy inside, the Kumoko Chawanmushi (savory egg custard with Cod Milt) was dreamy creamy, and the Kasu-jiru (Soup dish made by simmering Sake lees) mixed with seafood and vegetables was an awesome substitute for the typical miso soup at the end (together with rice and pickled condiments.) And the Kusu Hitomebore rice, served at both dinner and breakfast, was delectable. Dinner was elegantly served by Yuko Baba, who patiently explained all servings in painstaking detail.||Sanso Tensui really punches above its weight - it's a real bargain, and the onsen experience is second to none. Despite being off-the-beaten-path, it's also very accessible - Unless you're dying to check out the "Hells of Beppu" (for mesmerizing experiences go to Iceland or Yellowstone instead!), I'd definitely suggest a combination of Yufuin and Hita (or Kurokawa Onsen) versus heading...

My husband and I visited Japan in October and we stayed two nights at two different ryokans. I was looking for a more secluded off the beaten bath type of place and a friend in Japan helped me do some research and suggested Sanso Tensui to me. I am so glad that she did. ||||I am by no means an expert in ryokans, but I can compare Sanso with two other ones that I have stayed at, and when I say that this place is a hidden gem, I really mean a hidden gem. The ryokan is located in the middle of a forest up in a mountain next to a waterfall and a river. It is the most beautiful, scenic, and serene hotel/ryokan I have ever stayed at. If you love beautiful scenery and want to feel like you are living in a Miyazaki film while taking a bath, this place is for you. If you love good food, this place is for you. If you love friendly staff, this place is for you.||||I really cannot say enough good things about this place. All of the staff we encountered were kind, friendly and helpful. Even though we did not speak Japanese and most of the staff did not speak English, they always tried their best to understand our requests, explain instructions, and describe our food to us.||||The dinner at Sanso Tensui was easily the best meal I had in Japan. This is one of the more traditional ryokans where they serve you your multi-course dinner in your room. After dinner, they will put the table away and lay out the futons for you while you go take your after dinner baths. I believe they serve different dishes according to what's in season at the time so I'm sure everyone will have slightly different meals, but all I can say is that I enjoyed everything that I was served. You can also tell that all the ingredients were super fresh. We had the deepest, reddest, tuna sashimi that I had ever seen and I don't like tuna normally, but that piece of tuna was heaven. ||||Breakfast is served in the lounge area and consisted of a set meal with rice and soup (which were refillable), bread, yogurt, fresh jams and honey, some side dishes, fresh tofu, rolled egg, fresh fish and fish cake that you grill yourself, and fresh fruit. There is also a small buffet area with fresh juice, milk, raw egg, salad, and various kinds of Japanese pickles. I don't usually eat a lot of rice, but I ended up finishing my bowl of rice and half a bowl of my husband's rice who commented that he had never seen me eat so much.||||Other than feeling happily full, I also felt like I had never been so clean in my life. This place offers three public baths and 5 private/family baths. The public baths are separated by gender and you can go in at any time other than when it is closed after hours. The family baths are smaller private baths that are available by reservation for 45 min intervals. There is one public bath that can be accessed from the second floor which overlooks a waterfall. This bath was wonderful but one thing I noticed was that there is a farm across the mountain. It's on the other side of the mountain, but I was still able to see the farmers working there and had to wonder if they could see us too. The largest/main public bath is located on the first floor and judging by my husband's description, the men's side seems to be located right on the river bank. The women's side is located higher up from the river. The 3rd public bath swaps gender at a certain hour, which I'm glad it does because one bath just looks like a tiny blue tiled swimming pool while the other one is like a traditional cedar wood bath that was definitely a lot nicer.||||The private baths are all located in a row next to the river. They all enjoy the same river view and the only difference is with the type of bath and size. They all had a shower area and the bath inside the building which opens out into the river/forest on one side. ||||We also found a special treat randomly while going to the private baths. On the path to the private baths, there is a sign in Japanese with an arrow pointing away from the main building and private baths. We didn't know where it was pointing to, but we decided to explore anyway and found that the signs lead you to a remote area with a waterfall. It was such an unexpected wonderful find and there was no one else around when we were there. It was like having our own private forest and waterfall.||||I definitely recommend everyone looking for a Ryokan in the area to stay at Sanso Tensui. It is only 2 stations away from Yufuin. If you don't care about staying in Yufuin for the night, you can even visit Yufuin during the day and stay the night at Sanso Tensui. I definitely enjoyed Sanso Tensui more than the ryokan we stayed at in Yufuin. ||||Thank you to all the staff at Sanso Tensui for making our stay so wonderful, even just for one night. I hope I will have the opportunity to stay here again some time...

