Kaga Katayamazu Onsen

"THE" Unique Experience in Japan - we stayed here just for 1 night as part of the 12 day trip with Gate1 Travel/Discovery Small Groups and I truly wish we had more time or even stayed here a full day just to reset/relax more! The location right on the lake with the mountains in the background is a reason enough just to stay in your room our go outside to be one with the nature! Add to that the traditional approach to the rooms of a Japanese Ryokan and you get an experience to remember. We also had a Kaiseki dinner experience here which further added to the traditional experience here, along with the Yukata dress up - definitely one for the books! We didn't rave for the food during our dinner meal, nor really the breakfast as it felt almost too traditional for a lame tourist but I truly appreciated the experience. There is an Onsen available here, but only a public one so for all the tattooed folks out there this is a no go unfortunately - but don't worry the views from the room are relaxing enough to make up for this limitation. Alternatively, the bathroom is someone setup as a separate "small room" where you can "flood it" with water, shower being separate from the bathtub - so I have enjoyed a warm bath right there, just no views :P I am not sure why this place has such a low average rate - we thought it was an amazing experience - though I wouldn't use it as a base to explore the area but 1-2 nights at most.

During our trip to Japan we stayed one night in this hotel beautiful unique experience we were provided with kimono and everything you need to dress we were in fears composed of very nice hot water pools and all the accessories and soaps to work all beautiful. The initial embarrassment of doing everything naked but obviously separated males from females. Room with Futon and the whole Japanese style room. Typical Japanese dinner delicious I tasted and ate tutto.Bellissimo

We stayed in this hotel one night. This is a very traditional hotel. Our guide explained the hot springs pool experience which was very unique. We gently refused. There were complimentary kimonos in our room too to wear inside the hotel. We had to take our shoes off going to dining room and the breakfast room.😮 Our room had a nice view of the lake. There was a raised platform with two floor seats and a low table between the bed and the bathroom. I kept the light on - to be safe going to the bathroom at night. Unfortunately my husband tripped and fell hitting his head on the table when he got up. He put his hands down for support so he wasn’t hurt seriously. Having a platform with sharp edges is not safe. I did not report it to security because he was ok but I mentioned it to our guide.