The location of the bathrooms, with the sink and the toilet on different floors, but it wasn't a problem for us.

It's a special place surrounded by nature, where you can truly feel a sense of calm and peace. Steve is lovely and was attentive to anything we needed.

Stayed in June 2025

Steve was a great host, very helpful and friendly. The rooms are comfortable and welcoming. There are some nice places to visit in the area like the colidescope museum.

Stayed in June 2025

The kitchen is minimalistic, but enough for a couple of nights. The futon were a bit thinner than in other places but still a comfortable stay. Again, keep in mind that it's a lot easier to come around by car!

Although it's a tad difficult to come there without a car, it's a really nice location! We arrived at the end of the afternoon and the room felt really cosy. The bathroom is lovely and Steve is really helpful!

Stayed in November 2024

It was quite noisy if somebody walked along the room but that is probably normal in this Japanese accommodation style. The location of the bathroom on the first floor was little inconvenient if we had our room upstairs.

The location is great, near a river and forests, it was very quiet at night. I also like the shared kitchen and dining area. The futons were comfortable and the onsen bath was very relaxing. It was great about the onsen that we could use it privately.

Stayed in September 2024

Friendly host that spoke english

Stayed in August 2024

Fantastic old onsen yado of a type that is becoming rather rare.

Stayed in May 2024

It was remote from town center

Remote, close to nature, has river nearby.

Stayed in June 2024

The location surrounded by nature is amazing. We liked the vibe of an old traditional house and original look. Hidden in the valley next to a beautiful river surrounded by mountains. Steve is a great host, helpful and friendly. I can’t wait to visit again in the summer to swim in the river.

Stayed in November 2023

It was a bit too cold during the night, but that is to be expected in a Japanese house like this and the host provided multiple heating options.

I really liked the hospitality of the host and the authenticity of the old, traditional Japanese house.

Stayed in November 2023

We enjoyed swimming in the river very much, and there are multiple spots to enter the water from. The room was without air conditioning which was disclosed, so is hot in the summer months (we stayed at the end of August) The rooms have an excellent view of the surrounding mountains and river, which is peaceful. When staying here you are in close proximity to the owner and his friends/ other guests. We organised with the owner to pay for a lift by car from the local supermarket to the accomodation, because of its remote location. He was an hour and a half late to this meeting and we still payed full price, although on our last morning he gave us a free ride to the station. Be firm if you do not want to use the onsen because a bath tax is included if you do wish to use this facility. This hostel is dissimilar to that owned by non intrusive Japanese hosts; there was a degree of conversation and interaction with the host because of his eccentric/ chatty nature and the proximity of his house with the guest rooms, which suits some guests, but as three young women traveling we prefer a degree of separation. Dissimilarly to other guests reviews we did not have an issue with any insects in our room or in the house, just small moths. The area cools down significantly at night so the heat was not a huge issue for sleeping, and the host is generous with fans. Bring your own food to prepare in the kitchen.

Stayed in September 2023

Steve should check his bookings more carefully.

Steve raises one's consciousness of environmental issues in nature. He is attentive and kind. The nature surrounding this place is beautiful. It is an old building, but clean!

Stayed in August 2023

During summer without an AC and only with fan it is too hot. Bath only in the evening\night-time. BUGS - I had a lot of bites from them which was unpleasant. Very hard to reach without a car.

It is a very quiet and beautiful place with a very chatty and friendly owner. If you would like to feel original Japanese life before the modernization - it's the perfect match.

Stayed in August 2023

No

Great host Steve. We enjoyed staying there.

Stayed in July 2025

We had a great time staying there. Steve was vey accommodating. It felt like staying at a friends. My family and felt very comfortable and had a lot of fun. A beautiful and quiet location along the river. Perfect for a bbq and playing in the river. A vey unique and interesting old building. Definitely would like stay again.

Stayed in June 2025

Enjoyed the hot spring and was able to share it with my spouse. Steve made sure that we were comfortable

Stayed in October 2024

We loved it here! It’s quiet, quaint, and the very nice owner speaks english. (Canadian originally). The onsen is mixed and lovely old school.

Stayed in August 2024

This place is a gem. We only stayed here one night and felt sad we had to move on. The property faces a beautiful forested hill and it’s right by a lovely stream where we swam. Highly recommended for nature-lovers. And I didn’t even mention the character of the century-old building, the onsen which we had to ourselves, and the amazingly friendly owner Steve. Thank you!

Stayed in May 2024

The owner was very insightful regarding local to-dos - our time in Sendai was well utilized. The environment of the hotel was homely and comfortable. One of our dinners featured a riverside barbeque.

Stayed in April 2024

No water supply in toilet to flush the poop , you have to fill the bucket from ground floor till 1st floor to flush the poop. You cannot take bath in morning. No water in shower so you cannot clean before jumping in onsen. Multiple people using onsen without taking shower or cleaning themselves in advance.

Location, owner and Intelligent 2 dogs.

Stayed in February 2024

Owner has dogs which kept jumping on us, despite our complain owner didn't bother to tie them. Only one toilet on 2nd floor with no sink So one had to go down to the only sink on ground floor Only one shower mixed with onsen for whole 20 rooms Was cold n heaters are run on kerosene which owner didn't have much of

Price was reasonable

Stayed in October 2023

It's a bit far from the city, but busses do come frequently enough.

Spacious room, gorgeous nature surrounding the place, great natural bath and exellent host.

Stayed in September 2023

While the extreme heat/humidity during the heat wave is not controllable, the lack of cleanliness of the facilities and lack of things like bath towels were what led us to abandon our second night. Perhaps there is an issue with the way Booking.com presents information about the property as having a shared bathroom (true) and a private open air bath, which is really a public type bath that you wait your turn to use and is only available for certain hours in the day. There is an additional fee to be able to use the bath. It's nominal but annoying that it was not noted in booking.com.

The location itself is beautiful and close to Akiu shrine, Akiu Falls, etc. Lots of beauty in the nature in the area.

Stayed in August 2023

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Stayed in April 2025

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Stayed in October 2023