Overview

Hotel Sansuiso, officially Sansuiso, The Maison with Water Sounds, gives you a full hot spring stay in Tsuchiyu Onsen, Fukushima. You stay inside Bandai-Asahi National Park, beside the Arakawa River and close to the two-tier waterfall that shapes many of the bath views.

This is a large ryokan-style hotel with 69 rooms, many bath choices, a Japanese garden, Fukushima dining, and easy access to the Tsuchiyu Onsen village. The setting feels quiet and deeply connected to water. You hear the river, see the waterwheel at the entrance, and move through spaces designed around the sound and movement of water.

The ryokan suits you when you want more than one bathing experience. You can enjoy large public baths, open-air baths, saunas, four reservable private baths, rooms with source-flowing private open-air or semi-open-air baths, and a warm-water indoor pool. You can also walk to nearby sights in Tsuchiyu Onsen, including foot baths, kokeshi doll spots, and the Arakawa area.

Accommodation

You can choose between the special Shisuitei rooms and the Kachoh-en or Shinonome rooms. Shisuitei gives you the most private hot spring experience, because every room in this wing has a terrace and a source-flowing open-air or semi-open-air bath. Kachoh-en and Shinonome give you more classic Japanese-room choices with garden, river, or mountain views, depending on the room and floor.

Shisuitei includes several room types. The Suite Shakunage measures 92 square metres and has a 15-tatami Japanese room, twin beds, and a source-flowing open-air bath. Suite Mizubasho measures 84 square metres and combines a 14.2-tatami Japanese room, Western living space, twin beds, a coffee maker, and a source-flowing semi-open-air bath.

The Junior Suite Japanese-Western Room measures 63 square metres and combines a Western floor area with a four-tatami space, twin beds, terrace, and source-flowing open-air bath. The Junior Suite Japanese Room also measures 63 square metres and has either a ten-tatami or eight-tatami layout with twin beds, terrace, and source-flowing open-air bath.

Shisuitei also offers twin-bed rooms with source-flowing semi-open-air baths. The ten-tatami twin-bed room measures 58 square metres, while the eight-tatami twin-bed room measures 56 square metres. The king-size bed room also measures 56 square metres and combines an eight-tatami Japanese room with a large bed-style layout and a source-flowing semi-open-air bath. The Universal Suite measures 84 square metres and has a step-free design, wheelchair-friendly entrance slope, accessible toilet and shower, and a source-flowing semi-open-air bath.

Kachoh-en has 12.5-tatami rooms. You can choose a twin-bed room renewed in 2024, a universal twin-bed room, or a Japanese room with futon bedding. The Japanese room can accommodate up to six people and, from higher floors, may offer views towards the Arakawa area.

Shinonome offers a Japanese-Western room with a ten-tatami area and a separate twin-bed room, plus a standard 10.5-tatami Japanese room with futon bedding. These rooms work well when you want a simpler stay while still enjoying the hotel’s baths, garden, dining, and facilities.

Room equipment differs by building and category, but rooms include Wi-Fi, television, electric kettle, tea, refrigerator, hairdryer, telephone, washlet toilet, towels, body soap, shampoo, conditioner, and selected sustainable personal items such as toothbrushes, razors, brushes, cotton sets, and shower caps. Shisuitei rooms add higher-grade equipment such as a 50-inch 4K television, coffee maker, BALMUDA kettle, individual air conditioning, pajamas, bathrobe, skincare products, and Simmons bedding.

Dining

Dining at Sansuiso focuses on soft water, seasonal Fukushima ingredients, and Japanese kaiseki. The kitchen uses Togamori spring water, drawn from a forest source about 90 minutes away, for all water used inside the hotel. This soft water supports the flavour of rice, soup, broth, tea, and cooked dishes.

Dinner depends on your room category and plan. If you stay in Shisuitei, you can enjoy the Miorine Kaiseki in the private restaurant Tori. This course focuses on delicate broth made with natural water from the Arakawa area and seasonal ingredients presented in a more refined style.

The Original Special Kaiseki highlights Fukushima beef and Kawamata Shamo chicken. In spring, summer, and autumn, these ingredients may be served as steak-style dishes, while winter may bring them in a hot pot style. The Standard Kaiseki gives you a traditional seasonal Japanese meal with carefully prepared dishes that reflect the time of year.

Extra dishes can include iwana river fish raised in spring water from the back of Tsuchiyu Onsen, prepared as salt-grilled fish, sashimi-style presentation, or bone sake. Other extra dishes may include sashimi, Fukushima wagyu steak, Fukushima wagyu sukiyaki, and tempura, depending on availability.

Breakfast is served in an open-kitchen restaurant. The buffet includes Japanese, Western, and Chinese-style dishes, warm cooked items, salads, local flavours, and drinks. If you stay in Shisuitei, you receive a Japanese breakfast set in a semi-private area, while still being able to take items from the buffet.

Children’s meals are available for school-age children and younger children. Food allergies need to be shared by the required deadline. The kitchen checks the eight major allergens, but it uses the same kitchen, tools, and cooking oil for different foods, so complete allergen removal cannot be guaranteed.

Onsen and Wellness

Sansuiso draws abundant Tsuchiyu Onsen water at around 60°C, with about 230 litres per minute flowing from the source. The hotel adjusts the temperature with natural spring water, so you can enjoy source-flowing hot spring bathing at a comfortable temperature. The water is classified as a simple hot spring.

