Tokusa Onsen Ryokan Izutsuya

Izutsuya (井筒屋) is a small family-run ryokan in the Tokusa Onsen (木賊温泉) area of Oku-Aizu, run by a husband and wife who take just one group of guests per day. There are two baths in the inn: a compact bath upstairs and a lower bath right at the riverbank where the hot spring water rises up naturally from beneath the tub. The water is clear with a faint sulfur note and feels smooth against the skin. Directly next to the inn is the Tokusa Onsen communal rock bath (共同浴場岩風呂, kyodo-yokujo iwa-buro), a mixed-sex public bath that has been in use for over a thousand years. The inn is a member of Nihon Hito o Mamoru Kai (日本秘湯を守る会), the network of remote traditional hot springs. Meals, made by the couple from local and seasonal ingredients, are a big part of why guests return.