Ryoso Tsuyukusa — Hotel in Takayama

I stayed at this ryokan for two nights in September. Strangely I had to change my room for the second night (new futon and everything) which seemed like it was just making more work for everyone. I wasn't told the reason why i needed to change. ||The place has 3 onsen baths. I only managed to get the rust coloured one because the outdoor one was always occupied! It does make you come out orange so you will have to shower twice! Shared toilets, sinks and onsen. Only thing I could say was lacking with hygiene was that there was no hand soap in the toilets! And I couldn't find any towels, luckily I had brought one of my own. ||As someone who has been living in Japan and sleeping on a futon every night I can say that the one they had here was a lot more comfortable that the one I use! If you are not used to a futon though it can be a little difficult to sleep at first. You have to make up your futon yourself. Rooms were a bit chilly for September and I wished there was an extra blanket or some heating. Also rooms are shared and mixed. The first night there were only two of us in the room. One male and one female separated by a wooden screen. The second night there were 6 people. But only 3 wooden screens so a little closer to strangers than I would have liked. Especially when they snore! ||Apart from a pool table in a separate building there wasn't really any communal area to sit. When I got back to the ryokan on the second night at 6pm some people were already sleeping so I couldn't read in the room. As there isn't much to do in the town, the baths were occupied and I had already eaten I ended up just going to bed early. ||The ryokan is quite far from the city and was a little difficult to find given the map directions. It is close to the bus station if you need that. I drove and there was adequate parking at the front. ||Staff are quite efficient. They don't speak any English but there are some "google translate" signs dotted around with instructions to take off your shoes and how to use the onsen. ||So, in conclusion, a reasonable stay but maybe cost a little more than...

An otherwise nice place, but unfortunately marred by an experience with rude staff. We had come back from a 6 hour hike and arrived back at the accommodation at 1.30pm. The shower/bath is located inside the private bath/onsen room. As soon as I stepped inside to take a shower and closed the door behind me, an old lady staff banged continuously on the door. I thought someone was dying, it was that urgent. Concerned, I opened the door, but when I stepped out she started yelling in Japanese "you can't use, they are for reserved guests" and gesturing a big NO with her arms. Apparently there were three guests who were due to come at 2-3pm just for the onsen. Maybe the property wanted to make some more money? With three onsen on the property, all the signs saying shower open 24 hours, the time being before 2pm - enough for me to take a shower before they arrived (it is summer and I was sweaty and all I wanted was a shower), she shouldn't have blocked me from showering let alone been so rude to me as a paying guest. We have been in Japan three weeks and have not encountered one rude person until now. It really left a sour taste. The day after, the owner (?) apologised to me in person and handed me a business card lol. I wrote to the owner to let him know I was going to write an honest review - he responded by saying sorry but from now on he would close the showers from 9am-3pm. This experience probably won't happen to you, but perhaps if you value respectful hosts and care about being treated with basic respect by the people you are paying to provide you with accommodation and shower facilities, this might inform your choice of...

I stayed at Ryoso Tsuyukusa during my recent driving quest, and it was an absolutely lovely experience. The guesthouse is incredibly traditional, with charming touches like wooden block locks for the doors that add a unique and nostalgic feel. The rooms are classic tatami-style, ryokan-style accommodation, where you make your own futon bed—simple, warm, and very comfortable.

The highlight for me was the private onsen. There’s even an outdoor one, also private, which made for a truly relaxing and serene soak. It’s rare to find private baths like this at such a reasonable price point.

On the ground floor, there’s a shared living area where you can grab a coffee from the machine and a slice of bread from the fridge in the morning—simple but appreciated. All instructions and check-in/check-out procedures are done via tablet and QR codes, likely to streamline communication, especially for international guests. As long as you have a phone with internet access, the process is seamless. That said, they also provide free Wi-Fi just in case.

I stayed in one of the smaller rooms, which I think would be ideal for one or two people at most. For me, traveling solo, it was perfect. Overall, a very comfortable and memorable stay. Highly recommended.

Note for EV drivers: While there’s no charger in the guesthouse car park, there is a free high-speed CHAdeMO charger just around the corner at the bus station area, which was...