Payments made by partners impact the order of prices displayed. Room types may vary.
The listings of booking offers for each property take into account the compensation paid to us by our partners. Prices shown may be for varying room types. Prices displayed are the lowest available, corresponding to the least expensive room type available, as provided from our partners as of the time of the user’s search.
Ryokan Sakaya
9329 Toyosato, Nozawaonsen-mura, Shimotakai-gun 389-2502 Nagano Prefecture
Full view
View all photos(153)153
Dining (36)
Room & Suite (27)
View prices for your travel dates
Contact accommodation for availability.
There are similar hotels available.
View allDid you already book this hotel?
Avg. $460 /night, 10/14 - 10/15
$845
per night
$635
per night
$424
per night
Oct
Nov
14 Oct
Today
16 Oct
18 Oct
20 Oct
22 Oct
24 Oct
26 Oct
28 Oct
30 Oct
1 Nov
3 Nov
5 Nov
7 Nov
9 Nov
11 Nov
13 Nov
Reflects recent average nightly prices reported by our partners, and may not include estimated taxes or fees. Price at checkout may differ.
Cheaper
Average
Higher
About
4.5
#1 of 34 onsen ryokans in Nozawaonsen-muraLocation
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Everyone needs a place to lay their weary head. For travellers visiting Nozawaonsen-mura, Ryokan Sakaya is an excellent choice for rest and rejuvenation. Well-known for its family-friendly environment and proximity to great restaurants, Ryokan Sakaya makes it easy to enjoy the best of Nozawaonsen-mura.
Rooms at Ryokan Sakaya Hotel provide a refrigerator and air conditioning, and guests can stay connected with free wifi.
In addition, while staying at Ryokan Sakaya Hotel guests have access to baggage storage and shops. You can also enjoy a hot tub and an on-site restaurant. Need a place to park? Free parking is available at Ryokan Sakaya.
Given the close proximity of popular landmarks, such as Ogama (0.1 mi) and Kenmeiji Temple (0.1 mi), guests of Ryokan Sakaya can easily experience some of Nozawaonsen-mura's most well known attractions.
While in Nozawaonsen-mura be sure to experience local hotpot favourites at Neo Bar.
Ryokan Sakaya is sure to make your visit to Nozawaonsen-mura one worth remembering.
Read more
Suggest edits to improve what we show.Improve this listing
Property amenities
Free parking
Free High Speed Internet (WiFi)
Sauna
Hot bath
Restaurant
Skiing
Hot spring bath
Baggage storage
Parking
Internet
Vending machine
Massage
Open-air bath
Non-smoking hotel
Shops
Laundry service
Room features
Air conditioning
Safe
Iron
Refrigerator
Flatscreen TV
Room types
Non-smoking rooms
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Family
Romantic
Location
9329 Toyosato, Nozawaonsen-mura, Shimotakai-gun 389-2502 Nagano Prefecture
Name/address in local language
Getting there
Great for walkers
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
Grade: 100 out of 100
100
Narita Airport
216.1 km•
See all flights
79 Restaurants
within 0.5 kilometers
126Reviews7Q+A19Room tips
ReviewsWe perform checks on reviews.Tripadvisor’s approach to reviewsBefore posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
We perform checks on reviews.
Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews
Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines, the review is not published.
When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site.
Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines.
Learn more about our review moderation.
Traveller rating
- 80
- 37
- 6
- 3
- 0
Time of year
Traveller type
Language
Selected filters
- Filter
- English
Popular mentions
Sort by:
Detailed Reviews
We were staying in Nozawa Onsen so we went to Ryoken Sakaya for a Kaiseki meal and Onsen package. At around $75 AUD, I thought it was very good value.
The meal consisted of many different small dishes, typical Japanese style, of cooked and uncooked foods. The food was beautifully presented, and tastes fantastic. Served with Sake, it was a great Japanese meal experience and no worries, there are tables and chairs, so no sitting on the tatami mats if you dont wish to.
We followed dinner with a onsen at the Ryoken. This is a great natural onsen with indoor and outdoor baths and is a fantastic way to finish off the night after dinner.
This is a recommended package for a night out. You do not have to be a guest at the Ryoken to use the onsen or to visit for a meal.
The meal consisted of many different small dishes, typical Japanese style, of cooked and uncooked foods. The food was beautifully presented, and tastes fantastic. Served with Sake, it was a great Japanese meal experience and no worries, there are tables and chairs, so no sitting on the tatami mats if you dont wish to.
We followed dinner with a onsen at the Ryoken. This is a great natural onsen with indoor and outdoor baths and is a fantastic way to finish off the night after dinner.
This is a recommended package for a night out. You do not have to be a guest at the Ryoken to use the onsen or to visit for a meal.
Read more
Date of stay: January 2020
Value
Rooms
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I visited this ryokan for their seasonal kaiseki meal and was not disappointed. Excellent and timely service was provided by the young Vietnamese waitress as course after course followed. A menu in English was very useful to explain each dish. The food was beautifully presented and each morsel was delicious. Highly recommended.
