Naruko Hotel

The indoor bathing pool is huge, and it connects directly to the outdoor bath, so there’s no need to get changed in between. The cloudy white water has a sulfide smell, with a very faint sewage-like odor too. I noticed a slight chlorine smell in the open-air bath.

We stayed in the least expensive Japanese-style room, which was surprisingly spacious, and the futons were comfortable. The yukata covered in kokeshi dolls were soooo cute. You can book a private onsen for ¥2000 for 50 minutes. It felt pricey, but was honestly worth it. I loved this hotel. It’s one of the longest-running places in Naruko, if not the longest. The whole hotel smells eggy from the onsen, and much of the town does too. I didn’t mind, but if you haven’t encountered that smell before, it might be difficult, so be prepared. It’s natural around onsen water. Vegetarian buffet choices are limited. My partner called ahead to ask what would work best for me, and they suggested the buffet. I started eating fish a couple of months ago, so I had more options, but being fully vegetarian would be annoying. Also, the soap at the onsen with the horse on it is literally made with horse oil. I was disgusted and washed my hair with the regular soap from my room because I felt so grossed out and sad that I’d used that shampoo. If you’re vegetarian or cruelty-free, bring your own shampoo!

The hot spring facilities were good, and breakfast was decent. Dinner was the stronger buffet. You can add an individual one-hour, self-serve all-you-can-drink option for ¥1700. In my opinion, the extra price was worth it.

The mountain views were exhilarating, and the hotel itself was very nice. Our room was roomy, with comfortable futons. The onsen baths were impressively large, and breakfast came as a buffet with plenty of choices.