Meigetsuso

Meigetsuso is a ryokan in Kaminoyama Onsen (上山温泉) with a lot of ways to bathe. The separate men's and women's indoor baths are lined in fragrant wood with granite tubs, filled with sulfur water that's traditionally said to be good for cuts and bruises, and each opens straight onto its own outdoor bath. There's also a free rotenburo carved out of a block of Zao rock, no reservation needed, with a view of the Zao mountains, plus a reservable family bath and a small onsen-fed private sauna next to the storehouse. Most guest rooms have their own semi-open-air or open-air bath too, and a few even come with a steam sauna. The rest of the inn keeps the same unhurried, homey feel. Rooms are individually decorated and built like small detached cottages, dinner is a seasonal kaiseki course built around local Yamagata ingredients, and the grounds hold an art gallery in a Taisho-era storehouse moved here from Akita, a library with a manga corner, a fireside lounge, and a yoga room in the forest next door. Meigetsuso is marking 30 years at this Hayama site, and guests tend to describe it less as a showy luxury inn and more as a warm countryside retreat.