Read more
Date of stay: March 2020
Location
Cleanliness
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My husband and I stayed here while snowboarding in Nozawa Onsen for our honeymoon. We absolutely LOVED our stay at Ryokan Sakaya. The staff was so friendly, helping us via email with questions before we arrived and always being available for help during our stay. The location is perfect, easily walkable to the town and the ski resort. We can't wait to stay here again someday!
Read more
Date of stay: February 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ryokan Sakaya is the arguably the best property in town.
The highlight of the hotel has to be the public onsen, hands down the best in town and easily beat any spa that I have been to...it's HUGE. each male and female have an open air onsen and a sauna room, there's also a nice family bath that you can borrow for your private use. Two massage chairs right by the entrance, great for relaxation and waiting for your loved ones. After skiing there's nothing more blessing than soaking your body in a hot bath. We used the onsen 2-3 times daily, I never felt so clean...
The room was quite nice and spacious, we stayed in a traditional room on the 5th floor, the futon was very comfortable and magically disappear after breakfast and reappear after dinner. The room has a toilet and bath tub but like many others we never used the bath in our room, the public one is just too good :)
The staff were fabulous, Yuki is the manager and she's super helpful and friendly, her English is good enough to be an English teacher; Nana showed us to our room at check in and she's got a killing smile and great attitude, she's one of our favorite staff members. If you opted for dining in the hotel which I highly recommend, the staff will prepare different course meals everyday and explain dish by dish. The food was delicious and delicate.
Last but not least, a few tips:
1. Be sure to check out the newly opened Kanazawa route that stops at liyama JR station, you can then take the nozawa onsen liner right outside the station. it's much quickly than the old route that go through Nagano.
for bus/train schedule, check here:
http://www.vill.nozawaonsen.nagano.jp/about/LINER%20BUS%20TIMETABLE.pdf
2. Inform hotel at booking if you want a Japanese room and Japanese style dining
3. Be prepared to get naked for public bath, it's okay...
4. The hotel has umbrellas, snow boots, in fact we never wore our own shoes for 5 days! leave your heavy boots home.
5. The front desk can book side trips for you, we did the snow monkey tour, it's unbelievable.
6. rent your ski gears at the base (after going up the yu road escalator), there are a few shops and we used Aston, great price, great selection, and you can leave your gears overnight avoid carrying them up/down hill.
The highlight of the hotel has to be the public onsen, hands down the best in town and easily beat any spa that I have been to...it's HUGE. each male and female have an open air onsen and a sauna room, there's also a nice family bath that you can borrow for your private use. Two massage chairs right by the entrance, great for relaxation and waiting for your loved ones. After skiing there's nothing more blessing than soaking your body in a hot bath. We used the onsen 2-3 times daily, I never felt so clean...
The room was quite nice and spacious, we stayed in a traditional room on the 5th floor, the futon was very comfortable and magically disappear after breakfast and reappear after dinner. The room has a toilet and bath tub but like many others we never used the bath in our room, the public one is just too good :)
The staff were fabulous, Yuki is the manager and she's super helpful and friendly, her English is good enough to be an English teacher; Nana showed us to our room at check in and she's got a killing smile and great attitude, she's one of our favorite staff members. If you opted for dining in the hotel which I highly recommend, the staff will prepare different course meals everyday and explain dish by dish. The food was delicious and delicate.
Last but not least, a few tips:
1. Be sure to check out the newly opened Kanazawa route that stops at liyama JR station, you can then take the nozawa onsen liner right outside the station. it's much quickly than the old route that go through Nagano.
for bus/train schedule, check here:
http://www.vill.nozawaonsen.nagano.jp/about/LINER%20BUS%20TIMETABLE.pdf
2. Inform hotel at booking if you want a Japanese room and Japanese style dining
3. Be prepared to get naked for public bath, it's okay...
4. The hotel has umbrellas, snow boots, in fact we never wore our own shoes for 5 days! leave your heavy boots home.
5. The front desk can book side trips for you, we did the snow monkey tour, it's unbelievable.
6. rent your ski gears at the base (after going up the yu road escalator), there are a few shops and we used Aston, great price, great selection, and you can leave your gears overnight avoid carrying them up/down hill.
Read more
Date of stay: March 2015Trip type: Travelled with family
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ryokan Sakaya offers rooms with basic ski lodge accommodation. There are either futons on a tatami mat (Japanese style) or twin beds (western style). We had a family room with two single western style beds in a small room cordoned off by a sliding door, and our children slept on the floor in the larger living room area. Their beds could be rolled up in the day and replaced by a small table and chairs (without legs). The room was large enough for 5 but the western style beds were no softer than the bedding on the floor and the pillows were hard. Not very comfortable for me personally as a side sleeper.
However Ryokan Sakaya is considered one of the best accommodation options at Nosawaonsen. I suspect that is because of the onsite onsen, the tradition ryokan experience, and the plentiful food. It has a health retreat feel. You can wander around in your yukata (bathrobe with socks and slippers) all day if you like. You get a fresh one each day. It's ok to wear them to dinner and even sleep in them.
The onsen with hot water from natural underground springs was lovely. It's a communal bathing area. Great after being out in the snow. There are separate ones for men and women, as well as a mixed onsen that can be booked for family use.
