Myoken Ishiharaso
妙見石原荘
Does Myoken Ishiharaso allow tattoos? In a private bath
Myoken Ishiharaso draws on seven springs of its own, and staying guests can take its cypress open-air bath Nanami-no-yu free as a private bath in half-hour slots, or stay in one of eight rooms with a source-fed open-air tub.
The inn publishes no tattoo rule. For a tattooed guest the answer is Nanami-no-yu, a cypress open-air bath that staying guests reserve free in 30-minute slots from 3:40 p.m., or Mutsumi-no-yu at 1,000 yen a half hour, plus eight rooms with a source-fed open-air bath of their own. The large bath and the riverside Mukunoki bath are shared.
The bath
The inn owns seven springs on its grounds, a sodium, calcium and magnesium bicarbonate water it calls the Amakudari-den source, with 2,264 mg of minerals per kilogram and more than 200 mg of metasilicic acid. Nothing is added and nothing is heated: the 56°C water is cooled to 42°C through heat exchangers so the gas stays in, and the tubs are sized to turn over in an hour.
Amoriden, the large bath, sits closest to the source and runs 6 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. with a sauna and a cold bath. Mukunoki is an open-air bath on the riverbank under a big tree where carbonation bubbles gather on the skin: men only 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., then mixed for staying guests 3 p.m. to midnight and 6 to 10 a.m. Day visitors come 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., last entry 1:30 p.m., and the lunch-and-bath plans cost 1,800 yen for adults and 900 yen for children.
Two baths can be yours alone. Nanami-no-yu is a cypress tub open to the river, women only until 3 p.m. and then reserved for staying guests at no charge in 30-minute slots from 3:40 to 11:30 p.m. and 6 to 9:50 a.m.; there is no shower in it, and bookings are taken only by phone after 9 a.m. on the day you arrive. Mutsumi-no-yu is a second reserved bath, 1,000 yen for 30 minutes between 6 a.m. and 11:30 p.m., with a light in the tub that shows the bubbles rising.
The hotel
Eighteen rooms on the Amori River. The Ishikura, a converted stone warehouse, holds four rooms done over in 2023 by architect Kiyoshi Sey Takeyama, each with a source-fed open-air bath on the river side: Yurara and Kirara at about 85 square meters for up to six, Sarara and Urara at about 65 for two or three. The main building has fourteen rooms, four of them renovated with an open-air bath, plus Japanese-western and Japanese special rooms, a sukiya-style room facing the river and contemporary Japanese rooms. Plans include dinner and breakfast. Check-in 2 p.m., check-out 11 a.m. Parking for 50 cars is free, and two EV chargers cost 2,200 yen a charge by reservation.
Good to know
- Nanami-no-yu is free but booked on the day: phone after 9 a.m. on arrival for a 30-minute slot.
- No shower in the cypress bath, so wash at Amoriden first.
- The Myoken line bus is 560 yen from the airport and 410 yen from Hayato Station.
- Day visitors have a narrow window, 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. with last entry at 1:30 p.m.
Getting there
From Kagoshima-Chuo Station take the JR Nippo Line to Hayato Station, 38 minutes by the inn's count, then the Myoken line bus about 19 minutes for 410 yen, or a taxi of about 15 minutes. From Kagoshima Airport the same bus takes about 23 minutes for 560 yen, or a taxi about 15 minutes; the inn will book a taxi, about 4,500 yen for a small car. The inn publishes no walking time from the Myoken Onsen stop. Parking is free.
Hayato STN · JR Nippo Main Line (limited express Kirishima)
Not walkable.
Myoken line bus about 19 minutes from Hayato Station, 410 yen; taxi about 15 minutes.
Where it is
Myoken Onsen bus stop
- Kyushu Shinkansen 1 hr 18 min
- Kirishima express 38 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 if you’re coming from Hakata by train.
- Kyushu SunQ Pass Worth it if you’re riding buses around Kagoshima. It covers the airport bus to the spa villages and Myoken and the Kagoshima Kotsu bus from Kirishima-Jingu Station.
- Sakurajima volcano half-day tour Half a day on Sakurajima, the active volcano across the bay from Kagoshima.
- 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, or reserve a private bath by phone.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site (the bath tour page gives the two reserved baths, their hours and fees; the rooms pages give the room tubs)
Best for: people who want a free half-hour cypress bath by the river booked on the day and a 2023 stone-warehouse room
Nanami-no-yu: cypress open-air bath, women only 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., then reserved for staying guests free in 30-minute slots 3:40 to 11:30 p.m. and 6 to 9:50 a.m.; no shower or shampoo there. Reservations are not taken in advance: call after 9 a.m. on the day of arrival. Mutsumi-no-yu: reserved bath for guests, 1,000 yen per 30 minutes, 6 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., lit from inside the tub so the carbonation shows. Mukunoki: riverside open-air bath under a big tree, men only 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., mixed for staying guests 3 p.m. to midnight and 6 to 10 a.m., carbonation bubbles on the skin. Amoriden: the large bath nearest the source, 6 a.m. to 11:30 p.m., with sauna and cold bath, closed for cleaning Monday and Tuesday mornings 10 a.m. to noon. Foot bath 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. Day use 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. (last entry 1:30 p.m.); lunch-and-bath plans 1,800 yen for adults and 900 yen for children. Room tubs: the four Ishikura stone-warehouse rooms and four main-building rooms renovated in 2023. Check-in 2 p.m., check-out 11 a.m. The inn arranges taxis, about 4,500 yen for a small car; its FAQ gives a 3,000 yen shuttle taxi for guests as of August 2023.
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