Keikoku no Yado Nihiki no Oni
渓谷の宿 二匹の鬼
Does Keikoku no Yado Nihiki no Oni allow tattoos? In a private bath
Nihiki no Oni sits in the Kyusuikei gorge, famous for its autumn color, with detached cottages that each have a rock open-air tub on the deck, and five family baths open to guests all night.
Nihiki no Oni publishes no tattoo rule. Its detached cottages have their own open-air bath, and it has five family baths that staying guests use free around the clock, so a tattooed guest can bathe privately.
The bath
The inn's own source, Kyusuikei Onsen, is a bicarbonate spring of pH 6.9, run straight through every tub; the inn invites you to enjoy it in a bath of your own. It lists the water for neuralgia, muscle and joint pain, stiff shoulders, motor paralysis, bruises, sprains, digestive trouble, hemorrhoids, cold sensitivity, recovery after illness, fatigue, cuts and burns. There are men's and women's open-air baths.
The private baths are the heart of the place. The Hanabessou cottages each have a wooden deck and a rock open-air bath, and the Yumeshizuka cottage, set in a Japanese garden of camellias and dogwood, has its own open-air bath. The row rooms of Katsura no Hide come with two family baths right beside them. In all the inn has five family baths, free for staying guests and open 24 hours; day visitors may hire them until 3 p.m. The photo of a Hanabessou bath shows a deep pool walled in dark boulders, a cobbled rim and a board fence, with green woods and a hazy ridge beyond.
The hotel
Detached cottages and row-house rooms in the Kyusuikei gorge. The Hanabessou cottages have a loft, a living room with sofas and a deck with a table over the valley; Yumeshizuka is a quiet cottage in a Japanese garden, served tea from an iron pot; Katsura no Hide is a row of rooms furnished with Meiji, Taisho and early Showa antiques. Dinner is the inn's Kyusuikei course, with A5 Oita wagyu and Kokonoe pork, in private dining rooms. Free pickup from JR Bungo-Nakamura or the Kokonoe IC bus stop on request.
Good to know
- Five family baths, free and open all night, for staying guests.
- Free pickup from Bungo-Nakamura or Kokonoe IC, booked by the day before.
- No pickups for arrivals after 5 p.m.; the inn may charge fuel for a missed pickup.
- The gorge road is the prefectural Route 40, which the inn notes can close in bad weather.
Getting there
Come by JR Kyudai line to Bungo-Nakamura and the inn will pick you up free there or at the Kokonoe IC highway bus stop, if you book by the day before; the Kokonoe tourism portal puts the drive at about 20 minutes. By car, about 20 minutes from the Kokonoe interchange by Route 210 and Route 40.
Bungo-Nakamura STN · JR Kyudai Main Line
Not walkable.
Free pickup by reservation, about 20 minutes; also from the Kokonoe IC highway bus stop.
Where it is
- Yufuin no Mori 1 hr 47 min
- JR Kyudai line 13 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 Kuju is part of a longer Kyushu trip by train.
- 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.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site (: the room pages list cottages with an open-air bath and family baths open 24 hours)
Best for: a gorge-side cottage with a rock open-air tub and free pickup from the station
Cottages Hanabessou (with a loft, wooden deck and rock open-air bath) and Yumeshizuka (in a Japanese garden, with its own open-air bath); the Katsura no Hide row rooms have two family baths beside them. Five family baths on site, free for staying guests and open 24 hours; day visitors may hire them until 3 p.m. Free pickup from JR Bungo-Nakamura or the Kokonoe IC highway bus stop if booked by the day before; none for arrivals after 5 p.m. Cards accepted.
Book your stay
- AAgodaCheck availability
- TTrip.comCheck availability
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