First, you disrobe in the entry room and go inside to the washing area. It's warm, comfortable and steamy inside. You can sit and wash yourself and your hair at the basins with the shampoo and soaps they provide. Once you are clean, you can plunge Into the baths. In the female onsen there are 3 baths in the inside room with varying degrees of hotness. Then there are 2 more outside - one hot, one freezing cold, if you are game, and a sauna. The outside onsen is gorgeous with a moving water wheel and a small green garden. It's even more special if you are in the outdoor bath when it's snowing. You won't be cold in the hot bath even when it's cold outside.
Most people get used to being naked around the others. Everyone is very respectful and you actually have some great conversations with people. It is appropriate and encouraged to talk with each other. Alternatively, you can bathe in the room but the bathrooms aren't very attractive and the water pressure is not great.
A few rules...take the towel and washcloth from your room, wash before you enter the onsen bath with the washcloth, and don't put your washcloth in the onsen bath. Some people place it on the rim of the bath or place it on their heads. There are a lot of nice moisturisers in the dressing area and two hair dryers. Maybe I should have moisturised more, as my skin got kind of dry on day 5.
My review of the food is mixed. The western style breakfast was not very appealing. European coffee in Japan is generally non existent, so it was no surprise that the coffee was drip filtered. There was cut up apple, toast, wedges, scrambled egg etc.
We chose the accommodation package with dinner included. On several evenings, we ate an impressive artistic kaiseki dinner with multiple small courses of fish and vegetables (I lost count, it was a lot of food). It was spectacular but after several of these in a row, it's a bit much and the magic is lost. On a few nights, we had shabu shabu (hot pot meal with meat and vegetables cooked in hot water), or sukiyaki (hot pot meal with meat and vegetables cooked in broth and dipped in raw egg). These were great options for a change. The food at dinner was good, however If I had my time again I would have tried a few of the many restaurants around the village. There were a lot to explore and not too cold to walk around the village at night when we were there in January (-1 degree Celsius, but it's usually much colder).
The powder snow is gorgeous and really sparkles on the mountain. The skiing is great if there is a lot of runs open. For non-skiers, it is possible to buy passes for the two gondolas to look around up the top. You can borrow snow boots or gumboots from the ryokan. It can be slippery and wet without them.
The ryokan has a small laundry accessible through a smoking area in the lobby...hold your breath. The two small coin operated washing machines work okay but the two small dryers really didn't work well. We tried more than 5 cycles and a lot of coins before the clothes lost any wetness. If you have only a few items, they can be dried on the towel heater in your room. If you have a lot of washing, there is a professional do-it-yourself coin operated laundry 10-15 minutes walk away in the village with big industrial machines. These machines will wash and dry your clothes in one cycle (about an hour) and text you when ready. There are English instructions in the laundry room. There are also machines that just dry the clothes.
Another tip, there is only one ATM in the village - at the post office, and Nosawaonsen is a cash village.
However Ryokan Sakaya is considered one of the best accommodation options at Nosawaonsen. I suspect that is because of the onsite onsen, the tradition ryokan experience, and the plentiful food. It has a health retreat feel. You can wander around in your yukata (bathrobe with socks and slippers) all day if you like. You get a fresh one each day. It's ok to wear them to dinner and even sleep in them.
The onsen with hot water from natural underground springs was lovely. It's a communal bathing area. Great after being out in the snow. There are separate ones for men and women, as well as a mixed onsen that can be booked for family use.
First, you disrobe in the entry room and go inside to the washing area. It's warm, comfortable and steamy inside. You can sit and wash yourself and your hair at the basins with the shampoo and soaps they provide. Once you are clean, you can plunge Into the baths. In the female onsen there are 3 baths in the inside room with varying degrees of hotness. Then there are 2 more outside - one hot, one freezing cold, if you are game, and a sauna. The outside onsen is gorgeous with a moving water wheel and a small green garden. It's even more special if you are in the outdoor bath when it's snowing. You won't be cold in the hot bath even when it's cold outside.
Most people get used to being naked around the others. Everyone is very respectful and you actually have some great conversations with people. It is appropriate and encouraged to talk with each other. Alternatively, you can bathe in the room but the bathrooms aren't very attractive and the water pressure is not great.
A few rules...take the towel and washcloth from your room, wash before you enter the onsen bath with the washcloth, and don't put your washcloth in the onsen bath. Some people place it on the rim of the bath or place it on their heads. There are a lot of nice moisturisers in the dressing area and two hair dryers. Maybe I should have moisturised more, as my skin got kind of dry on day 5.
My review of the food is mixed. The western style breakfast was not very appealing. European coffee in Japan is generally non existent, so it was no surprise that the coffee was drip filtered. There was cut up apple, toast, wedges, scrambled egg etc.
