Tsutaya Hijiori Hotel

Tsutaya brings together two very different sides of a stay at Hijiori Onsen: the main building has an old-fashioned atmosphere and a mixed-gender bath that suits the resort’s traditional hot spring therapy roots, while the modern annex has an elevator and no steps. It’s a nice way to experience both styles in one inn. The food was the weak point for me. Put kindly, it’s home-style; more plainly, it’s simple and doesn’t feel very seasonal. Still, whether you come for the baths, the surrounding nature, or the history, Tsutaya has something to offer.

The meals were a generous, easy-to-eat hot spring inn course, with mushrooms and mountain foods alongside Yamagata beef and the region’s taro stew. My JR East Ekinet local hot springs tour included dinner and breakfast, with dinner at either 6:00 or 6:30 PM and breakfast at 7:30 or 8:00 AM. If you enjoy sake, the local tasting set has three 90 ml pours for 1,500 yen. I booked a Japanese-style room with its own bath and toilet in the hotel section. It was a typical inn room, with two low chairs, and had bath towels, towels, a yukata, and a toothbrush. There are two baths, and neither has lockable lockers. Shampoo and body soap are provided. The water is cloudy and slightly ochre, with a faint salty taste and no smell. You can still see your toes when seated. The source is hot, so they cool it with about 10-20% mountain water. There’s only a thin film of mineral deposits on the surface. When I went, it was usually pleasantly warm, and the baths stay open except during morning cleaning. One bath is mixed, on the hot spring visitor side, with separate men’s and women’s changing rooms and two rock pools. I went in the early evening and again early in the morning, and had it to myself both times. There are no showers there. The other bath has separate indoor pools for men and women, with several showers. The changing rooms have tissues and hair dryers, but no cotton swabs or lotion. The visitor facility and hotel connect on the second floor. The entrance by the second bus stop is for day visitors; hotel guests use the river-side lobby entrance. A narrow path from near that bus stop leads around to the river side, though the stream there is so small you might miss it on your first visit. There’s a lobby with vending machines selling beer and Hiyoketsu at about convenience store prices. Rice is sold there too, but there’s no souvenir shop in the building. A short walk from the day visitor entrance is a small shop with drinks, alcohol, food, and souvenirs. Getting there takes some planning. Buses from Shinjo Station on the Shinkansen line are infrequent and small, so check the schedule on the official Hijiori Onsen website or elsewhere, since it changes by season, and get to the stop a little early. On the last day of a three-day weekend, a long queue had formed about 20 minutes before the bus to Shinjo at checkout time, and the bus filled up. The stop for the first bus from Terminals 1 and 2 is less than a minute’s walk from Hijiori Onsen, so I’d wait there. I don’t know if another bus comes if you can’t board.

The hot springs are the main reason I’d come back. The water has a deep, soothing effect, and there’s a mixed-gender bath that can be nice for enjoying with family. Meals are simple rather than fancy, but the local mountain vegetables are varied, and everything tasted good. The rice was especially excellent. This isn’t a luxurious inn, and the facilities are old. There are few amenities, no Wi-Fi, and the frosted windows in the room mean you can’t see outside. Yet the people around town, from the inn staff to shopkeepers and women at the morning market, were so kind that the small inconveniences felt easy to accept. It’s probably not for someone looking for spotless luxury, but it suits people who love hot springs.

The first-floor library, counter bar, and hearth give the place a lovely atmosphere. The building is showing its age, but it’s kept spotless. The staff are kind, which adds to the comfortable feel, and the food was delicious dish after dish, enough to make me want more. The hot spring water was excellent too.