Takaragawa Onsen Osenkaku

You cannot beat the view and onsen. It’s stunning (just a bit colder than I wanted). This is not the “local Japanese ryokan” experience I was looking for, though. It was 95% tourists/non-Japanese and catered for it. Food was good, but mild as a result and the signs everywhere bossing us around were kinda of a lot and entirely in English. The room was spacious, but just very old. Indoor bathes and outdoor changing rooms need a touch up. It’s perfect for a couple, though. I would not recommend for a family or solo traveler.

WORTH THE PRICE & JOURNEY! The Osenkaku located in the mountains of the Gunma, is one of the best traditional Inn i stayed in. From flawless pickup and welcome to winsome food and customer service, its a place where one would definitely come back again. Having a checkin at 4pm, the hotel provide complimentary from the nearest JR Local (Minakami) & Shinkansen (Jomokogen) stations beforehand; the gentleman bus driver found us (Grp of 5) from inside the ticketing area of the station and guided us to the bus. At the Hotel, we were welcomed by the staff where checkin was doing along with a introduction to the Onsen, its rules & other facilities. The staff promptly helped with any basic queries as it was our first time in a Japaneses Onsen; along with helping in choosing the right Yukata and coat. Later too, they will make the beddings too when the guests are having the Dinner. The Hotel itself is quite huge and have certain area which are not disable-friendly; since its quite old but well maintained. The Onsen is connected with a bridge where there are common pools and a dedicated pool for women. Bathrobe (suited for 6ft+) for the pool is provided and there are gendered changing rooms, showers and dryers available too next to onsen pools. The Meals are quite exquisite and extensive Japanese items. Prior arrangements is made for any allergies. All the meals are served in the Restaurant.

We stayed here for two nights in mid-November—my sister, my 1-year-old baby, and myself—and absolutely loved our experience. The ryokan is older, but everything is clean and well maintained. The staff were truly wonderful and went above and beyond for us. Because the property was fully booked, we weren’t able to stay in the same room for both nights. The ryokan has three buildings with different room types: one with a toilet and shower, one with only a toilet, and one with neither, so be sure you know which one you’re reserving. We had a room with a toilet and shower on the first night and a room with only a toilet for the second. Honestly, having a shower in the room isn’t really necessary since you’ll probably spend most of your time enjoying their five beautiful onsens, where you can shower as well. We had to switch rooms after the first night, and this is where the staff really shined. Although check-out is normally at 10 a.m. and check-in at 2 p.m., they prioritized cleaning our second room so we could move in right away. We checked out at 10 and were in our new room by 10:30. Traveling with a baby, we were so grateful for the thoughtful touches: without us even asking, the staff provided a high chair, a bowl of rice with condiments, water, and baby dishes and utensils. Their attention to detail was incredible. The rooms are beautifully positioned along the river, and the entire ryokan has such charming character. We truly loved our stay and would happily return.

This Onsen was the highlight of our Japan trip. We went the first week of November at the peak of fall colors and I couldn't believe how beautiful it was. Our room was right above the river and we had such a good view. The indoor and outdoor baths were clean and lovely to enjoy. I could not give this location a higher recommendation. The service and respect from the staff was top notch and we really enjoyed staying there. Having everyone in Yukatas was an added bonus - really added to the theme. Some notes as mentioned in other reviews: 1)They only serve breakfast and dinner so you'll want to either bring cash to buy some ramen from the gift shop or bring some food in for lunch. 2)Yes they could dust more and get of some of the cobwebs on the ceilings. I'm tall and there were many short beams and ceilings I had to duck under. Hit my head a fair amount of times and had some cobwebs in my hair lol 3)They do not have western style beds and you sleep on a few tatami mats with comforters. I don't have an issue with these sleeping arrangements, but just something to note if you are more comfortable sleeping on softer surfaces Overall - very relaxing and enjoyable experience. I would recommend going in fall/winter to avoid bugs (Nov - Mar).

We visited this beautiful onsen for one night during the first week of December and were surprised with snow - it was lovely to watch the fluffy snow fall while in the outdoor pools. The food was good and plentiful too. One note: If you want to buy a day pass to soak longer after checking out at 10am, they do make you return your towel, swimming dress and yukata and then walk outside along the road across a bridge to get to the day pass entrance, which was a little inconvenient since the roads were unplowed and snowy. However they do give you a discount on the day pass rate and we were even able to catch a ride back to the train station with the hotel’s shuttle in the afternoon as they had to pick up other guests, which was nice as we had originally planned to take the public bus. Overall it was worth it to get to enjoy the hot springs longer since we were only there one night.

beautiful and amazing trip with family. we came just in time to see the beautiful autumn foliage. as its my first time being in japan in autumn, and coming to the countryside outside of major cities like tokyo, this was such a beautiful retreat from the hustle and bustle of rhe city. the onsens were wonderful and mixed gender public onsen was great for family time! while the gender separated ones were perfect for some personal time relaxing after a long day of travelling and exploring the region. Of course, in true japanese hospitality style, we enjoyed delicious meals (we stayed for 3 days) for breakfast and dinner — everyone in our family, both young and old, enjoyed it greatly. Its definitely a trip to remember!

By far the best onsen I have ever been to and one of the best experiences I've had since coming to Japan. The baths were beautiful and well designed, with gorgeous views of the river and mountain slopes. The lady who checked us in was very kind and warm - and she told us some of the history of the onsen which heightened the experience. Will definitely try to come back next time we are in Japan and I would highly reccomend for anyone. We were especially grateful for the tattoo friendly policy and mixed gender bathing options.

