Kirishima Onsenkyo Kirishima Hotel

The staff were accommodating, including toward foreign guests, and the room and onsen were great. The surroundings are beautiful, and we appreciated the hospitality. The food setup, though, caught us off guard. There are several restaurants, but you can’t just order a dish and pay for it. You have to buy a meal ticket for 7000 yen per person, which covers a set meal. We came by taxi and hadn’t eaten much that day, so when we found out how expensive and limited it was, we ended up walking a mile down the road at night to get a proper dinner. What made it confusing was that items with individual prices were advertised, yet staff told us there was no food without a meal ticket.

I’ve lived in Kyushu for 22 years, and this is among the best places I’ve stayed. The bath is enormous, and the water is fantastic. Dinner was delicious and interesting too. If you get the chance to visit the nearby national park, it won’t disappoint. A distinctive stay that’s hard to forget.

The food was incredible, the best I had during our three weeks in Japan. I needed gluten-free meals, and after hearing about my restrictions, the chef met with me in person with a translator and made separate GF meals for my stay. That was far beyond what I expected. Breakfast and dinner are included, so eating there could have been tricky for me otherwise. The whole place felt beautiful and authentically Japanese from the moment we walked in, with guests comfortably wearing robes. The host spoke enough English to explain how things worked, and we used Google Translate when needed. Everyone was so kind. The onsens and the city were lovely too. Such a wonderful place and experience.

I’m reviewing just the onsen, which was my favorite public one on the trip. It’s a large, sprawling place with plenty of different baths, and although it’s old, it’s clean and well maintained. I tried both the women’s section and the mixed bath. The sign says not to bring towels into the water, but I saw women wrap themselves in towels to enter the mixed bath, so I suppose you can decide for yourself. The changing room is spacious and the amenities are good. I wish reception had given me more than one small towel, though. I was visiting for the day and hadn’t brought one, so next time I’d pack my own.