Yutagawa Onsen Ridayu Ryokan

A small, family-run ryokan in Yutagawa Onsen, with a round indoor tub of hot spring water that feels soft and gentle on the skin, sized for a handful of bathers rather than a crowd. A free private bath is open any time it is unlocked, with no reservation needed, and runs a little cooler than usual in winter while the men's and women's baths hold their normal temperature year round. Those gender-separated baths are shared with the ryokan next door, an old arrangement between the two inns. The building is a wooden three-story house built in the Showa era, on a site that has taken guests since the Edo period. Its ten rooms are filled with the proprietress's handmade crafts and antiques, and meals are home-style Shonai cooking built around whatever is in season.