Gora Hanaougi
強羅花扇
You can use the bath with your tattoos visible. Nothing to cover, no size limit, and nothing to declare at the desk.
No restrictions. The ryokan answers it in its own FAQ: tattooed guests may use the daiyokujo, with no seal and no size named. Every room also has its own open-air bath.
タトゥーがある場合も、大浴場には入れますか？ タトゥーがある場合でも、大浴場にご入浴いただけます。
The operator’s own wording, copied from the page linked below. Holding up your phone settles the question faster than explaining it.
There is nothing to do. Check in, go to the bath. No seal to buy, no measuring, no declaration to make, and no size at which it stops being allowed. If a member of staff does query it, the operator’s own wording is above — showing it ends the conversation without either of you needing the other’s language.
Confirmed Confirmed from official site (FAQ answers the question directly)
Read on: gorahanaougi.com/hanaougi/faq/
Best for: The one Hakone ryokan that says yes to the shared bath and gives you a private one anyway
Communal baths run 15:00–24:00 and 5:00–10:00. Because every room has its own open-air bath, the shared bath is a choice here rather than the only option.
Hakone is a resort onsen town, where the rule has historically been firmest. What works here is mostly private bathing; a listing that takes tattoos in a shared bath is the exception rather than the pattern.