Inagaki Onsen Hotel Kagetsutei

I really enjoyed the scallops in the Aomori local dishes. The staff were welcoming, too. This inn sits among rice fields and the surrounding town, and it used to be a relaxing hot spring spot for nearby farmers. The spring water comes straight from the source, and there was so much of it. That was wonderful.

The one good part was the Lake Jusan clam soup, warm and tasty. But Lake Jusan clams are known for their size and flavor, and the ones we got were surprisingly tiny, about 5mm across. The food was plentiful and there was variety, but it was all catered rather than cooked by a chef. Everything else came cold, without much warmth. Dinner was 20,000 yen for a room that had nothing going for it, and I won't stay here again. The building is old, with cracks all over, and the rooms were dim and uncomfortable. Wi-Fi was hard to get in the room, so I had to use it in the hallway. The air conditioning there wasn't working, and I was sweating a lot. The hot spring itself was nice, but broken faucets were spraying water everywhere. It felt like the inn couldn't afford to fix things.

Quiet place, nice water. It tasted salty with a faint sulfur note. The outdoor bath seemed to be about 40cm deep, and the indoor one around 42cm.

The dinner was a little too salty for my husband and me, since we prefer milder flavors. The tempura and steak were brought out fresh when we wanted them, but the grilled fish was already waiting on the table and was tough to eat. It might be better served fresh after guests sit down. Breakfast, on the other hand, wasn't too salty and tasted good. We stayed in a special room with its own bath, and the hot spring water flowed continuously, day and night. It was always relaxing to bathe, and the temperature was just right for long soaks. We both felt relaxed and slept well. The suite had two Japanese-style rooms, a bedroom and a guest room, with a lovely view of the Japanese garden from the guest room. There were also two toilets and two sinks.