Kaika

Nishitaniya Kaika is a wood-built ryokan at Sazu Onsen, a hot spring on Hyogo's Sea of Japan coast, built in traditional style by shrine carpenters. There are two communal baths that swap between men and women each morning: an indoor bath with a jacuzzi, and an outdoor hinoki bath where you can hear the waves and, at night, see a full sky of stars. The water itself runs clear and smooth, said locally to warm you right through, with a faint salty tang from the sea nearby. Two of the ten guest rooms also have a private cypress tub. The inn is built around Matsuba crab and other Tajima seafood, served in kaiseki courses to overnight guests, and to day visitors through a bath-and-lunch plan offered in spring, autumn and winter, not summer.