源泉湯の宿 千の谷

This ryokan in Sarugakyo Onsen runs entirely on its own natural hot-spring water, on a hillside above Akaya Lake, deeper into the hills than Minakami itself. The ground-floor bath, Meigetsu no Yu (名月の湯), has a standing bath, a lying bath, and an open-air pool under a high ceiling with big windows, while the third-floor bath, Hoshiakari no Yu (星あかりの湯), pairs an indoor pool with its own rotenburo, a sauna, and a cold bath. Two small private open-air baths, Tsukimi no Yu (月見の湯) and Hoshimi no Yu (星見の湯), can only be booked once you've checked in, and nine of the guest rooms come with their own open-air onsen bath. The water is soft on the skin, easy to sit in for a long soak. The building is older, though guests note the rooms have had recent updates, and the surrounding mountains and rice fields change with the seasons.