We chose the accommodation package with dinner included. On several evenings, we ate an impressive artistic kaiseki dinner with multiple small courses of fish and vegetables (I lost count, it was a lot of food). It was spectacular but after several of these in a row, it's a bit much and the magic is lost. On a few nights, we had shabu shabu (hot pot meal with meat and vegetables cooked in hot water), or sukiyaki (hot pot meal with meat and vegetables cooked in broth and dipped in raw egg). These were great options for a change. The food at dinner was good, however If I had my time again I would have tried a few of the many restaurants around the village. There were a lot to explore and not too cold to walk around the village at night when we were there in January (-1 degree Celsius, but it's usually much colder).
The powder snow is gorgeous and really sparkles on the mountain. The skiing is great if there is a lot of runs open. For non-skiers, it is possible to buy passes for the two gondolas to look around up the top. You can borrow snow boots or gumboots from the ryokan. It can be slippery and wet without them.
The ryokan has a small laundry accessible through a smoking area in the lobby...hold your breath. The two small coin operated washing machines work okay but the two small dryers really didn't work well. We tried more than 5 cycles and a lot of coins before the clothes lost any wetness. If you have only a few items, they can be dried on the towel heater in your room. If you have a lot of washing, there is a professional do-it-yourself coin operated laundry 10-15 minutes walk away in the village with big industrial machines. These machines will wash and dry your clothes in one cycle (about an hour) and text you when ready. There are English instructions in the laundry room. There are also machines that just dry the clothes.
Another tip, there is only one ATM in the village - at the post office, and Nosawaonsen is a cash village.
Read more
Date of stay: January 2016Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Arrived mid-December 2014, the day after a whopping 1m drop of fresh powder. Had forwarded our luggage via Ta-Q-Bin from Narita so we could travel unencumbered. JR Narita Express to Tokyo (57m), Nagano Shinkansen to Nagano (1h40m), Shinetsu Main Line to Kamisakai (1h15m) and a 5 minute taxi to Sakaya.
Check in was effortless, the staff understand varying levels of english, Yuki-san's english is impeccable! The room was large, clean and well maintained. Yukatas provided could be worn throughout the ryokan as if you were at home, the onsen was awesome. Don't be afraid to mention, to fellow gaijin, the onsen etiquette of washing before entering water. It seemed to me that the Chinese guests were the main culprits, many joining me in the water before washing so I could stew in their soup. This became quite annoying after a while as I always washed before entering. The onsen etiquette is clearly explained at check in, maybe a faq for Chinese guests at check in might avert these onsen distractions. The onsen water was the best we experienced in Japan giving noticeable skin improvements in a relatively short time.
The traditional Japanese breakfast was oishii, and provided the necessary fuel for fresh tracks on the morning slopes. We didn't eat dinner at the ryokan as we liked to venture out at night and discover somewhere to eat amongst the plethora of mum and dad restaurants in Nozawa Onsen of which there are many.
The powder was amazing and we were quite happy starting the day on the Nagasaka gondola which is about 5-10 minutes walk from Sakaya. The boot room in the basement is huge, plenty of racks for boards and skis and wall mounted boot holders that are treated to a kerosine heater to make them toasty warm and dry for the following day. Gum boots and umbrellas are available.
I could not fault Sakaya. My wife, 14 year old daughter and I agreed at the end of our 5 week holiday in Japan that Sakaya and Nozawa Onsen were the highlight of our trip. A traditional ryokan in a traditional village full of really nice locals making a genuine effort to make your visit to their village as memorable as possible AND the best powder we had in Japan with fun, challenging ungroomed runs and excellent off piste.
Many tourists to Nozawa Onsen that I met were from Tokyo. Most gaijin were Chinese. I met few fellow Australians here. English is not as widely spoken as some of the other resorts so a basic understanding of Nihongo will go a long way. A couple of apps that really helped were: Lingolook and Waygo OCR. Hyperdia was also excellent. Booked the large tatami room (54m2) directly with Sakaya, length of stay 8 nights.
Highly recommended!
Check in was effortless, the staff understand varying levels of english, Yuki-san's english is impeccable! The room was large, clean and well maintained. Yukatas provided could be worn throughout the ryokan as if you were at home, the onsen was awesome. Don't be afraid to mention, to fellow gaijin, the onsen etiquette of washing before entering water. It seemed to me that the Chinese guests were the main culprits, many joining me in the water before washing so I could stew in their soup. This became quite annoying after a while as I always washed before entering. The onsen etiquette is clearly explained at check in, maybe a faq for Chinese guests at check in might avert these onsen distractions. The onsen water was the best we experienced in Japan giving noticeable skin improvements in a relatively short time.
The traditional Japanese breakfast was oishii, and provided the necessary fuel for fresh tracks on the morning slopes. We didn't eat dinner at the ryokan as we liked to venture out at night and discover somewhere to eat amongst the plethora of mum and dad restaurants in Nozawa Onsen of which there are many.
The powder was amazing and we were quite happy starting the day on the Nagasaka gondola which is about 5-10 minutes walk from Sakaya. The boot room in the basement is huge, plenty of racks for boards and skis and wall mounted boot holders that are treated to a kerosine heater to make them toasty warm and dry for the following day. Gum boots and umbrellas are available.
