The three main elements of a ryokan or hotel are facilities, food, and service. In addition to these, what makes a Japanese inn many times more appealing are the hot springs and baths.
In this coming season, soaking in a famous hot spring will relax your mind and body and wash away the fatigue of the year. In the sixth installment, we will introduce two inns in Yamanashi Prefecture, "Bath-Proud Inns: Central Japan Part 2."

Fuefuki City Isawa Onsen Village's Hanayagi no Sho Keizan boasts an abundant supply of hot spring water from its own free-flowing source. The clear, colorless, and soft alkaline simple hot spring water is effective for neuralgia and muscle pain, and is a skin-beautifying water that leaves your skin smooth.

The large open-air cypress bath is a natural hot spring where you can enjoy bathing while feeling the colors of the four seasons, and the scent of cypress will soothe both body and mind. The large open-air rock bath "Rokkasen" where you can enjoy the sound of the water, the large baths "Hanagiri" and "Hanano", the dry sauna, and the mist sauna are all on a rotation system between men and women, so if you stay overnight you can enjoy all the baths, which is an irresistible point for hot spring lovers.

Additionally, all 22 rooms have open-air baths, where you can enjoy the hot spring water straight from the source in a private space.

Meals are served in original dishes made with the bounty of Yamanashi Prefecture's nature. The multi-course dinner and extensive buffet breakfast are very popular.

A taiko drum show is held every night, putting the spirit of hospitality into a heroic stage performance. The original music, which evokes the stillness and movement of Fuurinkazan, is worth seeing. The hotel also offers oriental-style bodywork and beauty salon treatments, which are recommended after a bath, and is well-known for its entertaining customer service.

Shuhokaku Kogetsu, located on the north shore of Lake Fujikawaguchiko, boasts a location where you can view the symmetrical ridgeline of Mt. Fuji from all rooms and open-air baths. Mt. Fuji shows its different faces with each season, covered in snow from late autumn to spring, cherry blossoms in spring, and autumn leaves in autumn. If the weather and other conditions are right, you can even see "upside-down Mt. Fuji" on the lake's surface.

The men's open-air bath "Black Fuji" and the women's open-air bath "Red Fuji" both offer spectacular views of Lake Kawaguchiko directly in front of them and Mount Fuji beyond that.

The men's large bath, Fujizakura, comes with a sauna bath. The women's large bath, Otomezakura, comes with a steam sauna, and the changing room is equipped with a powder room and tatami mats that can be used for changing small children, a nice touch to the facilities designed with female guests in mind. Both baths offer an unobstructed view of the majestic Mt. Fuji through the glass. There is also a beauty salon, offering the ultimate in relaxation after a bath.

On the second floor, there are rooms with foot baths where you can enjoy the hot springs in a private space while gazing at Mt. Fuji, as well as rooms with both a foot bath and an open-air bath.

All the baths in the building, including the foot bath, use natural hot spring water, which is said to be effective for various illnesses such as neuralgia, muscle pain, and joint pain. The spring quality is calcium, sodium, sulfate, and chloride hot spring (low-temperature, alkaline, high-temperature hot spring).

On March 1, 2023, the four guest rooms with open-air hot spring baths on the third floor will be renovated. In addition to installing beds, guests can now enjoy in-room meals at a dining table rather than on tatami mats. The renovated garden terrace, "Mt. Fuji View Footbath Terrace Suigetsu," offers a symmetrical view of Mt. Fuji across Lake Kawaguchiko, along with an upside-down image of the mountain reflected on the lake's surface. Why not enjoy a luxurious moment with Mt. Fuji all to yourself while savoring the chef's carefully selected kaiseki cuisine, made with fresh seasonal ingredients?