Hoshino Resorts KAI Zao
星野リゾート 界 蔵王
Does Hoshino Resorts KAI Zao allow tattoos? Yes!
KAI Zao doesn’t restrict tattooed guests, and there’s nothing to cover in its bath. Hoshino Resorts may still refuse the large bath if it judges a tattoo would frighten other guests. It opens on October 15, 2026.
The rule is Hoshino Resorts’ group statement, which the ryokan’s own bath listing links to. The group says it does not restrict guests with tattoos, and keeps the right to refuse the large bath case by case.
The bath
The large bath has an open-air bath and is for staying guests only, with no swap between men and women. It is open 2:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. and 5 to 10 a.m. A rooftop jet bath modeled on the Okama crater lake and a seventh-floor sauna area are separate, and both are used in swimwear.
The hotel
Forty-nine rooms. Check-in is 2:30 p.m. and checkout is 11 a.m. The ryokan runs no shuttle and takes no day visitors.
Good to know
- Nothing to cover. The group sets no seal rule for a bath only guests use.
- Opens October 15, 2026. Earlier dates can’t be booked.
Getting there
Zao Onsen bus terminal · Yamagata Shinkansen, then a bus
On foot from the bus terminal.
From Tokyo, take the Yamagata Shinkansen (the Tsubasa) to Yamagata, about 2 hours 35 minutes. From the east exit of Yamagata Station, take the bus to the Zao Onsen bus terminal, about 40 minutes. The ryokan runs no shuttle.
Where it is
Zao Onsen bus terminal
- Yamagata Shinkansen 2 hr 35 min from Tokyo
- Yamagata Kotsu bus 38 min
- Shinkansen tickets Seats between any two stations, booked by date.
- JR East Pass from ¥35,000 · 5 or 10 consecutive days Covers the Senzan line rapid over to Yamagata, and the Shinkansen if you are coming from Tokyo.
- Zao Fox Village and Ginzan Onsen day trip The Zao Fox Village and Ginzan Onsen, from Sendai.
- 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
Check in and go to the bath. There's no seal to buy and nothing to mention at the front desk.
How we know
Confirmed from official site (Hoshino Resorts’ tattoo statement, linked from the ryokan’s bath listing)
私たちは、お客様の文化背景や価値観を尊重し、刺青・タトゥーをされているお客様の利用を制限しておりません。
The operator’s own wording. Show it if anyone asks.
Best for: anyone who wants Zao’s acid spring in a shared bath without a seal
Book your stay
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