Kikuya Ryokan
喜久屋旅館
Does Kikuya Ryokan allow tattoos? In a private bath
Kikuya's two open-air baths, rock pools behind board fences, turn private for any staying guest who asks: 30 minutes, free, booked at the desk on the day.
Kikuya publishes no tattoo rule. Any staying guest can have one of its two open-air baths to themselves for 30 minutes at no charge, with the time set at the front desk on the day. Outside those slots the open-air baths are shared, men's and women's.
The bath
Kikuya's water is Iizaka's alkaline simple spring, the same as at the town's public bathhouses, and the inn says it is 100 percent spring water flowing through, with nothing artificial added. It lists it for nerve pain, rheumatism, fatigue, stomach and skin complaints, and calls it gentle enough for sensitive skin.
There is one indoor large bath and one open-air bath each for men and women. The open-air baths are named Tadanobu-no-yu and Otowa-no-yu, rock pools edged with flat stones behind tall board fences, one with a stand of bamboo. The indoor baths, with stone floors and a long window, stay open 24 hours.
The open-air baths are the private option. Any staying guest who wants one can have it to themselves for 30 minutes at no charge, and the slot is chosen at the front desk on the day. Outside the private slots, men and women use them separately as usual.
The hotel
A small inn of twelve Japanese rooms, every one with a toilet and sink and two with their own bath, for up to 40 guests. Dinner and breakfast are served in the room at no extra charge, from seasonal homemade dishes. There are two banquet rooms of 33 and 48 mats, a table tennis room at ¥300 an hour, and free Wi-Fi throughout. Sabako-yu, Iizaka's best-known public bathhouse, is under 10 minutes away on foot.
Good to know
- Book the private slot at check-in, since the times are set at the front desk on the day.
- Bathing tax is extra, ¥150 per adult, paid at the inn.
- Free pickup from Iizaka-Onsen Station, from 3 to 5 p.m.
Getting there
From Fukushima Station, take the Fukushima Kotsu Iizaka line to Iizaka-Onsen Station, about 20 minutes by the inn's count. The inn is about 8 to 10 minutes on foot from the station. Its free car meets guests at Iizaka-Onsen Station from 3 to 5 p.m. By car it is about 10 minutes from the Fukushima-Iizaka interchange, with free parking.
Iizaka-Onsen STN · Fukushima Kotsu Iizaka line
About 8 to 10 minutes.
Free inn car from the station, 3 to 5 p.m.
Where it is
Iizaka-Onsen STN
- Tohoku Shinkansen 1 hr 35 min from Tokyo
- Iizaka line 23 min
- Shinkansen tickets Seats between any two stations, booked by date.
- JR East Pass from ¥35,000 · 5 or 10 consecutive days Covers the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Fukushima, the Yamabiko or the Tsubasa.
- 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
Use the bath in your room.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site (the bath page);
Best for: travelers on a budget who want a free half hour alone in a source-fed open-air bath
Two open-air baths (Tadanobu-no-yu and Otowa-no-yu) and two indoor large baths, one each for men and women, all 100 percent spring water flowing through. Private use of an open-air bath is free for 30 minutes; book the time at the front desk on the day. The indoor baths are open 24 hours. Twelve Japanese rooms, all with toilet and sink, two with their own bath; the inn does not say whether those two baths are spring water. Meals in the room at no extra charge. Bathing tax of ¥150 per adult is charged separately. Free pickup from Iizaka-Onsen Station from 3 to 5 p.m. Free parking.
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