Watarase Onsen Hotel Yamayuri

The onsen itself is great - there are four private outdoor onsens that are on a first come first save basis but we never had to wait. The hotel made a simple but delicious bento for our hike - you order it the night before and it's great.

We did not book a meal plan originally and therefore could not take any meals at the hotel (not even breakfast) despite contacting the hotel a few days in advance to say we would like to have meals after all. Apparently it has something to do with booking through booking.com that can't be modified to add meals and they can't charge them separately either. So booking a meal plan upfront is highly recommended.

The baths are the absolute selling point of this hotel. They are well-maintained, open-air, and the private baths are a lovely experience to share with your travelling companions. The room itself was dated, but clean and functional. We had our own toilet and sink. It's worth noting that there are no showers in the hotel building (the showers are located at the baths, in a separate building). Convenient location with plenty of bus access to popular parts of the Kumano Kodo.

Adding formal dinner or breakfast to the reservation was quite expensive (Dinner: 8,800 JPY, Breakfast: 3,300 JPY) - we didn't dine at the hotel, so can't comment on whether it is worth the cost.

Private hot spring

the private onsen were great

nothing

家族風呂とても良かったです♨️