Nazuna Obi Onsen Resort
Nazuna 飫肥 城下町温泉
Does Nazuna Obi Onsen Resort allow tattoos? In a private bath
Nazuna turned a samurai house in Obi, built more than 140 years ago, into five rooms with an open-air tub of Kitago spring each, and added a sauna on a deck above the castle town.
No tattoo rule is published. There is no shared bath: all five rooms have their own open-air bath fed with source-flowing Kitago hot spring, so bathing is private by design.
The bath
The inn carries its water in from Kitago Onsen, the spring in the hills of the same city, and its FAQ describes it as source-flowing hot spring in every room, a salty water that warms the body to the core even in a short soak. There is no shared bath in the house.
Each of the five rooms has an open-air bath of its own. The photos show a round dark-glazed tub standing on a wooden deck under the deep eaves of the old house, with a small maple over it and the lit room behind the glass. Honmurasaki, named for the purple that is the color of Obi, is the only room with both an indoor and an open-air hot spring bath and a garden view; Sugi, Koke, Chaboku and Daidai have their open-air tub. The baths are the room's, used whenever you like through the stay, with no booking and no fee.
On an outdoor deck the inn also rents a Castle Town View Sauna, looking over the roofs of Obi, for ¥3,300 a person for a two-hour session.
The hotel
A samurai residence of more than 140 years, a 350-square-meter main house with a 45-square-meter storehouse, rebuilt into five rooms named for Obi: Honmurasaki and Sugi for two, Chaboku and Daidai for three, Koke for five, on king Simmons beds with roomwear and a stocked free fridge. Breakfast is dashi chazuke, rice in broth, served in the room; dinner is a course of local Jitokko chicken at the restaurant Irodori, booked three days ahead; afternoon tea is served. Seven parking spaces. Check-in 3 to 9 p.m., check-out 11 a.m.
Good to know
- The Obi-joka bus stop is a 3-minute walk; Obi Station is 15.
- Dinner needs three days' notice, a Jitokko chicken course at Irodori.
- Bags can be left before check-in and after check-out, handy for walking the castle town.
- Children are welcome, and Koke sleeps five.
Getting there
From Miyazaki Station take the JR Nichinan Line to Obi Station, then walk about 15 minutes; the inn puts the airport station to Obi at about 1 hour 30 minutes by rail. The number 965 bus from the airport reaches the Obi-joka stop in about 2 hours, 3 minutes from the door. By car from Miyazaki Airport it is about 40 minutes on the expressway or an hour along the coast; seven parking spaces on site.
Obi STN · JR Nichinan Line
About 15 minutes.
Bus 965 to the Obi-joka stop, 3 minutes on foot; no shuttle.
Where it is
Obi STN
- Kyushu Shinkansen 1 hr 16 min
- Kirishima express 2 hr 10 min
- JR Nichinan line 1 hr 25 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 by train from Hakata.
- Takachiho day tour Takachiho Gorge, Takachiho and Amanoiwato shrines and the Amanoyasukawara cave.
- 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
There's no shared bath here, so every bath you use is private. No reservation needed.
How we know
Bath layout confirmed, tattoo policy not published Checked on the official site:
Best for: a night in a 140-year-old samurai house with a spring-fed tub on your own deck
The water is brought from Kitago Onsen in the same city; the FAQ calls it source-flowing and says its salt content warms the body through in a short soak. Honmurasaki is the one room with both an indoor and an open-air hot spring bath. A private outdoor sauna with a view over the castle town rents for ¥3,300 a person for two hours. Dinner at the inn’s restaurant needs three days’ notice.
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