Shibu Onsen KOKUYA

From the moment you enter Kokuya Ryokan, be prepared to leave the real world behind and fully immerse yourself in the experience. You swap your shoes for slippers at the door and don’t see them again until you leave. You will receive a warm welcome from polite and gentle-mannered staff, get taken up to your beautiful room, and once you’ve changed into your traditional yukata, it’s time to let the relaxation begin. The multi-course dinner will probably be one of the best meals you’ve had in your life, with many unusual textures and flavors to try. The futons are comfortable, and your room is kept toasty warm. There are even skincare products to keep you pampered and moisturized between soaks in the onsen. Honestly, you won’t even need to open your suitcase while you’re there. The staff will take you through all the logistics when you arrive, but there are some things that might be useful to know in advance. - The ryokan sends a shuttle to Yudanaka station at about 15:00 to collect new arrivals, so time your journey to take advantage of this benefit. - The ryokan also offers guests the opportunity to catch a shuttle to the Snow Monkey Park immediately after breakfast the next morning. - After you leave the ryokan, they will take your luggage down to the coffee shop opposite the station, so you don’t need to worry about those logistics. - Trains from Yudanaka back to Nagano leave at 12:30 and 15:30. - The ryokan itself has several private onsens that you can reserve for a 45-minute slot. Because the onsens are on the property, you can go in with your partner or travel companions regardless of gender. It’s a boutique hotel, so you don’t have to worry about not getting access to all the onsens you want. - The ryokan is on the main road of the Shibu Onsen town. The hotel will give you a key so you can wonder down the main road, visiting any of the public onsens you wish - however, with so many gorgeous and more private onsens in the hotel itself, you probably won’t have time or the desire for this. - Also, there is a coffee machine in the room! (I was worried about having to survive without coffee, and this turned out to be an unfounded concern). We had an incredible and totally indulgent time at Kokuya. Experiencing a traditional ryokan is a privilege that you should try at least once if you can. And adding the Snow Monkeys in give the trip a double purpose, making it that much more memorable. The only thing that would have made the trip better is if we had been allowed to linger longer over every course of our dinner.

Nos ha gustado mucho el sitio, el hecho de tener un baño privado en la habitación ayuda mucho a la relajación y a disfrutar más la experiencia tradicional. En cuanto a las instalaciones, en general todo bien, poder utilizar todos los baños del ryokan hace que sea una experiencia más placentera. La habitación tenía algo de polvo pero en general bien. En cuanto al servicio, muy bien en la cena pero cabe destacar que si les pides una recomendación les cuesta indicarte ya que está fuera de su guión. En el desayuno, des de nuestro punto de vista es algo más frío, ya lo tienen preparado en la mesa correspondiente y no te indican como lo hacen durante la cena. Así mismo, consideramos que durante la estancia el personal tampoco está mucho por los huéspedes y no te informan de todos los servicios que te pueden ofrecer. Se pueden comprar yukata en el mismo hotel por 5000 yenes aproximadamente.

I had a 1-night stay. The ryokan reached out the day of to ask if we needed a shuttle which was super helpful. They have multiple people checking people in at once and you pretty much dive right in. You can book their internal onsens at that time which is advised since some time slots and onsens were already booked. Their English is understandable and they really try to use English as best they can. Dinner for us was at 6 and was very tasty. I have some allergies and preferences (shellfish, raw fish) and they tailored around for the most part. They served me a dish with shrimp but realized it before I opened the pot. One of the soups I was served did have crab so I didn't eat it, but just a warning for anyone with severe allergies. The building is a bit difficult to navigate. I recommend using the lobby as your reference point and go from there. The room itself was very cozy. Nighttime in winter was very cold so we had to turn the heater on higher than normal. It was wonderful being able to have an onsen to ourselves and there are so many to choose from. I don't recommend using their restrooms outside the room. I found the one I used outside one of the onsens a bit dirty and had the "toilet smell." Staff was really kind and welcoming. I did not catch his name but we had a male staff assist us during our stay. I'm sad we didn't get to say bye to him. Breakfast was very filling but not heavy. The soft boiled egg was perfect! They gave us the option of having bfast at 8:00 or 8:30 but I chose 8 because I didn't want to rush to check out. Shuttle to the monkey park and tip on where to call taxi were perfect for us. I recommend going to the monkey park when they offer the shuttle (9:15). There were some crowds of people when we got to the park, but when walking back there were MANY more groups heading towards the park. This was on a weekday. Overall I really recommend this ryokan for anyone looking to stay at Shibu Onsen. It was great value and provided a wonderful experience.

This place was incredible - we decided to splurge on a one night Ryokan stay during our time in Tokyo, and it was 1000% worth the trek (the super fast shinkansen bullet train made it so easy to get to!) The included 9-course dinner (AND 9-course breakfast - complete with an onsen egg!) was delicious and beautifully prepared. We felt pampered the entire time we were there, and loved that not only did we have a private open-air onsen in our room, but we were also able to reserve time in some of the beautiful open-air private onsens on the property. It was lightly snowing while we were there, and the entire stay felt so magical. And Kokuya provided one-way free transportation to the Snow Monkey park the next morning, including luggage service so we didn't have to lug our suitcases up the mountain. It was very easy to catch the local bus back, and amazing to have our bags waiting for us at a nearby coffee shop before we got back on the train. Overall completely worth it even for just one night, we loved this stay and would definitely recommend it to others wanting the authentic Ryokan experience!

This is a great place to relax and visit / sit in 8 different baths outdoors and indoors. You can have one in your room as well. Baths can be booked for a private use . We selected to be served breakfast and dinner in Japanese style. Incredible experience. My husband who usually prefers western style breakfast , chose Japanese style as it was amazing. Yukatas are provided as well, you can visit other onsens in the vicinity just wearing that.

Shibu Onsen Kokuya was a wonderful experience for my wife and I. I can’t recommend it enough for anyone visiting the area. Conveniently located near Snow Monkey Park, Shiga Kogen, and all the Shibu Onsen public Onsen. Experience traditional Japanese hospitality with delicious home cooked meals and truly exceptional staff who went out of their way to make our experience wonderful.