Uematsuya Ryokan

“Enjoyed the Onsen experience”

Love Japanese Onsens and this Onsen did not disappoint. While this is more of a hotel style with traditional Japanese rooms (as compared to Bessho Onsen which is a more traditional Japanese Inn), it was still worthwhile. The overall service was great. The meals which were included in our booking we… more

Love Japanese Onsens and this Onsen did not disappoint. While this is more of a hotel style with traditional Japanese rooms (as compared to Bessho Onsen which is a more traditional Japanese Inn), it was still worthwhile. The overall service was great. The meals which were included in our booking were outstanding. While the town was quiet it was still Interesting to walk around

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“Great onsen with excellent service”

My friend recommended Shirahone onsen to me. Since I've already booked a ryokan at Shirahone onsen, I wanted to try out a different ryokan nearby. Then I noticed another famous onsen nearby called Bessho Onsen, and Uematsuya is one of the best ryokans in this area. It turned out to be one of our be… more

My friend recommended Shirahone onsen to me. Since I've already booked a ryokan at Shirahone onsen, I wanted to try out a different ryokan nearby. Then I noticed another famous onsen nearby called Bessho Onsen, and Uematsuya is one of the best ryokans in this area. It turned out to be one of our best onsen trips. We took the train from Tokyo station to Ueda station. Since we were traveling on December 29th, and it was during the Japanse new year holiday season when many locals were also traveling, we didn't get the tickets with reserved seats. Our strategy was to get to the platform early and stay in front of the line. Even so, we only got one seat. So for anybody traveling during the busy season, we would recommend buying tickets ahead of time with reserved seats. There is a local train running between Ueda Station and Bessho-Onsen Station. It only takes about 30 minutes. The Bessho onsen town is pretty small, and we didn't see many shops open when we got there (probably due to holidays). There was still time before check-in, so we strolled around after checking in our luggage. There is a small temple called 北向观音. It is an ordinary temple, but the photos here are very suitable for Instagram. One restaurant called 日野出食堂 is still open. The restaurant is famous for its hand-made soba noodles. We noticed that there was one plate of soba noodles on almost every table. The waitress doesn't speak English, but with the help of Google Translate, we were able to figure out the menu and order the right food with my broken Japanese. We really like their soba and udon noodles. I found out that I didn't bring enough cash, so I went back to the hotel for help. The receptionist told me that there is no bank in the town, but he could exchange some cash for me. So a tip is that always bring enough cash. The water of the open-air onsen was luke-warm, but the water of the indoor onsen was warm enough. There is a persimmon tree near the open-air onsen. There are lots of frozen persimmons on the tree. Our dinner was served in our room. Breakfast was served in the dining room. The staff who served us were really nice and professional. They made us feel at home and taken care of. The food was top notch and they made sure you get enough food. The staff here is really competent and they did everything to make sure that you have a good time here. I will probably come back if I get a chance.

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“Pleasant and relaxing stay”

We visited Bessho Onsen on a weekend getaway from Tokyo and found it a perfect place to relax and unwind. The friendly, helpful staff at Uematsuya were very accommodating, giving us a cup of tea in the lobby when we arrived and meeting our dietary restrictions, providing an excellent kaiseki sty… more

We visited Bessho Onsen on a weekend getaway from Tokyo and found it a perfect place to relax and unwind. The friendly, helpful staff at Uematsuya were very accommodating, giving us a cup of tea in the lobby when we arrived and meeting our dietary restrictions, providing an excellent kaiseki style dinner in our room made predominately with local ingredients (very impressive!). We even got local sparkling wine. The baths were excellent, with both indoor and outdoor options. The two sides swap from male to female at 11 pm every night, allowing patrons to enjoy both baths at different times. Like many older ryokan buildings, it was a bit labyrinthine to find the bath, but ultimately no problem. Breakfast was served in a common dining room decorated with very dramatic black and white drawings of Sanada heroes.

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