"Pride of Inns" is a series introducing the proprietresses and managers of inns that are members of "The Ryokan Collection." This time, we will be introducing Kazuhiro Otani of "Bettei Otozure," located in Nagato Yumoto Onsen, Yamaguchi Prefecture.

A modern and chic hot spring inn located along a beautiful river

Nagato Yumoto Onsen in Yamaguchi Prefecture was discovered during the Muromachi period and has a history of 600 years.

The most famous inn in this hot spring resort is Otani Sanso, a magnificent inn that is known to everyone in Sanyo and Sanin. The annex next to it is Bettei Otoshin.

The inn's name comes from the Otozure River, which runs through the center of the hot spring town. It is a crystal clear river where you can enjoy cherry blossoms in the spring and fireflies in the summer.

The moment visitors pass through the entrance, they are drawn in by the tranquil water basin. As they walk along the corridor, they come across a hall with a beautiful conical ceiling made of timber.

"At first glance, it looks like the roof of a resort hotel in Bali, but it is actually modeled after the roof of the Kasatei teahouse at Kodaiji Temple in Kyoto."

This is what Otani Kazuhiro, the fifth-generation owner and president of Otani Sanso, said.

This hall has no windows and is directly connected to the outside air. The garden's trees and moss-covered stone walls are beautiful.

The villa was completed in 2006. Its modern and chic sukiya-style design makes it hard to believe it's a 20-year-old building. If you look closely, you'll be captivated by the lavish architecture, including the real rocks used in the walls and the "naguri" (hammered) floorboards.

Only 18 rooms and complete facilities

"We requested the architect to create a design that would allow people to take off their shoes and walk around the building," he said.

Guests take off their shoes before proceeding through the entrance, and the best thing about it is that they can feel the texture of the tatami mats directly under their feet.

The spacious space behind the reception is very spacious. The library is filled with books by local artists such as painter Yasuo Kazuki and children's song poet Misuzu Kaneko, as well as tasteful art collections. Entry is restricted to those under 13, so the building is kept quiet.

The pottery on display in the gallery is magnificent.

"There are five kilns in Fukagawa Kiln, which is close to Nagato Yumoto, and we have been working with the five artists who make Fukagawa Hagi ware since the company was founded. They are Itakura Shinbei Kiln, Tahara Tobei Kiln, Shinjo Sukeemon Kiln, Sakakura Zenemon Kiln, and Sakata Nichika Kiln. We are also on friendly terms with Miwa Kyusetsu Kiln, Tenchozan Kiln, and Kaneko Tsukasa from Hagi. And then there's glass artist Nishikawa Makoto. Their works are on display throughout the museum. In addition, at Japanese Restaurant Unyu, we serve dinner incorporating their works." (ibid.)

There are also many events involving artists.

Other facilities include a tea room, a large public bath, a spa facility called "Grande Spa Onshin," and a fitness gym. "The Bar OTOZURE" offers complimentary sparkling wine and other drinks in the evenings.

There are only 18 guest rooms on the spacious grounds, and all rooms are equipped with an open-air bath with natural hot spring water.

After all, it can be said that this is an inn that offers everything you could want.

The number of overnight guests in the city is less than half of its peak

For example, at the Otozure River, the "Kawadoko Opening Ceremony" is held at the end of March, just before the cherry blossoms bloom. Given the extensive facilities at Otani Sanso and Bettei Otozure, you can enjoy everything within the inn.

However, Nagato Yumoto Onsen is a hot spring town that is full of many different charms and makes you want to stroll around.

Nowadays, the hot spring town is bustling with young people, but in fact, it took a lot of hard work to reach its current prosperity.

President Otani has the following to say:

"I returned to my hometown about 20 years ago, in 2005, just as construction of Bettei Otoshin was about to begin. It was completed and opened for business the following year in 2006, but the problem was that the hot spring town itself was gradually showing signs of sinking."

Nagato Yumoto Onsenkyo peaked in 1984, with 39 guests staying there annually. Since then, the number of tourists has gradually decreased, and by 2014, the number of guests had fallen to 18 per year, less than half of the peak.

"When I was a child, the area was bustling with group tour buses. But with the advent of the internet, travel styles changed from group tours to individual travel. It was against this backdrop that a shocking event occurred: a long-established inn that had been in business for 150 years went out of business."

In 2014, a long-established hotel that had been in business since the Edo period went bankrupt, leaving a huge vacant building in the center of town.

"Nagato Yumoto Future Project" launched

"It was at this point that the local residents began to feel a sense of crisis. Furthermore, shops in the hot spring town began to disappear one after another, until there were none left."

In 2014, the restoration and revitalization of the hot spring town became an urgent issue for residents.

"It was the Nagato city government that initiated the revitalization. In an age of tourism, having an abandoned building in the middle of the hot springs town would damage the image of Nagato as a whole and cause the town to lose its vitality, so they used tax money to demolish it."