I could not fault Sakaya. My wife, 14 year old daughter and I agreed at the end of our 5 week holiday in Japan that Sakaya and Nozawa Onsen were the highlight of our trip. A traditional ryokan in a traditional village full of really nice locals making a genuine effort to make your visit to their village as memorable as possible AND the best powder we had in Japan with fun, challenging ungroomed runs and excellent off piste.
Many tourists to Nozawa Onsen that I met were from Tokyo. Most gaijin were Chinese. I met few fellow Australians here. English is not as widely spoken as some of the other resorts so a basic understanding of Nihongo will go a long way. A couple of apps that really helped were: Lingolook and Waygo OCR. Hyperdia was also excellent. Booked the large tatami room (54m2) directly with Sakaya, length of stay 8 nights.
Highly recommended!
Read more
Date of stay: December 2014Trip type: Travelled with family
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip: Go for the 12.5 tatami mat room.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This is arguably the best traditional ryokan in Nozawa Onsen. The location is as central as possible (right behind o-yu), although if you're there for skiing the nearest lift is a 10-minute stroll away in ski boots. It's a beautiful classic building, well maintained, with a gorgeous inner courtyard garden.
This is completely authentic, and not "tailored" for non-Japanese guests, but the staff are unfazed by foreigners. The service level is the same, foreigner or Japanese. I was there with a large group of caucasian friends, ranging from long-time Japan residents to fresh-off-the-boat first-timers, and everyone felt welcome and relaxed. It's not cheap, but you're getting appropriate value for your money in terms of experience, ambience, food, and accommodation.
The rooms are large and many are in fact suites of rooms. We only took Japanese style rooms but I think there are some semi-western rooms too. They're clean and well appointed, with good toilets and bathrooms. The futons were as fluffy and wonderful as you'd expect. We all slept deeply (even some of my friends who had been complaining at the thought of sleeping on the floor). The shared onsen baths are excellent - atmospheric, clean, large - with a small outdoor rotenburo bath too. Although you should try the soto-yu (the public baths dotted around the village) you'll appreciate the luxury of the shared baths in Sakaya when you come home.
Dinner was a masterpiece kaiseki, almost entirely consisting of fresh food that had been picked, grown, or caught locally. It's not labelled "organic" but this will be one of the freshest and most natural meals you could imagine, anywhere (to be fair, that's probably true of many of the meals you'd have in Nozawa - it's a gourmet town!). They'll help you choose the right sake to go with the meal, and will run out to fetch a few bottles of local beer, too, if you ask. Breakfast was Japanese on the first morning - a mini-kaiseki of many courses - but on the second morning we'd requested a western breakfast, which was more of a Japanese riff on European breakfast items, than your all-American blow-out (cutely shape-cut grapefruit, coffee in exquisite hand-made mugs, artistic ketchup designs on your omelette...).
It's hard to think of negatives. They won't serve alcohol in the lobby lounge, just coffee/tea and soft drinks, which was a minor shame. Wi-fi worked in the lobby but not in the rooms. And as usual in a ryokan, meal-times are broadly fixed, and certainly you need to decide them in advance. If you're an uber-keen skier you might want somewhere closer to the slopes that'll get you through breakfast and out in time for the first lift. And this is a ryokan - it's a whole set-piece experience in itself. If you just want a place to stay and do your own thing, then this, like any ryokan, would be a waste (and you should try the new serviced vacation apartments close by, or one of the many small pensions around).
I've visited Nozawa Onsen many times and stayed in various places in the village (and many ryokans around Japan). This is the best traditional ryokan in town, and one of the better ones you'll stay anywhere in Japan in the upper-middle price bracket.
This is completely authentic, and not "tailored" for non-Japanese guests, but the staff are unfazed by foreigners. The service level is the same, foreigner or Japanese. I was there with a large group of caucasian friends, ranging from long-time Japan residents to fresh-off-the-boat first-timers, and everyone felt welcome and relaxed. It's not cheap, but you're getting appropriate value for your money in terms of experience, ambience, food, and accommodation.
The rooms are large and many are in fact suites of rooms. We only took Japanese style rooms but I think there are some semi-western rooms too. They're clean and well appointed, with good toilets and bathrooms. The futons were as fluffy and wonderful as you'd expect. We all slept deeply (even some of my friends who had been complaining at the thought of sleeping on the floor). The shared onsen baths are excellent - atmospheric, clean, large - with a small outdoor rotenburo bath too. Although you should try the soto-yu (the public baths dotted around the village) you'll appreciate the luxury of the shared baths in Sakaya when you come home.
Dinner was a masterpiece kaiseki, almost entirely consisting of fresh food that had been picked, grown, or caught locally. It's not labelled "organic" but this will be one of the freshest and most natural meals you could imagine, anywhere (to be fair, that's probably true of many of the meals you'd have in Nozawa - it's a gourmet town!). They'll help you choose the right sake to go with the meal, and will run out to fetch a few bottles of local beer, too, if you ask. Breakfast was Japanese on the first morning - a mini-kaiseki of many courses - but on the second morning we'd requested a western breakfast, which was more of a Japanese riff on European breakfast items, than your all-American blow-out (cutely shape-cut grapefruit, coffee in exquisite hand-made mugs, artistic ketchup designs on your omelette...).
