Takaragawa Onsen Ousenkaku

The outside bath and scenery.

The breakfast and dinner could be more fancy and tasty.

As special as the first time I was here 12 years ago: its natural beauty and serene vibes.

It seams like it lost a tiny bit of its soul in the name of practicality. But. The beauty wins.

This is the fairyland of onsens. A friend suggested this place and I was on the fence, but decided to go. Wow, what an experience. The setting is a rural mountainous area along a river, with 4 separate baths overlooking the river. They are manmade pools, but blend artfully into the river landscape. Our room was right along the river, so the view was gorgeous. All inclusive dinner and breakfast, with multiple courses, and more than enough food. The room was cozy for two futons side by side, but adequate in size.

On the downside, it is a trek to get here, so I almost decided against it, but am glad that I went. Early morning light is intense, but good for getting up early. There is no need to order more items at dinner unless you are truly ravenous. Dinner and breakfast take quite a while to eat, more than an hour, so keep that in mind for check-out times or having an evening soak.

The owners have a wild adult bear in a cage. It has been there since it was a cub. Apparently the owner caught the bear as a cub and has held it in this cage for many years (possibly 9 years). Here's a photo I took of the cage.