Hakone, JapanAshinoyu
Matsuzakaya Honten
Edo-era hot-spring ryokan
Ashinoyu Hakone, Japan
Renovated
2024
Price
$$$$
Rated for
Heritage Wellness LocalOutside the door
The house
Kinnotake ResortsEdo-era hot-spring ryokan
The inn keeps an Edo-era travel rhythm alive, with private thermal baths and lounges warmed by sunken hearths.
What it’s good at
Remarkable
Edo-period origins dating to 1662, with wooden pavilions visited by Emperor Taisho.
Notable
Free-flowing thermal spring water feeds open-air wooden baths from the private Ashikari source.
Notable
Multi-course kaiseki dinners follow the twenty-four solar terms along the historic Tokaido road.
What they say
Michelin Selected
Michelin
Set in a 17th-century building on the verdant slopes of Hakone, Japan, Matsuzakaya Honten is the absolute gold standard for onsen hospitality.
Somewhere quiet
Away from the crowds. Getting around takes intention.
Ashinoyu remains a quiet mountain hamlet along the historic Tokaido road, known for sulfur springs and misty hills.
1 of 4
The rooms
Rooms across the five pavilions look out on mossy gardens, with woven tatami floors and unvarnished timber.
The onsen
Soak slowly.
Communal timber baths and private open-air stone tubs fill with free-flowing spring water from the Ashikari source.
The bathhouse
Warm pendant lamps hang above wooden mirrors and ceramic bowl basins in the bathhouse powder rooms.
Restaurant En
Seasonal Shukuba Kaiseki arrives at sunken hearth tables in private tatami rooms set with backlit shoji screens.
How it began
Meiji statesmen Takamori Saigo and Takayoshi Kido met here to negotiate during the dawn of modern Japan.
Hakone
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Our shorthand
How we rate hotels.
The medals
Gold
Extremely rare. Sets the global standard.
Silver
Brilliant execution. And we’re picky.
Bronze
They did this well. You’ll notice.
Listed
A defining trait. Makes the hotel what it is.
The eight vibes
Design
Built around a vision. Even the door handles have a designer.
Luxe
Cared for at every turn. The bath is drawn before you ask.
Local
It could only be here. You wake up knowing where you are.
Social
Where the city goes out. The bar is full and the night is young.
Heritage
A building with a story. Once a palace, a monastery, a station.
Wellness
You leave feeling new. Rest, sweat, soak and sleep like a stone.
Classic
The city grew up with it. Same rituals, same regulars, same bar.
Resort
A world of its own. Something to do from breakfast to nightcap.
The scene
Lively
Where things happen: restaurants, shops, people.
Central
Well-located: walkable to some things, a short ride to more.
Quiet
Away from the crowds. Getting around takes intention.
Secluded
A place apart: the property is the destination.