It's hard to think of negatives. They won't serve alcohol in the lobby lounge, just coffee/tea and soft drinks, which was a minor shame. Wi-fi worked in the lobby but not in the rooms. And as usual in a ryokan, meal-times are broadly fixed, and certainly you need to decide them in advance. If you're an uber-keen skier you might want somewhere closer to the slopes that'll get you through breakfast and out in time for the first lift. And this is a ryokan - it's a whole set-piece experience in itself. If you just want a place to stay and do your own thing, then this, like any ryokan, would be a waste (and you should try the new serviced vacation apartments close by, or one of the many small pensions around).
I've visited Nozawa Onsen many times and stayed in various places in the village (and many ryokans around Japan). This is the best traditional ryokan in town, and one of the better ones you'll stay anywhere in Japan in the upper-middle price bracket.
Read more
Date of stay: November 2010Trip type: Travelled with friends
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
First ski trip to Japan and we wanted to combine skiing with a cultural experience. After some homework on Japanese resorts we chose Nozawa Onsen and Ryokan Sakaya, and as they say it pays to do your homework. From the minute we entered the foyer we were treated like VIPs and when we got to our wonderful Japanese room we received green tea and a fitting for our Yukata robes. The Olsens are beautiful, with both indoor and outdoor including a sauna. The Japanese breakfasts were a feast in themselves and although we did not eat dinner at the Ryokan we did try the extensive array of resturants in the town. The manager and his staff were very helpful and arranged ski storage on the mountain for us and even gave us a lift to the bus station when we left.
We stayed in late January and there were no crowds, either in the town or on the slopes. Can not wait to return next year!
We stayed in late January and there were no crowds, either in the town or on the slopes. Can not wait to return next year!
Read more
Date of stay: January 2013Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Room Tip: If you go to Japan choose a Japanese room, which are usually bigger than the western rooms and...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We took our first trip to Japan in Feb 2014 and first spent a few days in Tokyo before heading up to Nozawa-onsen for a few days on our snowboards. Ryokan Sakaya made this such an amazing experience.
When you first walk in, you'll be greeted by the staff who will insist on taking your bags (including ski bags) and ferrying them off to your room for you. They'll then escort you to your room, make you tea and get you settled before explaining how the ryokan works. Then they politely excuse themselves and slip out leaving you in blissful peace!
We stayed in a traditional Japanese room (futons on tatami mats). My girlfriend slept like a dream on the futons. I'd like something with just a wee bit more support, but adding an extra pillow did 90% of the trick for me. I'd totally do the futon thing again though - it actually make for a peaceful stay because they can clear them out for you during the day and then they make them up while you're out at dinner at night.
The onsen is AMAZING. If it's your first time to an onsen, I recommend you book time in the morning for the "family bath" (or private bath). It's a small bath on the same floor as the men's and women's (They are sex separated here, so no going to the same baths as your significant other unless you go to the family bath!). This will let you get used to the cleaning & bathing routine, plus you can go with your sweetie! The bath will actually fit 4 adults (Though there are only 2 showers), so this could also be great for actual families or groups of friends. There's a window in the bath that looks out at their beautiful central garden, and during the winter you could open it up and get just the right amount of cold air to come in and offset the glorious heat of the onsen.
The public baths are great as well - my experience was with the men's (But my girlfriend described the women's as a mirror image). There's a changing room, 3 inside baths (Each is progressively cooler), plus a lovely outside bath (Bath under the stars or snow!) and a sauna. The water in the cooler baths & outside is amazing. The hot bath is pretty toasty, so work your way up. If you're a bit nervous about going buff in the bath (A requirement, and always a bit odd for us westerners the first time) don't sweat it - everyone else is naked anyways, plus when I went there were never more than 1-3 other men in the bath area, so you could shower and find a corner or a whole bath to have for your own.
Next up - the food! Breakfast is included in your rate, and I highly recommend the Asian breakfast. Each morning you'll get about 14 pots or plates of various amazing Japanese noms to eat, and everything is amazing. I wish I'd taken some pictures to share, because the presentation is great and the food is awesome. Trust me, you'll be full eating the Japanese breakfast each day.
As to dinner, it's not included but I recommend you do dinner at the ryokan at least once. They have private dining rooms for couples as well as large groups and the service & food is absolutely amazing. We had something like 12 courses of all local ingredients - seafood, beef, veggies - and everything was amazing. There are also lots of great little restaurants all through town.
Location - Ryokan Sakaya is exactly where in Nozawa you want to be. It's only a block or two to almost every resturant, it's within close distance of many of the public onsen, it's just a 5 minute walk uphill to the moving walkway to the ski slopes, and (maybe most importantly) there's a new micro-brew bar run by 2 expats that just opened up across the ally (3 weeks before we stayed in Feb 14). They were great company and gave us a tour of their wee brewery in back (They found out I was a homebrewer and got really excited).
