Family-friendly Hotels in Yamanouchi

My husband and I spent one night here as part of our honeymoon, and it was such a memorable and unique experience. We took the local bus up and only had to walk a few minutes before reaching the place. The hotel was beautiful, peaceful, clean, and quiet. We booked a private onsen and it was well worth every penny. We also added the dinner and breakfast package, and each of the meals were delicious. Such a special experience that I would highly recommend to anyone who has the opportunity. Also, make sure to try the local apples!

It is a very small town, very quiet. There are Chinese staff, very enthusiastic, you can ask them for help if you need any help. There is a wild monkey park nearby, you can go to see the little monkeys taking a hot spring bath. The hotel provides pick-up and drop-off, and there is a shuttle bus schedule.

We are very impressed with the hotel service.The hotel makes travel convenient and smooth.There are pick-up and drop-off fromYudanaka Station to the hotel and drop-off at Monkey onsen.The hotel is in the good location,in the heart of Shibu Onsen, beutiful view of the mountian and river in front.The beer, white and red wine in the refrigerator in the room are free.The onsen is not very big but clean.Dinner and breakfast are fresh and delicious. Shibu Hotel is a very good hotel,worth staying.

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.

We wanted to stay in a traditional ryokan with access to hot spring baths and Kanaguya ticked all the boxes. I found this guesthouse while researching onsen close to the snow monkey park near Yudanaka Station, which we planned to visit. The fact that it is cited as inspiration for the bathhouse in Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away was another reason for us to want to stay here. A beautiful traditional wooden guesthouse with eight baths, five of them private, and also access to the nine public baths in Shibu Onsen town (although we found these far too hot to actually bathe in, we enjoyed collecting all the stamps on a special towel!). Our room was Japanese style with sliding doors, tatami mats and futons. There was a bath and WC, but no shower, but it’s expected that guests use the hot spring baths available. All amenities are provided including yukata, obi belt, jacket, bathing supplies, and each bath has washing soap, shampoo and conditioner in dispensers. Staff were very friendly, and so polite, although the majority had limited English we did use google translate at times. The multi course dinners were amazing, served in the exquisite dining room at the top of the house, which was originally a theatre, at traditional low tables and seats. Served in beautiful individual ceramic dishes, with multiple appetisers, followed by main dishes, miso soup, rice, and lastly desert. Although not everything was to our taste, the presentation was amazing and it was a wonderful experience trying so many different flavours. We stayed two nights, and the meals were different each night. The guesthouse has a limited website page in English which directs foreigners to book via a specific third party (tour operator), but when I contacted her via the provided email was told the ryokan was closed for renovations during our preferred dates! Not helpful, as presumably they only wish to sell you a tour! I then did a wider search and found the ryokan available to book on Trip.com. Clearly it was not closed! I would definitely recommend staying at Kanaguya and visiting Shibu Onsen if you wish to experience a traditional ryokan.

I only stayed one night in this beautiful ryokan and in Yamanouchi but I could easily have stayed longer, as there seems to have trekking opportunities in the area. The ryokan itself is great on all levels: clean, quiet at night and has an authentic feel. The staff is very helpful and speaks fluent English. When you arrive, it will provide you with traditional Japanese clothing in which you'll wander by the streets, go to restaurants and most importantly, explore the 9 public and free onsen in the village. I slept in a 3 bed dormitory and hadn't slept so well for several days. A free shuttle service will bring you to the next bus station (perhaps train station as well)

When I arrived at Yudanaka Station, I tried to call on my cell phone, but the phone didn't work, so I was able to request a shuttle service with the help of the station staff. It didn't take long for the staff to come and we were able to move quickly and comfortably. From the time I arrived, they came out to the door and greeted me kindly, and they kindly explained the nearby hot spring tour and the use of the ryokan facilities. We were a family of four (2 adults, 2 children), but the accommodation was not small. Dinner on the day of check-in and breakfast the next day were provided, and the meals were delicious, and the staff who served the food were also very kind. When I returned to the room after dinner, a cozy blanket was set up, so I could rest comfortably. When I checked out the next day, I was able to go to the monkey park through the shuttle service. Overall, all the staff were very kind, so I felt good. The facilities were clean, and there were many things to see around, so I definitely want to go again next time. I highly recommend it to others.

Because we wanted to watch the fireworks festival and experience the hot springs, we booked a room here. We were greeted by a grandfather. It was a little late and raining when we arrived at Yudanaka. The grandfather came to pick us up. It was very comfortable to soak in the hot springs. Yudanaka should not be the peak tourist season. Maybe we arrived too late and left too early. The road was very deserted and there were not many people.