Shibu Onsen KOKUYA

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 of our dinner.

Having never stayed in a Ryoken before we didn't know what to expect. We were on a photography tour so this hotel was booked for us as part of the trip. The staff were delightful - every single one of them. We had a Japanese banquet type meal every night and whilst the staff tried to accommodate me being a vegetarian - the food was just about Ok for me. Having just read other reviews I am now surprised to learn that western food was available too. It was never offered to me but I suspect this is more to to with the trip organiser than the hotel. The rooms were very traditional and we slept on futons, very comfy. The private onsens we could use were just gorgeous. Just embrace it and try as they are private... very hot and relaxing too... We loved the staff here - one of the lovely ladies cried when we left... Okini!! If we ever go back to this area we would happily stay here again.

This is a truly wonderful place to stay & highly recommended! The staff are fantastic - so kind, warm & welcoming with a brilliant sense of humour :) We loved our constant greeting of ‘Harris San’ given with never-ending smiles & enthusiasm. Nothing was too much bother - a staff member carried our son’s breakfast to our room when he was having a lie-in one morning & our requests for two vegetarian options & one non-fish eater were all catered for as if it were no problem at all. The suppers were delicious with a wealth of dishes & tastes; also incredible presentation. We ate like royalty! Plus an excellent selection of drinks on the menu. The many onsens in the hotel are absolutely lovely & a perfect temperature (I struggled with the heat of the local ones though they were great to try - you get an access key to all of them in the village once you check in). The hotel onsens varied in size & setting - some indoors, some outdoors - with even a foot-massager in one! Onsen dress provided plus free covers for our tattoos (needed for public onsens). Our room was traditional & spotless; it was converted to day-living or sleeping mode whenever we were eating. There was always a little snack left for us plus plentiful tea & even a heater under the table with blankets for a traditional experience. We had free lifts from & to the train station plus to the snow monkey park - perfectly arranged early in the morning so that we could visit without huge crowds & to see feeding time :) Overall, a really fabulous stay! A brilliant experience!

Whilst some aspects possibly fall short of 5 stars we had so much fun I’ll go for 5 anyway! Our second stop on our Japanese tour Kokoyu Onsen. A word of warning you need to totally embrace the experience and you will have a great time from leaving your shoes at the door, getting into your gown or using the outdoor wooden clogs. The staff are wonderfully enthusiastic and helpful talking each new arrival through the action. There are six onsen to try out all quite different. We tried two plus the one in our room. Don’t worry they are all private and you have them to yourselves. Wonderfully relaxing. Time for the multi course evening meal. An absolute delight although the courses arrived a bit too quickly for me. Whilst dining the staff set up the futon in the room. A bit on the thin side but We slept like logs so no complaints really. After dinner a complementary Tuc Tuc ride through the town - still dressed in your gown. Breakfast was another visual delight but I confess to struggling a little for some of the beautifully presented dishes at that time of day. They then drove us to the Snow Monkey park - worth a visit whilst dropping off our luggage down by the station. We caught the local bus down.

This was the best stay we had throughout our family trip to Japan. The hotel is located in the most central part of Yudanaka. The staff were very friendly and helpful and provided a first-class service. Our traditional room was beautiful and very comfortable. The private onsens were great and far better than the public ones. The breakfast was amazing, and they customized it for the children. They also provided a complimentary pick up and drop off to the train station and the snow monkeys.

Exceptional stay and service! We absolutely loved our time here. The staff was very friendly and accommodating. Our Japanese style room was beautiful and very comfortable. We had a private onsen, which was wonderful. I recommend that guests also take advantage of the many hotel onsens offered. They are varied and beautiful. I can’t say enough about the staff. Our family is vegan, and they accommodated our request with beautiful and delicious vegan breakfasts. I’m sure the typical meals are delicious as well. The town is charming and close to the snow monkey park, and we very much enjoyed walking through the area. Kokuya Hotel is a very special place. As far away as it is for us, we want to make a point of returning. The hotel and staff are simply magical.

Traditional style ryokan, 16th generation, four hundred years old. Personal, friendly, English-speaking service. Shoes are removed upon entering ryokan, and slippers are given to be used throughout stay. Our room, Sagano, had a private outdoor onsen, safe, fridge, TV, air purifier, coffee and hot water, welcome snack. Room had good lighting, great temperature control and was spotlessly neat and clean. Meal option was very much worth the price, incredible multi course traditional Japanese meal, which varied each night. We also had a spacious separate dining area for the family! Wine, cocktails and beer are available for purchase. Breakfast choice can be a Western or Japanese meal. We were traveling with two small children (two and five); the staff was very friendly, providing kids meals with plastic plates and glasses. They also provided children amenities & toys in the room. We were given the traditional Japanese clothing to wear while visiting the multiple onsens within the ryokan. Reservations can be made for these onsens at popular times. As a guest of the ryokan you are also provided with a key that will allow you to visit the other onsens in the town, complimentary. There is a free shuttle to the monkey park and can walk back if bus service is not available. Overall, a fabulous stay, highly recommend.

“Lovely onsen hotel in an onsen town” Loved the entire experience. We did the breakfast and dinner option. The staff were lovely even picked us up and dropped us off at the train station and on the morning we went to the snow monkeys we were lucky to get a lift to the snow monkeys gate!! Bonus!! Lots of snow monkeys. A number with their babies. The Japanese dinners were amazing - many smaller plates. I preferred the western breakfast to the Japanese breakfast but glad we tried one of each!! All very lovely. Slept on the on the tatami floor on futons. That was an experience. The hotel has many of its own onsens both inside and out. I much preferred the onsens in our hotel as many of the towns 9 local ones were way too hot for me! It was quite a lovely experience!!

Loved this ryokan. The staff were very friendly and helpful. This is probably my favorite place I’ve ever stayed. The breakfast was delicious and I wish I would have signed up for dinner as well. I had a room with my own private onsen and they let you make private reservations for other onsens in the building. Truly amazing experience with the best hospitality I’ve ever encountered.