So overall you can't go wrong at Ryokan Sakaya. The only con I can think of is the cost. At a Western style hotel you usually just pay for the room regardless of how many people you squeeze into it. At a Ryokan, there's a fixed price per person. So for me and my girlfriend it was 2x the price as if I was travelling solo. This does also include your food and all of the amazing service. Things were so great here that this isn't really a complaint, things just work a bit differently than a Western hotel. However I'll say that the level of service makes the price totally worth it in my book.
When you first walk in, you'll be greeted by the staff who will insist on taking your bags (including ski bags) and ferrying them off to your room for you. They'll then escort you to your room, make you tea and get you settled before explaining how the ryokan works. Then they politely excuse themselves and slip out leaving you in blissful peace!
We stayed in a traditional Japanese room (futons on tatami mats). My girlfriend slept like a dream on the futons. I'd like something with just a wee bit more support, but adding an extra pillow did 90% of the trick for me. I'd totally do the futon thing again though - it actually make for a peaceful stay because they can clear them out for you during the day and then they make them up while you're out at dinner at night.
The onsen is AMAZING. If it's your first time to an onsen, I recommend you book time in the morning for the "family bath" (or private bath). It's a small bath on the same floor as the men's and women's (They are sex separated here, so no going to the same baths as your significant other unless you go to the family bath!). This will let you get used to the cleaning & bathing routine, plus you can go with your sweetie! The bath will actually fit 4 adults (Though there are only 2 showers), so this could also be great for actual families or groups of friends. There's a window in the bath that looks out at their beautiful central garden, and during the winter you could open it up and get just the right amount of cold air to come in and offset the glorious heat of the onsen.
The public baths are great as well - my experience was with the men's (But my girlfriend described the women's as a mirror image). There's a changing room, 3 inside baths (Each is progressively cooler), plus a lovely outside bath (Bath under the stars or snow!) and a sauna. The water in the cooler baths & outside is amazing. The hot bath is pretty toasty, so work your way up. If you're a bit nervous about going buff in the bath (A requirement, and always a bit odd for us westerners the first time) don't sweat it - everyone else is naked anyways, plus when I went there were never more than 1-3 other men in the bath area, so you could shower and find a corner or a whole bath to have for your own.
Next up - the food! Breakfast is included in your rate, and I highly recommend the Asian breakfast. Each morning you'll get about 14 pots or plates of various amazing Japanese noms to eat, and everything is amazing. I wish I'd taken some pictures to share, because the presentation is great and the food is awesome. Trust me, you'll be full eating the Japanese breakfast each day.
As to dinner, it's not included but I recommend you do dinner at the ryokan at least once. They have private dining rooms for couples as well as large groups and the service & food is absolutely amazing. We had something like 12 courses of all local ingredients - seafood, beef, veggies - and everything was amazing. There are also lots of great little restaurants all through town.
Location - Ryokan Sakaya is exactly where in Nozawa you want to be. It's only a block or two to almost every resturant, it's within close distance of many of the public onsen, it's just a 5 minute walk uphill to the moving walkway to the ski slopes, and (maybe most importantly) there's a new micro-brew bar run by 2 expats that just opened up across the ally (3 weeks before we stayed in Feb 14). They were great company and gave us a tour of their wee brewery in back (They found out I was a homebrewer and got really excited).
So overall you can't go wrong at Ryokan Sakaya. The only con I can think of is the cost. At a Western style hotel you usually just pay for the room regardless of how many people you squeeze into it. At a Ryokan, there's a fixed price per person. So for me and my girlfriend it was 2x the price as if I was travelling solo. This does also include your food and all of the amazing service. Things were so great here that this isn't really a complaint, things just work a bit differently than a Western hotel. However I'll say that the level of service makes the price totally worth it in my book.
Read more
Date of stay: February 2014Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip: As for a corner room on a high floor so you get a great view of the town!
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Ryokan Sakaya is very welcoming with outstanding attentive staff. We arrived from the Narita bus at around 2am, and the night manager helped us get all our luggage to our rooms. We had a "western style" room with 2 single "western style" beds, and a traditional Japanese room, with 2 single "western style" beds on the tatami mat floor. The beds were very firm with low pillows filled with what felt like dried lentils - I will try the futon next time, as I found the bed and pillows too firm. The western style room had a shower and western style toilet. The Japanese room had a tiny bathroom with a deep Japanese bath with shower over it, and a western style toilet. We didn't use the bath or shower in our rooms, because we became huge fans of the onsen way of washing then bathing. The onsens in Ryokan Sakaya are really beautiful - such a worthwhile experience, and especially good after skiing. If you are a first timer and nervous about getting your clothes off in public, book the private onsen within the Ryokan. Also, ask for the information sheet in English to help you do the right things.
We enjoyed the Japanese breakfast on our first morning, but stuck with more familiar western style breakfast on the other mornings. There are tatami mat dining rooms, and at least 1 room with table and chairs. If you want to eat dinner in the restaurant within the ryokan (or many other restaurants in Nozawa Onsen) you have to book at the start of the day, or the day before. This isn't because they will always be full, but because the chefs require that time to prepare the meal. They will not take you in the restaurant at short notice, even if the restaurant is empty!