Furthermore, former mayor Onishi Kurao planned to attract Hoshino Resorts to the site.

"When President Hoshino Yoshiharu heard about the project, he responded, 'Even if a Hoshino Resorts hotel were to come to this hot spring resort on its own, it wouldn't change the situation much. Why not create a master plan for the entire area?' From Hoshino's perspective, Nagato Yumoto was the first of many urban development projects he would later undertake in various parts of Japan."

In April 2016, a business implementation agreement was signed with Hoshino Resorts Kai, and in August of the same year, the master plan was completed, marking the start of the Nagato Yumoto Mirai Project in earnest.

A rare case of successful public-private collaboration

Although the Otozure River is located in the middle of the hot spring village, it falls under the jurisdiction of the prefecture, which meant that the project was inevitably a three-way effort involving the Yamaguchi Prefectural Government, Nagato City Hall, and private sector entities.

"It was also fortunate that we had Mr. Hayato Kimura, who was on secondment to Nagato City from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, on the administrative side. He is an excellent leader."

To put it simply, this is an extremely rare case of successful public-private partnership, even in Japan.

The government put a lot of pressure on the local community. The government took the lead in creating the hard aspects, but it was up to the local community to carefully refine the soft aspects. Without the serious commitment of the private sector, success was unlikely.

A project promotion system was established in which the public and private sectors worked closely together.

"There are 12 inns in the town, including Hoshino's. Each one has a different idea, so it took a long time to make the necessary adjustments.

Our goal was to increase the value of the area itself and attract customers from there. To put it simply, our goal was to aim to be one of the top 10 most popular hot spring resorts.

This does not mean returning the area to the way it was 40 years ago. It means that people living in the context of the present are creating a lifestyle and culture while fully committing to the community. To begin with, the mere existence of hot springs and a river in a place where people live is wonderful. For example, this is on the level of actual actions, such as people soaking in the hot springs after work, or simply chatting while gazing at the river. There are residents, employees, immigrants and tourists, and they are all enjoying themselves in their own way. As a result, the economy moves and circulates there, and the base of life is created.

The incredible spring source hidden within "Onyu"

The master plan condensed the six elements that make Nagato Yumoto Onsen attractive: "open-air baths," "food tours," "cultural experiences," "mobility," "picturesque locations," and "spaces to relax and unwind."

To achieve this, they built five "kawadoko" (river beds) over the river and four "stepping stones" that allow people to cross the river. Both the river beds and the stepping stones underwent various tests, and it took more than three years to install them.

Of the six elements, the one that President Otani felt most attached to was the "outdoor baths" (public baths) known as "Ontou." Otani became the leader of the reconstruction project.

"Forty years ago, I used to go there too, and it was common to see children gathering here in the evenings. However, when I returned to my hometown 20 years ago, that scene had disappeared and the bathhouse had fallen into disrepair. The building was old and not well maintained, so young people and tourists were reluctant to visit.

I had a strong desire to revive this bathhouse as a symbol of the town's revitalization. However, I didn't just want to make it pretty; I wanted to create an interesting public bathhouse that was based on the unique history of this place.

"Even if we were to build a hot spring facility and a restaurant, if each owner did it according to their own ideas, it would lose its cohesion. We thought it was important to connect the river, hot springs, plaza, restaurant, etc. in a single spatial design."

However, as part of this process, when the dilapidated bathhouse was demolished in order to rebuild the public bathhouse, something surprising was discovered.

"When the stone slab covering the bedrock was removed, it became clear that the hot spring was gushing directly out of the bedrock. Wow, it's a naturally gushing hot spring! It was a shock.

Its appearance remains exactly the same as it was 600 years ago when the hot springs were discovered. The power of this place has been to accept the joys, sorrows, anger, and happiness of millions of people, and to return people to their natural state, in other words, to strip them naked. I was reminded of how amazing this is."

Further shocks awaited.

"In fact, there is another spring source underneath the bathtub. It's a hot spring that gushes out from under your feet.

Generally, hot springs are freshest when they are underground. Once they are outside, they come into contact with air and begin to oxidize. Therefore, the quality of hot springs depends on the distance from the source to the bathtub.

The amazing thing about hot springs that gush out from under your feet is that there is no distance between them. This means that the hot springs are not oxidized, which is an incredible quality, and is a rare natural asset even in Japan. So the concept of enjoying the raw hot spring water as it is was born."

A "newly born hot spring" that flows profusely

The hot spring water is "lukewarm" at around 39°C, and the flow rate is 131 liters per minute. Therefore, we requested the following from the architect.

"The bedrock is left exposed and uncovered. No water or anything else is mixed with the hot spring water. There is no temperature adjustment. We want to let the hot spring water overflow as it is and pour freely."

The designer was thrilled to hear this request.

"So he said, 'This is a purification ritual, so let's design the act of bathing in the hot spring as a sacred act.'

