Atarashiya Ryokan

The cave bath was hot and felt great, but the shampoo and other products weren’t additive-free. Their scent lingered in the cave, which smelled chemical. The shared toilet paper was scented too, and that also gave the toilet a chemical smell. Even in late January, though, the room was comfortable and not cold. Thank you. The boiled crab dish made me very happy, and they took care to explain how to eat it. The sashimi was delicious, including gas shrimp, sweet shrimp, and Spanish mackerel 🦐 The yellowtail, unfortunately, seemed like the supermarket kind. I would’ve preferred more crab sashimi instead of grilled crab, and the pickles seemed store-bought. Breakfast was so-so. The side dishes all had very strong flavors and tasted store-bought. The best part was the wakame in the miso soup.

While I was shore fishing on a nearby rocky stretch, the captain of Atarashiya told me to move because he was dropping off customers. He said something that made no sense to me, that swimming or taking rubber boats to the rocky areas around Tamagawa wasn’t allowed but shore fishing was okay. This is a natural area, not something man-made, so telling me to move just because it’s his business was ridiculous. His attitude was awful. He deliberately drove the boat right where I’d cast my lure and snapped my line. I told him what had happened, but he didn’t apologize. He just went on about unrelated trivia and left. It was an expensive lure, and I want compensation. This left me with a terrible impression of him and his attitude. I never want to use their ferry again or stay at their inn.

The facilities are just average, but there’s plenty of delicious crab. I’m very satisfied, and this is my third year coming here!

I travel about once a month and have stayed at lots of ryokan. The food here is among the three best I’ve had. The seafood was just so good! I was amazed by how huge the turban shell was, and the shrimp and everything else were delicious too. The simmered fish and tempura each had what felt like a thoughtful seasoning, and every dish was really well made. There’s a ryokan with the same name in Tsuruga, and I accidentally went there because I thought that was the one I’d booked. As a result, I only got here just in time for dinner, but the people at the inn were kind about it. They even came outside to greet me when I arrived. I’d love to stay here again next time I’m in Fukui!