Beautiful, rustic onsen royokan in the mountains. For guest convenience, the onsen provided a free (prebooked) shuttle from Jomokogen station to the onsen (25 min ride). At the royokan, the staff provided Yakatas to wear around the property and bathing clothes for the mixed baths. Our room, Sakura 311 was a beautiful corner room with full view of the river and trees. We slept comfortably and cozily on mattesses on the tatami floor lulled by the sound of rushing water. Breakfast and dinner were in the main banquet area and were traditional Japanese fare. Outside there were 3 mixed bath options and one outdoor womens only bath. The baths were hot, had plenty of rocks for seating, and even tho it got busy, never felt crowded. Of note, if you get antsy easily, there isnt much to do other than enjoy the baths and relax and eat yummy foods. Two days for us were perfect but if youre a constant on the go traveling, one solid night is perfect as well.

After three separate visits for the day-use onsen, I thought that Takaragawa Onsen didn't hold any more surprises for me. But the ryokan was determined to prove me wrong. At the request of a friend we stayed overnight, and it was such an amazing time that I'm wondering when I can come back again. We stayed in the 第一別館, which is the building furthest away from the main building. A wooden structure built in 1936, the annex has no in-room bath or toilet. Instead, there is a shared bathroom (toilet) on each floor, and an indoor bath in the main building, as well as several rotenburo (outdoor baths) just across the river. You need to walk through a long connecting corridor to get back to the main building, which also houses the restaurant for dinner and breakfast. For that reason, the annex has the cheapest of the room options available at Takaragawa Onsenkaku. However, I'm convinced that our room, called 梅 (Japanese plum), was the very best in the entire ryokan. It has a fantastic view of the rushing river below and a really lovely round paper window, which you can see lit up at night when crossing the bridge to the rotenburo. I think that every time I come to Takaragawa Onsen again in the future on a day visit, I'll look across the river and think "There's my room!" Sure there's wear and tear but, honestly, that's part of the charm of staying in a wooden building that's nearly a century old. The best part of staying at the ryokan is being able to visit the rotenburo at all times of night. Especially in the middle of the night when no one is around, it's like having your own giant private onsen. And waking up to the sound of the rushing river in the morning comes in at a close second. Buffet-style dinner and breakfast are included in the stay. Unfortunately, only a specific accommodation plan for guests staying in the main building comes with the traditional ryokan kaiseki meal, but dinner was still very tasty and had great variety. I was also blown away by the friendliness of the staff. Japanese ryokan are notable for their hospitality, but there was one obachan in the restaurant who was particularly playful and really made our stay. I was feeling like I had seen it all after my third visit to Takaragawa Onsen, but after staying at the ryokan I can't wait to come again! As for the guy asking why there aren't any window screens -- they're not a part of traditional Japanese architecture. Why would you retrofit a beautiful old ryokan with hideous window screens?

Overall, I had high hopes, but was disappointed. Two stars for my room and four stars for the rotemburo. The rotemburo was beautiful! But, my room (the least expensive level) was fairly worn and not as clean as I would have liked (or as I've come to expect in Japan) There were some sections of the room's walls and doors that were pretty damaged. Alot of moths / insects were in the shared bathroom at night. This inn seems not to believe in window screens! The hallways were surprisingly dusty, but I'm a tall guy, so maybe I was only noticing the areas that the staff couldn't reach? The indoor men's bath also had stained walls and damaged mirrors. My recommendation? Just visit the beautiful onsen on a day trip and stay somewhere else.

BEWARE...Stayed at this hotel for one night back in May 2019. Prepaid for 14 guests (11 adults and 3 children) through Orbitz at $1815.70. The female employee (English speaking and very polite) who checked us in verbally confirmed that our stay was paid in full. However, upon checkout, shortly prior to boarding their shuttle (the hotel is located in a remote prefecture in Minakami and their shuttle was the only mode of transportation that would transport us to the train station in time to catch our 4+ hour train ride to Kyoto), we were told by two males (there were 3 males working, but only two spoke and one with limited English capability and the female who had checked us in was not there), that the accommodations for the 3 children had to be paid then. I explained that I had already prepaid for all of the guests through Orbitz; however, the male who spoke the most English insisted that I make the payment there. We went back and forth several times; me explaining that I had prepaid even notifying that his female colleague had confirmed this upon check-in and him insisting that the payment be made. At one point during our verbal exchange he informed that he had emailed me notifying me of this, to which I responded that he had not-even searching my emails to be certain and when I couldn't find his email I asked him to show me the email that he had sent to me (all the whole the shuttle is ready to leave and about to leave us there with no ride if I didn't get on that shuttle soon), which he did not. Because the back and forth exchanges lasted for approximately 15 minutes and at that point I realized that it was already 9:33 AM and the 9:30 AM shuttle was about ready to leave me (most of my family was on the shuttle asking the shuttle driver to wait), I angrily and frustratedly handed over my credit card and paid AGAIN for the 3 children. In addition to this mess, we didn't enjoy the onsen as much as we thought we would. Although I understand that the onsens are natural, there was just too much unpleasantries.The floor of each onsen was extremely slippery with moss, some areas held foul odors, and there were numerous bugs everywhere (some of them looked liked mosquitos). All of this made for an unpleasant experience (we stayed in the onsen for only around a total of 10 minutes before exiting and returning inside). Also, the photos of the rooms online are deceiving, they are actually older and each of our four rooms smelled musty. In two of our rooms, dust flew out of the air conditioner onto the mattress where some of us slept. The food was just okay. On the positive side, the restaurant staff, especially the females, were accommodating and friendly; however, I would not recommend this place based on our entire experience.