The concept corresponds to the system of a shrine: when people visit a shrine, they wash their hands, rinse their mouths, and then head to the worship hall. Similarly, the washing area is located at the front, where they first purify their bodies before soaking in the bathtub.

The rights to this spring are held by the nearby Soto Zen temple, Taineiji, but in fact there is a story going back 600 years that this spring was bestowed by the gods. In other words, it is a "divinely gifted hot spring" protected by the gods."

To summarize the story that President Otani told, it goes like this.

One day, the third-generation Zen priest, Joan, saw an old man sitting on a stone in the grounds of Dainei-ji Temple and asked his name. The man replied that he was the Daimyojin of Sumiyoshi Shrine, the Ichinomiya of Nagato Province. The head priest invited the old man to the temple and initiated him into Buddhism. Afterwards, the old man was presented with a brocade robe and said, "As a token of my gratitude, I have prepared a hot spring for you to use," before ascending to heaven as a dragon and snake.

"That's why I designed it on the bedrock of the rebuilt bathhouse, based on the concept of Shinto-Buddhist syncretism."

In order to enjoy the "freshly born hot spring," we calculated the bathtub area relative to the amount of water.

"We found that if we divided the baths into men's and women's, making each one an eight-square-meter bath would be just right. Although it's small, it still has the highest quality hot spring water flowing freely through it."

The water is alkaline and simple, and the temperature of the water poured into the bath is 36-38°C. Therefore, after soaking for around 20 minutes, the hot spring's components penetrate the skin, warming you from the inside out. This presence can truly be called a "treasure" that forms the core of Nagato Onsen.

Incidentally, Onyu was awarded the highest award, the Yudo Culture Award, by the Yudo Culture Promotion Association at Daitokuji Temple in Kyoto in 2023. At the time, the award ceremony was attended by President Otani Kazuhiro, Taineiji Abbot Iwata Hiroyasu, and Nagato Province Ichinomiya Sumiyoshi Shrine Chief Priest Naruse Michio.

Before the reconstruction, Onyu and the surrounding hot spring system were incurring annual losses of 60 million yen, but in fiscal 2025, five years after the reconstruction, the company finally achieved a single-year profit.

The number of stores in town went from zero to 17

Another tourist attraction is the "Utaakari" lighting event, which runs until March 8th and is themed around the poems of Kaneko Misuzu. In the "Gento Rondo," a light show that changes in sync with the recitation of poetry and music, numerous shadow puppets dance on the bamboo forest stairs and in the plaza. In the "Misuzu Garden," thousands of "light vessels" made by children and students from Nagato City fill the plaza.

Ten years have passed since the regeneration plan was put into action, and the town has been completely revived.

"We are now making great strides in utilizing vacant houses in the hot spring town. For example, because this is a production area of ​​Hagi ware, we have opened a Hagi ware cafe, a former pharmacy has been turned into a craft beer shop, a yakitori restaurant, and a Kawara soba restaurant. We have also opened a hotel with an Italian restaurant that bakes delicious pizza. We went from having zero stores to now having 17 different types of stores. Ultimately, the only way to utilize the intangible aspects is for the private sector to make continuous efforts."

During those 10 years of running headlong, he says he cultivated relationships with his teammates.

"I think it would be difficult to make such a big change in a big hot spring town. Nagato Yumoto is a 10-minute walk from one end to the other, so it was good that it happened to be small in scale. Also, I think it's a great asset that we still communicate with our colleagues on a regular basis. We're in some kind of contact every day."

Enjoy the hot springs and savor the cuisine of the three regions

Finally, let's return to "Message from the Villa."

As mentioned at the beginning, all guest rooms are equipped with an open-air bath with natural hot spring water. The water is alkaline and simple, so it moisturizes the skin. The best thing about having it in your room is that you can bathe in it as many times as you like.

You can also bathe in the dynamic large public bath at the adjacent Otani Sanso, so you can indulge in a variety of hot spring baths.

As for the main meal, dinner is a kaiseki course meal based on the "Sando cooking philosophy" of souvenirs, local cooking, and local food, which means "eating local produce in the local area using local cooking methods."

Being so close to the Sea of ​​Japan, the seafood is truly abundant. What's more, it's delicious. Although it's rare for an inn to have the right to buy seafood at the wholesale market, it can purchase seafood and vegetables directly from the market.

If you choose Western food for breakfast, the freshly baked homemade bread is delicious.

At both dinner and breakfast, the flavors of each carefully prepared dish seem to permeate your body.

One night is not enough to fully enjoy the charms of the inn and hot spring town. You'll find yourself vowing to yourself, "Next time, I'll stay for multiple nights."

[Annex News]

Address: 2208 Fukagawa Yumoto, Nagato City, Yamaguchi Prefecture

Telephone 0837-25-3377

Composition/Written by:Toshizumi Ishibashi

He is a freelance editor‑writer and contributing editor at Premium Japan. He is former editor‑in‑chief of CREA Traveller and CREA.

Photo by Natsuko Okada