Takahashiya Kanzanso

A 13-room ryokan in Takase Onsen, in Sekikawa village, Niigata, that bills itself around rice, sake and hearth-side dining. The main baths use onsen water: a large indoor bath that stays open around the clock, and a garden rotenburo called Shikisai no Yu (四季彩の湯) that swaps between women and men by time slot, so the bathing is never mixed. Both men's and women's sides also have a small two-person sauna. Two private options can be booked ahead: an open-air bath with a view (heated natural water rather than onsen) and a private sauna on the roof, looking out over the sky and the line of mountains.