The hotel has five large public bath areas. Taishi no Yu is a third-floor open-air bath facing the Arakawa two-tier waterfall. This is one of the most scenic baths at Sansuiso, with two tubs, river sound, and seasonal views. Fuchi no Yu sits on the sixth floor and has a two-level bath area with deep, shallow, and cooler bathing spaces, plus valley views and an outdoor barrel bath.

Taki no Yu is also on the sixth floor and is the hotel’s largest bath area. It looks across the Arakawa valley through wide glass windows and includes indoor and open-air bathing. The first-floor Tsurezure no Yu is the men’s bath and faces the Japanese garden. Tamayura no Yu is the women’s bath and includes an indoor bath, open-air bath, sauna, and views of the garden pond.

The sixth-floor baths include sauna access outside the early morning sauna-closed period. After bathing, you can rest in the sixth-floor after-bath hall, which has sofas and garden views.

You can also reserve one of four private baths after check-in. Hoshiten no Yu is an eighth-floor open-air bath with wide views and a barrel-style tub. Taru no Yu is a fourth-floor semi-open-air barrel bath with a warm wooden feel. Kawasemi no Yu and Oshidori no Yu are indoor private baths; Oshidori no Yu includes barrier-free equipment and a shower. The private open-air baths do not have showers, so you wash before entering.

Shisuitei rooms give you the most private onsen experience because each room has a source-flowing open-air or semi-open-air bath. These rooms let you enjoy Tsuchiyu Onsen water without using the shared bath areas or reserving a private bath.

Guests with Tattoos

You can use the four reservable private baths if you have tattoos. You can also use the source-flowing open-air or semi-open-air bath inside your room when you choose a Shisuitei room.

For the shared public baths, small fashion-style tattoos are accepted, while full-body or large tattoos are not accepted. If you want the most comfortable bathing experience with tattoos, choose a Shisuitei room or use the reservable private baths.

Facilities

Sansuiso has a lobby overlooking the Japanese garden, a welcome lounge, open-kitchen restaurant Shintatsu, private restaurant Tori for Shisuitei stays, large public baths, four reservable private baths, an after-bath hall, a souvenir shop, a Tsuchiyu kokeshi display space, banquet halls, meeting rooms, karaoke, vending machines, a warm-water indoor pool, Wi-Fi, parking, and shuttle service.

The Japanese garden changes with the seasons and can be seen from several areas inside the hotel. At the entrance, the waterwheel and stone approach create a clear Tsuchiyu feeling from the start of your stay. The lobby serves welcome drinks and snacks after check-in, and the welcome lounge offers coffee, soft drinks, alcohol during selected afternoon hours, and light snacks.

The warm-water indoor pool has five 25-metre lanes and can be used year-round. You need to bring your own swimsuit. The hotel also supports wheelchair use in parts of the building, with rental wheelchairs, simple ramps, wheelchair-accessible toilets, handrails in large bath tubs, shower carriers, and barrier-free room choices.

The shop and kokeshi display connect you with Tsuchiyu’s craft culture. Tsuchiyu is one of Japan’s three major traditional kokeshi production areas, and the hotel displays dolls made by local craftspeople.

Activities

You can walk around Tsuchiyu Onsen village and enjoy foot baths, small shops, river scenery, and kokeshi culture. Shōtoku Taishi-dō and Yakushi Kokeshi-dō sit on higher ground above the village and connect with the history of the hot spring. The current hall dates back to the Edo period, and the weeping cherry tree in the grounds is said to be around 500 years old.

The Taki Suspension Bridge area gives you access to the Arakawa valley scenery, although the bridge route closes during the winter season. The Arakawa waterfall is very close to the hotel, and the river was recognised by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism for top water quality in 2004.

You can also enjoy Tsuchiyu’s food and drink stops, including konjac shops, sake, beer, and winery-related spots in the wider Azuma foothills area. Nearby outings include Tsutsujiyama Park in azalea season, Onuma and Menuma for walking and autumn colour, Hanamiyama Park for spring flowers, Fukushima Prefectural Museum of Art, Goshikinuma, and the Bandai-Azuma Skyline when the road is open.

Inside the hotel, you can spend the day bathing, using the pool, sitting in the garden-view lobby, looking at kokeshi dolls, resting in the after-bath hall, or enjoying your room bath if you stay in Shisuitei.

Additional Features

Check-in begins at 3:00 p.m., with final check-in at 7:00 p.m. Standard check-out is by 10:00 a.m., while Shisuitei rooms allow check-out by 11:00 a.m. The hotel has 69 rooms.

From Fukushima Station, the reservation-required shuttle takes about 40 minutes. The shuttle from Fukushima Station West Exit normally runs in the afternoon, and the return shuttle leaves the hotel in the morning. Reservation is required by the previous day. If you arrive by local bus, you can get off at Tsuchiyu Onsen bus stop and use the hotel pickup service from the bus stop.

By car, the hotel is about 20 minutes from Fukushima Nishi Interchange. Parking is available, and covered parking is available for motorcycles with advance notice.

Sansuiso suits you when you want a large Tsuchiyu Onsen ryokan-style hotel with many bathing choices, waterfall views, private-bath options, rooms with source-flowing private baths, Fukushima kaiseki dining, a Japanese garden, pool access, and a strong connection to the water and craft culture of Tsuchiyu.