I went to the same hotel in Kurokawa which I visited in 2020 “Hozantei”.
I couldn’t forget especially the private open bath there.
The guest room and private bath was impossible for me to forget.
Some of the websites of Onsen also nominate Hozantei as 1 of the best hotel in Kurokawa Onsen.
I came back to experience that excitement again.
I wrote Hozantei in 2020 too, so please check since each guest room detail is mentioned there.
Kumamoto Onsen trip#4 recommand to stay in Kurokawa onsen “Hozantei”
Special room “Akebi” was awesome
I went to Yufuin and the next day to Kurokawa during my trip. Yufuin Hotel “Wazanho” was also very good but the guest room space was a bit small for 4 adults. But “Wazanho” was also very nice to stay. If you are interested please also refer below article.
Best private hot spring in Oita Prefecture Yufuin
Special room “Akebi” info
This time I used the Hozantei special room named “akebi”. Last time was delux room “yamafuji”.
I heard that a special room was big but it was bigger than I expected. The 2 room size were 18m2 but it was bigger than 18m2 actually.
Each room also has the balcony.
The Price was 300 USD per person but if just 2 people it will be more expensive
Inn of source Hozantei guest room info
Below is the room type which you can choose for the guest room in Hozantei.
・Standard
Standard have A and B type.
Size is 10 “jyo” jyo is a Japanese straw floor covering 1 jyo meaning the size is 182cm x 91cm.
Both rooms sizes are the same and also have open-air baths but B has the normal bath inside the room.
Price depends on the season but standard A is the cheapest room in Hozantei.
It’s around 23,000 yen (230 USD) and B is 24,000 yen (240 USD).
Standard room and other room Sambou no Yu is same course dishes from deluxe and suite room.
・Sambou no Yu
It’s maisonette type and doesn’t include an open-air bath but has a big bath room inside.
Room size is about 8 jyo including the terrace but smaller than a standard room.
Seems like currently not in use.
・Deluxe
Deluxe has 2 rooms which are Momiji and Yama Fuji.
Both rooms have open-air baths and bathrooms. Momiji’s open-air bath is a bit more bigger than Yama Fuji.
Both rooms sizes are 10 jyo and have their own terrace.
The price is around 27,500 yen (275 USD).
You can enjoy the flow of the river, seasonal plants, and scenery from the open-air bath or terrace, which can discriminate you from the standard.
・Special room
Special rooms have 3 rooms which is Kanaoi, Akebi & Matatabi.
Both have Japanese style room 10 jyou, Europe style room 10jyo, with own terrace, bathroom & open-air bath which is the high spec guest room. The open-air bath is also very big compared with others. Several people can use it at the same time.
You need to walk around 5 minutes to the dinning area since the distance is around 80m but the suite room concept is “Providing a space that is not disturbed by anyone” so I think cannot be avoided.
The cheapest price is around 34,100 yen (341 USD).
＊All prices above are per person during off season.
Both have Japanese-type rooms and European style which is 18m2 size with balcony, inner bath tab and private open-air bath tab. A private open-air bath tab can be used for 2 – 3 people at once. So it’s quite big for a private bath.
The dining area is a bit far which took 3-5 minutes but the special room concept is “the environment which doesn’t interfere by others”
Truly you can have special, quiet time with your family or important person. The private open-air bath size was a bit small for 4 adults. From the balcony, you can also see a nice nature view.
Private open-air bath in a special room
It used to say that the private open-air bath is big but we didn’t know how it’s big.
I expected that should be bigger than Yufuin Wazanho.
During the night some places light up the area and right next to the bath you can hear the river sound so you can experience the bath inside nature.
Luckily only use the special room but last year deluxe room Yamafuji was also quiet so anytime you can be calm and feel stress-free in this hotel.
I took a bath in the morning. It was snowing a bit last night so you could see a little snow but not like last year. There are 2 ponds and one is a hot spring but another is completely water so please be careful.
The temperature of the hot spring was a bit hot but the place where the hot water directly comes through was very hot so please be careful about that.
The hot spring quality and smell have changed. The sulfur smell becomes strong and this is because when they dig out the hot spring it changes.
The use a private open-air bath you need to pass the inner bath. It’s just a few seconds but might be slippy so watch out when you go there. There is a slope and steps.
The ground is so cold during the winter so better to use the slipper which is located outside.
As for the private open-air bath condition, I believe this hotel is the best.
Special room meals
First is dinner the starter was the same as the previous you can eat gorgeous starter.
Famous Jersey milk gratin and Yamame fish (river fish) BBQ with salt will be served.
Finally Higo-ushi, Hiou pork, and local chicken BBQ by hoe. I was able to eat all meals this time.
But I had 1 regretful point.
It is most of the meals are already cold when you eat. Actually last time I also felt it but because of my first time being impressed I think maybe didn’t care.
When eat again yes definitely cold compared to when Yufuin Wazanho it’s totally cold.
I think this is because of how they serve the meals. Every time they serve at once all together which is causing the hot foods to become cold during this winter.
Everybody wants to eat hot food during winter so this was pretty regretful for us.
For breakfast you can eat tofu clay pot so still can eat hot foods. But as you may expect from the picture the menu is cold things and difficult to make you warm up. It was delicious but… cold!!
Hozantei basic info
Hozantei has a website please refer to the website for more details.
Address：〒869-2402 熊本県阿蘇郡南小国町満願寺６３４６
TEL：+81-967-44-0059
Operation hour：Check in 15:00、Check out 11:00 （Depends on the plan）
During check-in, staff will help to bring the luggage to the guest room from the parking lot.
When check out landlady will take some photos for you.
Above place is the place which Japanese baseball player Matsuda also took.
Summary
- A private open-air bath is best
- A special room is worth to stay with 4 people
- To stay at a quiet place
- Want to relax at a private open-air bath
- Want to feel the hotel season spring, summer, autumn, winter
As some of the websites introduce Hozantei’s private open-air bath I also think that is true. The private open-air bath here is really nice.
I wrote several articles about Kumamoto prefecture. The entrance to another world is a hot topic on SNS, Kurokawa onsen famous event in winter Yuakari and so on much useful info is shared.
2022 the place to go in Aso Kumamoto Prefecture
Japan offers a wide variety of sweets. You will probably have a hard time deciding which to buy: chocolate, candy, biscuits, or traditional Japanese sweets. Also, some are seasonal, which will make you even more confused.
There is a website that summarizes what is the best Japanese sweets, and we hope you will enjoy Japanese sweets with this website.
Japanese snacks lab
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