Matsudaya Ryokan

The homemade-style food was delicious, and I really liked being able to eat at my own pace in the semi-private dining room. I could dine alone without worrying about other people. One small wish: I’d prefer the hot spring egg and salad served separately. There were lots of thoughtful extras too, like Miyazawa Kenji books in the hallway, free milk and coffee, and complimentary foot massagers. The hot spring water is top quality, and having a private bath was a particular favorite. The building looks old from the outside, but inside it’s clean and relaxing. It isn’t luxurious, but I was very happy with my stay. You can join LINE for good rates and services. Dai Onsen can feel gloomy overall, but I hope this hot spring never disappears.

We had a great time with both dinner and breakfast. The meals are homemade, with lots of variety and generous portions. I heard the Hitomebore rice is cooked in a gas pot, and it was delicious. My grandson also had a blast at the piano on the annex’s first floor and stayed glued to it. ♡ Matsudaya has a lovely Showa-era retro look, and its exterior feels full of history. My room was on the third floor, with a six-tatami Japanese-style room and a six-tatami Western-style room in the annex. There’s no elevator, but there are stairs and a stairlift from the second floor. I’d injured my right foot in a heated pool before arriving and was worried about getting upstairs with my leg in that condition. They offered the stairlift, which helped a lot, and even provided ice packs to cool my foot. The main building and annex sit directly across from each other, and each has two baths. The main building has an indoor bath and an open-air bath; the annex has two indoor baths. The men’s and women’s baths switch depending on the time, and you can use the baths privately. Dai Onsen is a quiet hot spring town a little away from the Hanamaki Onsen area, where I’ve stayed many times before. It’s known for a famous spring said to have opened 1,200 years ago. The streets are fairly narrow, with abandoned buildings around town, though a few inns are still lit up. Thank you for taking such good care of us. We’ll definitely come back!

I booked this time through the official Matsudaya Ryokan website, and as they say, it let me stay for the lowest price. The meals were fantastic, with so much local food at dinner that I couldn’t finish it all. The prefecture’s beef and Maesawa beef were especially delicious. Breakfast rice was so good I asked for another serving, and they made the leftovers into rice balls for me. Thank you! The water runs hot and leaves your skin feeling smooth. The temperature felt just right to me, and it was the kind of good soak that kept me sweating for a while afterward. The room’s bath was made of hinoki, and the scent filled the room and felt soothing.

Dinner was delicious, and the dining room was lovely. I did have one disappointment: I couldn’t communicate with the landlady serving us when I asked a question, perhaps because she had trouble hearing, and we ended up getting no rice with dinner. They later made rice balls for me to take to my room, which was kind, but I’d wanted rice with the meal. The room was old, but clearly clean, and the open-air bath in it was lovely. From the smooth parking-lot greeting to the directions at the entrance, everything went easily, and the warm welcome and service made me comfortable right away. It was a great stay and a wonderful memory. I’d love to come back and can wholeheartedly recommend the inn.