Kouragi

Kouragi is an 18-room ryokan on the Sea of Japan coast in Kami, Hyogo, right across from JR Shibayama station. Guests bathe in a large indoor bath or a separate open-air bath, one each for men and women, plus a dry sauna. The inn stopped renting out private baths during the pandemic; instead, several rooms now come with their own onsen tub, some half-open-air, some ceramic. The water is mild, and reviewers say it keeps you warm long after you step out. Crab is the main draw: through the season the kitchen runs a full course built around Shibayama-port crab, raw, boiled, grilled and in a hot pot, and the rest of the year it shifts to a kaiseki course of whatever the Sea of Japan gives up that day. The rooms and lobby are dotted with ikebana and local art, and guests describe a quiet, unhurried stay, especially once snow settles on the coast in winter.