Ryokan Suiranro
旅館 翠嵐楼
Does Ryokan Suiranro allow tattoos? In a private bath
Suiranro drilled the first Hitoyoshi spring in 1910 and still bathes in it, and its third source fills two open-air baths, Kumo and Sora, that are private-use every evening until midnight.
Suiranro publishes no tattoo rule. Its two Midori-no-yu open-air baths, Kumo and Sora, are private-use from 3 p.m. to midnight, and the top four room types have their own semi-open-air spring bath, so a tattooed guest has a bath to themselves without entering the large baths.
The bath
The inn drilled the first Hitoyoshi spring in 1910 and now runs three sources, all flowing straight through the tubs. The water is a sodium bicarbonate and sodium chloride spring the inn calls a beauty bath, listed for joint, muscle and nerve pain. The first source fills Mikage-no-yu in the basement, a small retro bath paved with Matsuyama granite shipped from Shikoku, its spout unchanged since opening; it runs from check-in to midnight and 6 to 9:30 a.m. The second source fills Suika-no-yu for men on the second floor and Suizan-no-yu for women on the third, each with an indoor bath, an open-air bath over the Kuma river and a wood-scented sauna; baths run check-in to midnight and 6 to 9 a.m., saunas 4 to 10:30 p.m. and 6 to 9 a.m. Day use is 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., ¥1,000 adults and ¥500 children, in whichever bath is not being cleaned that day.
The private baths are the third source, Midori-no-yu: two open-air baths named Kumo (cloud) and Sora (sky), wood-walled and rock-edged under open sky, on a spring the inn says smells of moor, unusual in Hitoyoshi. From 3 p.m. to midnight they are for private use; from 6 to 9 a.m. they open free, Kumo for women and Sora for men. The inn publishes no fee and no booking method for the private hours, so ask at check-in. Four room types also have a semi-open-air spring bath on their terrace: the Luxury Japanese-Western and Japanese Modern rooms (86 square meters) and the Deluxe Western and Japanese-Western rooms (56 square meters).
The hotel
Founded in 1910 by Kawano Ren, who believed hot water lay under the Kuma bank when nobody else did, Suiranro calls itself the birthplace of Hitoyoshi Onsen. The 2020 flood wrecked it; it reopened with all 27 rooms renewed, from a 39-square-meter Japanese Modern room to 86-square-meter luxury rooms with a terrace over the river. Dinner is Japanese kaiseki (a multi-course Japanese meal) from local ingredients, and an Italian dining room, Trattoria Verde, serves 7 to 10:30 p.m. Check-in 3 p.m., last check-in 8 p.m., check-out 10 a.m., curfew midnight; free parking for 50 cars.
Good to know
- Private hours at Kumo and Sora are 3 p.m. to midnight; the inn posts no fee, so ask at the desk.
- Mikage-no-yu is down many stairs, a 1910 bath in a building more than a century old.
- Day use is a short window, 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., ¥1,000, large baths only.
- A shuttle meets the Hitoyoshi IC bus stop if booked ahead.
Getting there
From Kumamoto Sakuramachi bus terminal take the Sanko highway bus down the Kyushu Expressway to Hitoyoshi, about 1 hour 50 minutes by the city's count; the inn's own directions end at the Hitoyoshi IC bus stop on the expressway and its shuttle from there, which must be reserved. From Hakata the inn counts about 1 hour 40 minutes: the Shinkansen to Shin-Yatsushiro, the B&S Miyazaki bus to Hitoyoshi IC, then the shuttle. By car it is about 10 minutes from the Hitoyoshi interchange. The inn publishes no walking time from Hitoyoshi Station.
Hitoyoshi IC bus stop · Sanko highway buses from Kumamoto Sakuramachi; B&S Miyazaki bus from Shin-Yatsushiro
Not walkable.
Inn shuttle from the Hitoyoshi IC stop, reservation required; free parking for 50 cars.
Where it is
Hitoyoshi Sanko bus stop
- Kyushu Shinkansen 40 min
- highway bus 1 hr 50 min
- Shinkansen tickets Seats between any two stations, booked by date.
- JR Kyushu Rail Pass from ¥12,000 · 3, 5 or 7 consecutive days Worth it only if the rest of the trip is by train.
- Kyushu SunQ Pass Hitoyoshi’s railway has been cut since the 2020 floods, so the way in is the highway bus from Kumamoto. Worth it if you’re riding buses elsewhere in Kyushu too; it covers that bus and the island’s highway lines.
- Japan Rail Pass from ¥53,000 · 7, 14 or 21 days For a trip that takes in several regions by Shinkansen and JR lines.
What happens when you arrive
Skip the shared baths and use one of the private baths. No reservation needed.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site (: the hot spring page lists Kumo and Sora as private-use 3 p.m. to midnight, and the room page gives a semi-open-air spring bath in four room types)
Best for: a private open-air bath on the inn's third spring, the one that smells of moor
Three sources. The first, Mikage-no-yu, was drilled in 1910 and keeps its original spout and granite bath, in the basement down many stairs. The second feeds Suika-no-yu (men, 2nd floor) and Suizan-no-yu (women, 3rd floor), each with an indoor bath, open-air bath over the river and sauna. The third feeds the two Midori-no-yu open-air baths, Kumo and Sora, private-use 3 p.m. to midnight and open free as women's and men's baths 6 to 9 a.m.; the page gives no price and no booking method for the private hours. Day use 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., ¥1,000 adults, ¥500 children, in whichever bath is not being cleaned, with irregular closures. Semi-open-air spring bath in the Luxury Japanese-Western, Luxury Japanese Modern, Deluxe Western and Deluxe Japanese-Western rooms; the other three types have an indoor bath. Rebuilt after the 2020 flood; the room page says all rooms renewed in February 2023, the history page says December 2022. Check-in 3 p.m. (last 8 p.m.), check-out 10 a.m., curfew midnight.
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