A wonderful experience that was one of the highlights of our trip. We stayed overnight and had the duck hot pot dinner plan. They give generous portions and the food is very good. We were pampered by the staff; they all were helpful and warm. The overnight plan even includes breakfast. My husband said it was the best nights rest that he had on our whole two week trip in Japan. I would highly recommend staying overnight so you can bathe in the evening and the next morning, and experience wonderful hospitality!
The route to the Kurama Hot Spring was beautiful, but do not catch the bus. The train is a lot quicker and scenic.
The outdoor onsen was average and very small.
It was reasonably priced though.
The open bath is pretty small (10 showers) and water want hot just warmer. I guess slightly above body temperature. Towels are available for rent and soap is inside. The view up the mountain is nice.
Go for it if it fits your schedule or this is your only chance to visit a Japanese bath.
Beautiful place with an even more beautiful sight. Perfect for relaxing after climbing the Kurama mountain. The train to Kurama is also an incredible journey. The amenities are all in great conditions. Try going by the end of the day for really peaceful experience.
Relaxing hot spring! Amazing view. Feels like you are in the woods while enjoying a hot bath. Pricing is great, too. Only 1000 Yen per person. If you were hiking or biking up this way, must spend an hour and recharge.
Friendly staff with a nice atmosphere. Shuttle bus from local station is available. Very nice outdoor hot spring.
I visited this onsen in the evening. You have the option between a ticket to use all of the facilities or just the outdoor onsen. The view is gorgeous and looks over the mountains.
Kurama onsen was a great experience to have during our trip to Japan. Staying overnight at this location allowed us to hike the trail in the mountains that surround the little one street town. It was remote enough to get away from other tourists, but still accessible enough for a non Japanese speaker to do just fine. The ryokan itself was a pleasant experience. There are only 5 rooms in the whole establishment so if you stay overnight you will have the onsens pretty much to yourself at night and early morning. The room we stayed in is where they serve you dinner, and later lay out your mats. You also get a Japanese breakfast with your stay. If you have a choice to stay with a meal or without a meal, absolutely get the meal as it is an essential part of the experience. The onsen was very pleasent, and after some research on customs of how to participate, it was smooth sailings. Be sure to look up the customs and be prepared to be in the buff. It seems like a fair amount of people visit just to do the onsen during the day, so if you are staying overnight, I'd suggest doing the hike during the day to avoid day time visitors, returning before dinner for a soak while they prepare dinner in your room, then another soak at night under the stars before bed. The only issue I had was the room had a strange smell, like a hospital smell I suppose. Other than that the service, location, and onsen were all excellent and I would highly recommend staying at the ryokan to any travelers to Kyoto area.
If you are looking for a nice and quiet place to unwind and enjoy the onsen experience that's often spoke highly of, you can't go wrong with here. It offers both indoor and outdoor onsen separated for both genders, a great complete dinner set, and the guests are all in a common understanding of an unwinding experience. I actually fell asleep in the common relax room after an onsen trip, it was this relaxing! Would definitely visit this place again!
This was a great experience. The staff was very accommodating and the onsen was beautiful and clean. It's a little bit of a hike from the train station. We went right after a hike to the temple and it was a welcome end to the journey.