My husband and I visited Japan in October and we stayed two nights at two different ryokans. I was looking for a more secluded off the beaten bath type of place and a friend in Japan helped me do some research and suggested Sanso Tensui to me. I am so glad that she did. ||||I am by no means an expert in ryokans, but I can compare Sanso with two other ones that I have stayed at, and when I say that this place is a hidden gem, I really mean a hidden gem. The ryokan is located in the middle of a forest up in a mountain next to a waterfall and a river. It is the most beautiful, scenic, and serene hotel/ryokan I have ever stayed at. If you love beautiful scenery and want to feel like you are living in a Miyazaki film while taking a bath, this place is for you. If you love good food, this place is for you. If you love friendly staff, this place is for you.||||I really cannot say enough good things about this place. All of the staff we encountered were kind, friendly and helpful. Even though we did not speak Japanese and most of the staff did not speak English, they always tried their best to understand our requests, explain instructions, and describe our food to us.||||The dinner at Sanso Tensui was easily the best meal I had in Japan. This is one of the more traditional ryokans where they serve you your multi-course dinner in your room. After dinner, they will put the table away and lay out the futons for you while you go take your after dinner baths. I believe they serve different dishes according to what's in season at the time so I'm sure everyone will have slightly different meals, but all I can say is that I enjoyed everything that I was served. You can also tell that all the ingredients were super fresh. We had the deepest, reddest, tuna sashimi that I had ever seen and I don't like tuna normally, but that piece of tuna was heaven. ||||Breakfast is served in the lounge area and consisted of a set meal with rice and soup (which were refillable), bread, yogurt, fresh jams and honey, some side dishes, fresh tofu, rolled egg, fresh fish and fish cake that you grill yourself, and fresh fruit. There is also a small buffet area with fresh juice, milk, raw egg, salad, and various kinds of Japanese pickles. I don't usually eat a lot of rice, but I ended up finishing my bowl of rice and half a bowl of my husband's rice who commented that he had never seen me eat so much.||||Other than feeling happily full, I also felt like I had never been so clean in my life. This place offers three public baths and 5 private/family baths. The public baths are separated by gender and you can go in at any time other than when it is closed after hours. The family baths are smaller private baths that are available by reservation for 45 min intervals. There is one public bath that can be accessed from the second floor which overlooks a waterfall. This bath was wonderful but one thing I noticed was that there is a farm across the mountain. It's on the other side of the mountain, but I was still able to see the farmers working there and had to wonder if they could see us too. The largest/main public bath is located on the first floor and judging by my husband's description, the men's side seems to be located right on the river bank. The women's side is located higher up from the river. The 3rd public bath swaps gender at a certain hour, which I'm glad it does because one bath just looks like a tiny blue tiled swimming pool while the other one is like a traditional cedar wood bath that was definitely a lot nicer.||||The private baths are all located in a row next to the river. They all enjoy the same river view and the only difference is with the type of bath and size. They all had a shower area and the bath inside the building which opens out into the river/forest on one side. ||||We also found a special treat randomly while going to the private baths. On the path to the private baths, there is a sign in Japanese with an arrow pointing away from the main building and private baths. We didn't know where it was pointing to, but we decided to explore anyway and found that the signs lead you to a remote area with a waterfall. It was such an unexpected wonderful find and there was no one else around when we were there. It was like having our own private forest and waterfall.||||I definitely recommend everyone looking for a Ryokan in the area to stay at Sanso Tensui. It is only 2 stations away from Yufuin. If you don't care about staying in Yufuin for the night, you can even visit Yufuin during the day and stay the night at Sanso Tensui. I definitely enjoyed Sanso Tensui more than the ryokan we stayed at in Yufuin. ||||Thank you to all the staff at Sanso Tensui for making our stay so wonderful, even just for one night. I hope I will have the opportunity to stay here again some time...