We had come to Japan to ski, so we had a lot of ski gear. There is a ski room on the ground floor of the ryokan. There is not much room for luggage, ski jackets or suitcases, especially in the western style room. On the first day we lugged all the skis, poles and ski boots up the Yu-road wearing our regular shoes, then paid to store all the ski gear each night at the St Anton shop at the top of the Yu-road (100 yen per person per night). This saved us walking in ski boots or carrying ski gear until our day of departure.
The staff at Ryokan Sakaya were so friendly and helpful. English is not spoken as widely in Nozawa Onsen as in other popular Japanese ski resorts, so take a phrase book, and accept that some things will be lost in translation. That being said, I highly recommend Ryokan Sakaya and Nozawa Onsen for a rich and fascinating cultural experience (accompanied by magnificent powder snow)!
We enjoyed the Japanese breakfast on our first morning, but stuck with more familiar western style breakfast on the other mornings. There are tatami mat dining rooms, and at least 1 room with table and chairs. If you want to eat dinner in the restaurant within the ryokan (or many other restaurants in Nozawa Onsen) you have to book at the start of the day, or the day before. This isn't because they will always be full, but because the chefs require that time to prepare the meal. They will not take you in the restaurant at short notice, even if the restaurant is empty!
We had come to Japan to ski, so we had a lot of ski gear. There is a ski room on the ground floor of the ryokan. There is not much room for luggage, ski jackets or suitcases, especially in the western style room. On the first day we lugged all the skis, poles and ski boots up the Yu-road wearing our regular shoes, then paid to store all the ski gear each night at the St Anton shop at the top of the Yu-road (100 yen per person per night). This saved us walking in ski boots or carrying ski gear until our day of departure.
The staff at Ryokan Sakaya were so friendly and helpful. English is not spoken as widely in Nozawa Onsen as in other popular Japanese ski resorts, so take a phrase book, and accept that some things will be lost in translation. That being said, I highly recommend Ryokan Sakaya and Nozawa Onsen for a rich and fascinating cultural experience (accompanied by magnificent powder snow)!
Read more
Date of stay: January 2013Trip type: Travelled with family
Value
Rooms
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Take train from Narita into Tokyo to Ueno Station. Take Shinkansen from Ueno to Iiyama in Nagano. Exit train station and hop on free shuttle to Nozawaonsen.
We organized the snow monkey tour from the Nagano train station where we were picked up by a guide who took the four of us to the Snow Monkey park, we had lunch there, and then proceeded to the Ryokan. My recollection was that it was about an hour drive from the park to the Ryokan.
At the Ryokan, there were brochures offering the tour; a quick Google shows several different companies also offering day trips from Nozawa Onsen to the Park and return.
I thought that the monkeys were cute, but it's not THAT exciting to spend two hours to see them picking nits off each other.
d
Hello, the Sakaya is suitable for kids - sort of. What I mean is that you will not experience any problems, however unlike some hotels there are not any specific children's facilities (nowhere for them to play or to 'goof around'. However if you make sure they ski hard and so are pretty tired, they'll go to bed early so you won't have any such issues.
"Sixth floor rooms have great views going either toward the mountain or over the village"Read full review
"even though i love futons and u might too, dont choose the ones from here. quality was missimg."Read full review
PRICE RANGE
$427 - $589 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
ALSO KNOWN AS
ryokan sakaya hotel nozawaonsen-mura
LOCATION
JapanChubuKoshinetsuNagano PrefectureShimotakai-gunNozawaonsen-muraNozawa Onsen
NUMBER OF ROOMS
29
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect total costs of the stay, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
Is This Your Tripadvisor Listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim Your ListingRYOKAN SAKAYA | UPDATED 2024 Onsen Ryokan Reviews & Price Comparison (Nozawaonsen-mura, Japan) - Tripadvisor
Frequently Asked Questions about Ryokan Sakaya
Which popular attractions are close to Ryokan Sakaya?
Nearby attractions include Nozawa Onsen (0.03 km), Nozawa Onsen Ski Resort (0.5 km), and Nozawa Onsen Public Baths (soto-yu) (0.2 km).
What are some of the property amenities at Ryokan Sakaya?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include free wifi, an on-site restaurant, and free parking.
Which room amenities are available at Ryokan Sakaya?
Top room amenities include air conditioning, a flat screen TV, and a refrigerator.
What food & drink options are available at Ryokan Sakaya?
Guests can enjoy an on-site restaurant during their stay.
What are some restaurants close to Ryokan Sakaya?
Conveniently located restaurants include Haus St. Anton Jam Factory & Cafe, Wakagiri, and Winterland Taproom & Gyoza Bar.
Are there opportunities to exercise at Ryokan Sakaya?
Yes, guests have access to a sauna during their stay.
Is Ryokan Sakaya located near the city centre?
Yes, it is 0.7 km away from the centre of Nozawaonsen-mura.
Are there any historical sites close to Ryokan Sakaya?
Many travellers enjoy visiting Shojuan (11.3 km), Oni no Kubizuka (9.8 km), and Oninokama Tomb (8.1 km).
Does Ryokan Sakaya have any great views?
Yes, guests often enjoy the mountain view available here.