Name: Houshi Onsen Chojukan
Address: Hoshi Onsen, Minakami-machi, Minakami, Minakami, Minakami, 379-1401, Japan
Rating: 9

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Houshi Onsen Chojukan

Minakami

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Nice rooms, good country location, excellent kaiseki dinners. Staff were helpful. Great onsen - large mixed bathing area, also fabulous small outdoor hot pool with little waterfall - separate times for male and female. Only 20 minutes away by car is the lovely craft village Takumi No Sato. Well worth a visit.  Only major disappointment was that the wifi did not work in the rooms ( despite what Booking.com said on our reservation form)  so had to go to communal lounge near the office to get reception.

Relaxing country retreat

Leaving this review for fellow tattoo-havers to save them the hassle of making an international call: they sadly don't take guests with tattoos :( Was so excited to visit this place, it looks beautiful. I know it's a cultural thing, but I hope this prejudice goes away some time in the future. 

No tattoos allowed! :(

This "onsen" was one of my bucket list long time. There is located in the deep of the mountains, near the prefectural border of Gunma and Niigata.

I drove a car from Echigo-Yuzawa in Niigata pref. After passing the border, you will find a junction which is connected with the destination. 10 minutes later, I could see an anciant ryokan, "Choju-kan" in the end of the road.

The "Choju-kan" has been established in Meiji-era, more than 100 years ago. The famous Literary giants were staying there for their writeing work.

There are 3 onsen in the "Choju-kan". Oldest one is an old fashion, "konyoku", mixed bathing style.

These onsen are also served to the "one day guest" but the timing is only limited the mixed style. However for the staying guest is able to use for limited time for 2 hours female only timing in the night time.

Another onsen are switching between male and female depends on the timing.

Some of room is not equiped the private rest room however all the guest can enjoy and feel the anciant atmosphie of Japan.

I strongly recommend this "Choju-kan"!

This is onsen

It is a wonderful Japanese ryokan with one of the old original hot springs in Japan. In fact this place is geographically not so far from Tokyo but it is not easy to get to.  As you know Japan is heavily industrialized and one of the most densely populated countries in the world. But  as 70% of the land is covered in deep forest, you will have to be prepared to have a bit of adventure. We took a Shinkansen line (12:40) from Tokyo Central to Jomo Kogen Station and then took a local Kanetsu bus (14:52) No. 3  to Sarugakyo, from where we took another small local bus (15:35) to Hoshi Onsen.   There is only one ryokan in this deep mountain area in Gunma Pref.   As soon as we arrived we noticed that there was a warning that some bears had been sighted recently. We were greeted by friendly ryokan people and first invited to tea at an old fashion Japanese fireplace, called irori.  After that we were taken to our room through corridors and stairs. The entire building is well kept although most of the sections were built at the beginning of 20th century.  The breakfast and dinner were so fantastic and generous that we skipped our lunches.  (it is recommended that you reserve your room with full pension because there are no other places in this part of the mountain).   The bath halls are very nostalgic and beautiful.  The main bath hall is old and its wooden building was built directly on the hot spring itself.  There are two other bath halls built later, which are also nice and relaxing. I would not say it is the most comfortable hotel, however, modernization is slowly reaching this mountain place as well and you should visit this place now than later if you want to experience a real Japanese Onsen ryokan.

Time machine

My brother in law has been talking about this place for years. He lived and worked in Gunma im the nineties learning Japanese and building log houses. 

He'd always said he wanted to return to stay at this Onsen when he could afford to do so. 

Therefore we joined him on a holiday to Japan that included a few nights at this hotel. 

It was an amazing experience - such a tranquil place high up the valley with hardly any nods to modernity. The rooms were simple but comfortable, the food was a daily exploration of tradional Japanese menu. And of course the baths were hot and relaxing. 

Make sure you're not expecting a Marriott! It is a totally different experience and very Japanese - so different to anything we'd experienced in the west. 

It probably helped to have a guide to help set our expectation and to advise on local customs and culture. 

We'd love to come back again one day.

Disagree with "Not for anyone over 50"!

Out in the middle of the Gunma nowhere, at the end of a road that with snow can be treacherous, this rustic wooden spa is not for older folks who can't sleep and sit on the floor or who have dietary restrictions. 

The rooms are unpretentious but overlook the simple gardens and forested hills and other wooden buildings dating from what looks like the Taisho era,. There are several baths but all are in varying states of wood and if you are squeamish about cleanliness you may find the discoloring both attractive yet disturbing. The baths and wooden buildings are evidently continually maintained, so the architecture looks original.

You  get endless servings of tiny twiddlybits of unidentifiable Japanese dishes on cute little dish ware, for both dinner and breakfast. Breakfast was plentiful in variety but not for western guests who need coffee, toast and eggs to start the day. 

Service is traditional Japanese inn style, conventionally gracious but confining, and if you intend to take a nap, it gets problematic as futons have to be laid down, dressed and after napping returned to storage. Flexibility is not a characteristic at such places. 

Mixed gender bathing hours are in effect at all the baths and done with effortless discretion so it's not uncomfortable if your are reasonably versatile with your washcloth. 

There is nothing new here, which is the appeal if you are pleased by ample rusticity. 
Try to go off season when there are no crowds; we were there after New Years and it was quiet and serene. Cost  for double occupancy with dinner and breakfast was around ¥47,000 per night.

Not for anyone over 50

Very beautiful old traditional buildings . 
The rooms we had ( 2 deluxe ) were spacious and comfortable - if you  like sleeping on futons which we did . 
We drove there . It was an easy drive from Tokyo but a bit  of a worry as  no snow tyres and  it was starting  to snow as we  left but  we made  it  no problem. Location is  in the countryside and  there is not a lot to do except  enjoy the experience.
Three  onsens , tried and  loved  them all .The  biggest and most  beautiful onsen  is  mixed  but has some allocated hours for women only ( only men seemed to be using  it so possibly not so comfortable for ladies to enter during the  mixed times ) . During the later evening  no one seemed to be using it . Outdoor onsen is great. 
Staff friendly and  kind . Food was very good but not fantastic . 
Would  go back especially  in autumn  or spring as  I am sure  it would  be lovely in  other seasons .

Lovely  Traditional Onsen /Ryokan

We stayed two nights, soaked in the traditional wooden onsen, watched snow falling across the cedars and ate superb food. Smooth and unobtrusive service, lovely old building, just enough modern conveniences. We love you Hoshi Onsen!

Houshi Onsen Chojukan

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