Reception for day-use bathing closes at 13:30, half an hour before the baths do at 14:00. Day-use bathing is sometimes suspended without a fixed pattern, announced individually on the inn's news page, so it's worth calling ahead to confirm.
¥800
Elementary-school age and under pay ¥500 (adults ¥800). A seasonal lunch plan for day-use visitors is also available on a limited-time basis; ask when booking.
Bathing & Water
Natural onsen water
Uses natural hot spring water
Outdoor BathYes
Open-air outdoor bath
Indoor BathYes
Enclosed indoor bathing area
SaunaNo
Sauna room of any kind
Bathing Arrangements
Private BathYes
A private bath you can reserve for yourself or your group
Four free private outdoor baths. One guest review mentions a small slide in one of them.
Room OnsenYes
Private onsen bath in guest rooms, for overnight guests only
Mixed BathingYes
Shared bathing area for all genders
Policies & Services
KidsWith Conditions
Welcomes children and families
Two rooms with private rotenburo do not accept children of elementary school age or younger, children are welcome in the other areas (according to reviews, there are discounted children's rates and a morning mochi-making event).
DiningYes
A restaurant or dining room open to visitors, not only meals for overnight guests
salt's cation — pairs with chloride to make the water salty.
Bicarbonate HCO₃⁻
"soda" — softens skin, leaves it smooth.
Known good for
Aches & jointsstiff shoulders
Smooth skindry, rough skin
Recoveryfatigue, stress
A gentle simple thermal spring, sampled at the supply spout feeding the men's indoor bath at Yarimikan rather than at the wellhead. Dissolved solids come to only 0.5 g/kg, so the water is light and unassertive on the skin, and the certificate classifies it as hypotonic and neutral. What lifts it is metasilicic acid at 109.4 mg/kg — enough silica to leave the thin moisturising film that places this water in Japan's beauty-water family. Bicarbonate and chloride sit almost level in the anion table, giving a balanced, uncomplicated soak.
Sampled at bath inlet·Analyzed Apr 28, 2017·株式会社神岡衛生社·Cert no. No.17-P-04219
Yarimikan is a single old-farmhouse-style building on the Kamata River in Shin-hotaka Onsen, with Yarigatake and the North Alps behind it. The baths are spread along the riverbank rather than gathered in one wing: a mixed-bathing open-air bath, Yarimi no Yu (槍見の湯), looks straight at Yarigatake and is named for that view, with bathing garments provided during mixed hours and a women-only slot from 7 to 9 in the morning; an older mixed bath, Manten no Yu (まんてんの湯), is the oldest tub on the property; the indoor bath sits behind wide windows with the same mountain view on a clear day; and four more open-air baths, one of them named for the forest around it, are free to use for a private soak. Two detached cottage rooms, built in the tsuchigura (土蔵造り) storehouse style, add their own rock-built outdoor baths, though children of elementary-school age or younger can't use them. The spring itself is clear and mild, fed by the inn's own source plus a shared one, and it's kept flowing fresh rather than recirculated. The inn doesn't try to be polished, and its own site says as much: the outdoor baths are rustic rather than modern, and that gap from city comfort is the point. It's a member of Nihon Hitou o Mamoru Kai (日本秘湯を守る会), the association for Japan's secluded hot-spring inns, plus two similar spring-preservation groups. The kitchen is certified for Hida beef and uses local Koshihikari rice, and guests keep mentioning the morning mochi-pounding session.
859. Yarimikan, Shinhotaka Onsen, Okuhida Onsen, Gifu (pt.4) ★★★
About the onsen:
6. Private semi-open-air polygonal bath with a view. There is one spot where the water is bubbling. Nice view of the opposite bank, the trees, and the river. The water is clear, temperature 41.5.
7. Private semi-open-air bath in stone. There is no view because of the fence, but in the evening it feels very atmospheric inside. The water is clear, temperature 42.5.
8. Rectangular indoor private bath. The water is clear, temperature 41.5. It is easy to breathe inside, and in winter it is cold inside.
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859. Yarimikan, Shinhotaka Onsen, Okuhida Onsen, Gifu (pt.3) ★★★
About the onsen:
4. Mixed extra stone bath. Clothes/towels are allowed, but not required. The view from this bath is narrower, but there is still a view of the other bank, trees, and a bit of the river. Inside the bath itself there are basically two areas, a more open one on the side of the men's changing room, and a more enclosed one near the women's side. The water is clear, temperature 39.
5. Indoor men's bath. During the day there is a view through the fogged-up window of the other bank, trees, and the river. It is comfortable to breathe inside.
5.1. Main bath. The water is clear, temperature 41.
5.2. Small bath. The water is clear, temperature 42.
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859. Yarimikan, Shinhotaka Onsen, Okuhida Onsen, Gifu (pt.2) ★★★
About the onsens:
2. Mixed main stone bath. From 07:00 to 09:00 it becomes women-only. Clothes/towels are allowed, but not required. A wide, great view of the river, trees, and the opposite bank, in winter with the weak water flow and snow it felt especially apocalyptic and atmospheric, like a view from some other planet. The water is clear, temperature 41.
3. Private indoor bath with swings. It is nice to breathe inside, in winter it is cold inside.
3.1. Rectangular wooden bath. The water is clear, temperature 42.
3.2. Small stone bath. The water is clear, temperature 45.5.
3.3. Wooden slide.
3.4. Swings.
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859. Yarimikan, Shinhotaka Onsen, Okuhida Onsen, Gifu (pt.1) ★★★
One of the most powerful ryokan in Okuhida. I stayed overnight. Day use is listed from 10:00 to 14:00 for ¥800 or with the Okuhida tegata. It is included in the list of Hitou "secret" onsen. A special goyuin was issued as part of Gifu Goyuin Meguri 2025-2026, outside the main stamp count. In 2019, it was featured in one of the Michelin guides.
I booked one of the two room options with an onsen. It consists of several rooms and an onsen spread across three floors. In a way, this makes the room areas more clearly zoned, but it also means constantly moving up and down the stairs between them.
I ordered double meals for one person, and they were served without any questions in a separate dining room outside the room. At this ryokan, they did not just place two plates side by side, but where appropriate they combined two sets into one tableware set. The food was tasty, and I especially liked the breakfast for its flavor.
There is a lot of Japanese staff, and for foreign guests they bring in women from Asia who speak English, but it seems they are a bit shy. Overall, the service was comfortable. In the morning, I was very happy with the mochi-pounding event in the lobby by reception, I was also allowed to pound, they took a photo, and I was given a printed photo.
In the lobby there is a paid minibar in the form of a small container with cold water and drinks. To use it, you write the drink on your room account, payment is made at check-out, and you take it from the drink bath. No staff is needed for this. Even though these drinks require an extra charge, the format itself is very pleasant and the location is ideal, you move through the lobby between the room and the baths, constantly grabbing drinks, and you walk often because there are many baths and they are great. The shop sells well-known onsen literature.
Without a doubt, this is a top place. You definitely should stay overnight, and visit the baths both in daylight and at night, they feel different. The service, perks, and little extras are also great.
The baths are open all night. Private baths are available on a first-come, first-served basis. About the onsen:
1. Private semi-open-air stone bath in the room. There is a small balcony and a small view of the trees from the bath. The water is clear, temperature 41.
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