Kamesei Ryokan

Beautiful though slightly older ryokan. Owners were absolutely lovely, helpful, very friendly and were great to have a chat with. Due to some communication issues we were unable to organise a meal there, but the owners were very apologetic and offered a free session in the private family onsen as recompense, which was lovely. The home made cookies were also delicious and we bought a box to take with us. This was our first ever stay in a ryokan so we were not quite sure what to expect. But I think we were all unified in our horror when we came back after dinner to see our beds. We assumed a futon mattress would be like what we are familiar with at home (Australia), which is a 10cm mattress. These were so much worse than expected, and after staying in two more ryokans during the course of our stay, we realised this is standard. That the Japanese futon mattress is about 2cm thick. I kid you not. Three of our beds had 2 of these mattress’s, and one only had one. For all intents and purposes we were basically just sleeping on the floor. Combine that with the fact the air on didn’t seem to be working and we had to leave the window open all night, I would say this was pretty much our worst night sleep for our whole trip. Which is a shame, because there was so much to love about this ryokan, its owners and the location. Such a cute and peaceful little town.

Tyler, Mari, Andy and Mio were fantastic hosts, The kaiseki-style food was amazing (I opted for the half board; the ultimate way to go). From the moment I had walked into the ryokan, I had felt like my dreams had come true. From what I had only imagined and seen in anime/videos to actually experiencing a traditional ryokan with traditional Japanese-styled rooms. Equipped with tatami mats, shogi screens, and breath-taking views (I had the second floor room with a view of Mt. Hattoh). The room was kept exceptionally clean (I forgot to include photos of the room, but they are online to look at) and the provided yukata and geta sandals really rounded out the experience (there weren’t that many people walking around in the first place, so a foreigner in a yukata and geta sandals felt out of place at least for me; I walked around the town and no one paid any mind to what I was wearing and actually complimented it). Since Kamesei Ryokan was my very first venture into using an onsen (they do allow tattoos in their onsen, but if you’re not comfortable you can rent a private bath), I didn’t know the etiquette. I did use it; the natural hot springs felt fantastic on my body, relieving every aching muscle that had been used for walking over 20k steps a day, and the 100-year open air bath was amazing even at midnight. Make sure you immerse yourself in the experience there; wear the yukata, bathe in the onsen, and enjoy yourself; I travelled solo this time, and i will come back.

Very nice stay.

Kamesei is an amazing spot! We spent a couple of nights we've my friends over there and everything was perfect. From the welcoming to the recommendations we were really well guided and accompanied. Cherry on top, the organisation of a Geisha show by the host allowed us to made some great memories. It almost pains me to post this review because I'd love to keep that spot to myself ^^ But if others can have an amazing time as well thanks to that so be it. I can only highly recommend Kamesei and again give my thanks to Taylor and his family to be such incredible hosts. Go and enjoy Kamesei.