Hanagokoro Yamadaya is magical. Our two days there were extremely special. Highly recommend. I imagine that some lower ratings for this property are from westerners who were perhaps not prepared nor appreciative of the traditional nature of this ryokan. The room was beautiful and spacious. I don’t think photos online do it justice. The level of service is impeccable, though it may feel stiff if you are expecting bubbly hospitality. The private onsen was unlike any experience my partner and I have ever had. Utter magic. Traditional Yukata kimonos are provided for your stay, and it is traditional to wear them throughout the hotel, including at meals. We loved this. It was so comfortable to relax at dinner in these robes after enjoying the onsen. Breakfast and dinner were stunning. I am an avid eater of Japanese food, and there were a number of ingredients and dishes that were a first for me which was so delightful and something you hope for during a stay like this. I found the portions completely appropriate and for a female, certainly filling. The only minor critique I have of the experience is that it would have been lovely to have had more information provided up front about some of the traditions e.g, protocols for using the onsen and wearing the robes, but anytime we asked a question, the staff were kind and gracious in answering. If you are looking for an authentic onsen ryokan, it doesn’t get any better than this.

This is a great tourist accessible onsen ryokan. The food was great, the room was great, and the private onsen we had was pretty good. The service was exceptional!

There was another couple that rated them poorly and they, too, went on their honeymoon. We thought it funny because their was exactly our experience! We are also in our honeymoon and we have been to another Ryokan..this just was not it. The traditional food was a bit too traditional and mostly bland and not very good. We were kind of dreading our meals..but for the most part,it was a hit or miss if the course meal was going to be good. Get ready for a LOT of bones in fish, gooey pastes, and little tiny eyes looking at you (tiny krill) as you debate whether or not your brave enough to eat it. For breakfast, no fresh coffee...that to us was the straw that broke the camels back. At least have some fresh coffee. The staff were super sweet but at times a little over bearing . The room was ok. The onsen was ok as well, but never saw some of the ones in the photos so I'm curious to know which were those. They had a "relax room" that was in a big room with just...chairs. Not lounge chairs, just normal chairs. Reminded us of a nursing home. At least try to make it relaxing... Put out snacks or books or tables..anything to make it more inviting. Seems like wasted space ! It has a lot of potential honestly..a face lift and better food and it can be really nice! This just wasn't it, we were shocked at all the great reviews.. Not a terrible stay but not good either. We looked forward to checking out ,that's not the experience you look for.

Very relaxing stay with nice food and lovely private onsen,

This was an outstanding Ryokan. Very authentic Japanese environment. The private Onsen was wonderful because it was cold and the beautiful natural scenery made the experience serene. Best of all the food and service was excellent.

Very relaxing stay. Delicious food, helpful staff. Enjoyed the private onsen as well.

Not the experience we were looking for. We were traveling on our honeymoon and booked this Ryokan for 2 nights, as our luxury and most expensive hotel of the whole trip. From the images and the description (and by the price too) we were expecting something impeccable. The facility was far from our expectations and was decadent. Some furniture was broken and there was mold and stains on the rooms wall. The food was very traditional but also really not good. We have been eating only traditional Japanese food (which we love) for the whole trip, but the meals at this Ryokan were simply not good. I can imagine that some people might enjoy that but for us it was not the case and had energy bars in our room after dinner… The staff was lovely and very caring. The room was beautiful, with a lovely view and terrace and the private onsen was a great experience. Overall we really enjoyed our staying but this was far from our expectations and way overpriced for what we believe was the experience. We don’t regret staying there but we just wish we knew these things ahead.

It's a great place to experience a Japanese ryokan with both communal and private onsen. Rooms are available with either futons or beds. The service was impeccable (we had both breakfast and dinner there as there are no restaurants nearby. N.B. breakfast is savoury too and mostly fish), I would definitely recommend it for a true Japanese inn stay!