Overview
Stay in the wooded hills of Ueda at Ooedo Onsen Monogatari Shinshu Kakeyu, where you can experience a historic hot spring town alongside an easygoing buffet stay. Kakeyu Onsen flourished as a therapeutic bathing destination during the Edo period, drawing people who wanted to rest for several days and recover their strength in the mountain air.
The name Kakeyu comes from a local legend in which Manjushri Bodhisattva appeared in the form of a deer and guided a hunter to the hot spring. This connection remains part of the town’s identity, from the nearby Monju Hall to the old paths and bridges around the source area.
During your stay, you can move between spacious indoor baths, outdoor baths surrounded by greenery, buffet meals filled with Shinshu flavours, and relaxed activities such as table tennis. When the wisteria blooms, usually around May, hanging purple flowers add a memorable seasonal view around one of the outdoor baths.
Accommodation
You can choose from Japanese-style rooms with futon bedding or a Japanese-Western room that combines tatami with twin beds. The interiors have a simple, classic hot spring-hotel atmosphere, giving you an uncomplicated place to rest between meals, bathing, and sightseeing.
The Economy Japanese rooms come in eight-tatami, ten-tatami, and 15-tatami layouts. These rooms do not include a private bath, so you can use the shared indoor and outdoor hot spring facilities during your stay.
The Standard Japanese rooms come in ten-tatami and 12.5-tatami layouts. Most use the same traditional futon arrangement and do not have a private bath. A separate ten-tatami category includes an in-room bath, although this bath uses regular heated water rather than natural hot spring water.
The Standard Japanese-Western Twin combines a ten-tatami room, a smaller 4.5-tatami space, and a bedroom with twin beds. This gives you room to sit on the tatami while keeping the convenience of Western-style bedding. Its private bathroom also uses regular heated water rather than onsen water.
Every room is non-smoking and includes complimentary Wi-Fi, air conditioning and heating, a television, an empty refrigerator, a safe, an electric kettle, a tea set, and a hairdryer. Towels, yukata, slippers, and basic toiletries are prepared for your stay. Some personal care items are collected from the shared amenity area rather than placed inside the room.
There are no rooms with private natural hot spring baths.
Dining
When your plan includes meals, dinner and breakfast are served in the buffet restaurant rather than in your room. You can choose what you like, return for another serving, and create a meal that suits your appetite.
Dinner brings together Japanese, Western, and Chinese cooking, with seasonal dishes and regional flavours from Nagano. Shinshu soba and oyaki dumplings are among the local favourites. Oyaki are filled dumplings traditionally prepared with ingredients such as vegetables, mushrooms, or seasoned greens.
The buffet may also include grilled dishes, simmered food, salads, noodles, rice dishes, warm soups, fried items, and desserts. The exact selection changes with the season and ingredient supply, so you can discover something different on each visit.
Breakfast is also served as a buffet. You can begin with rice, soup, vegetables, and Japanese side dishes or choose bread and familiar Western breakfast items. Warm dishes, drinks, and simple choices for younger travellers complete the morning selection.
Onsen and Wellness
Kakeyu Onsen is known for clear, gentle water and a long history as a place for extended bathing stays. The spring is classified as a weakly alkaline, hypotonic, high-temperature simple spring.
The bathing facilities use added water and heat to maintain a suitable temperature. The water is managed through a combination of overflow and circulation filtration, so the baths are not filled with completely untreated, continuously flowing source water.
You can bathe in four shared areas. Chōju no Yu and Fuku no Yu are spacious indoor baths with broad windows that bring natural light into the bathing rooms. Yakushi no Yu and Monju no Yu are outdoor baths surrounded by trees and garden scenery.
The men’s and women’s bathing assignments change according to the schedule. By bathing in the evening and again the following morning, you may have the opportunity to experience both sides.
The outdoor baths are separate from the main indoor bathing rooms. You need to dress before walking between the facilities, and the outdoor areas have only limited washing equipment. Wash thoroughly in one of the indoor bathing rooms before heading to the outdoor bath.
When the wisteria flowers open, normally around May, purple blossoms hang above the greenery near one of the outdoor baths. The exact blooming period changes with the temperature and weather each year.
The shared baths normally open from 15:00 until midnight and again from 5:00 until 10:00. Opening times, cleaning periods, and gender assignments may change during your stay.
There is no sauna, reservable private bath, or in-room natural onsen.
Guests with Tattoos
If you have tattoos, you may use the shared indoor and outdoor baths only when every tattoo can be completely concealed with the designated cover seals available on site.
If your tattoos cannot be fully covered, you cannot use the communal bathing facilities. There is no private bath or room with its own natural hot spring, so an alternative onsen bathing option is not available within the property.
Facilities
Ooedo Onsen Monogatari Shinshu Kakeyu includes a buffet restaurant, lobby seating, a central courtyard with a pond, a souvenir shop, a table-tennis area, massage chairs, and a yukata corner where you can select a pattern to wear during your stay. The shop carries Shinshu foods, local souvenirs, and original items. You can also borrow playing cards, go, and shogi equipment from the front desk. Complimentary Wi-Fi is available in the rooms, and smoking is limited to a designated area. On-site parking is available when you arrive by car.
Activities
Take time to walk through the old hot spring town and learn more about Kakeyu’s history. Monju Hall is connected with the legend of the deer that revealed the spring and is recognised as one of Japan’s notable places dedicated to Manjushri, the bodhisattva associated with wisdom.
Nearby Godai Bridge is a rare roofed wooden bridge crossing the valley. The bridge, river, and surrounding trees create an especially attractive scene during autumn, although you can enjoy the short walk at any time of year.
You can also explore sections of the Kakeyu 21 walking route, which connects historic sites, small shrines, bridges, and points of interest around the hot spring town. In winter, ice lanterns traditionally illuminate parts of the area during the town’s seasonal event, subject to the year’s schedule and weather.
Back inside, you can play table tennis, choose a board game, browse the shop, or return to the baths for another soak.
Additional Features
Check-in begins at 15:00, and check-out is by 11:00. Every room is non-smoking, and complimentary Wi-Fi is available during your stay.
Reservation-based shuttle services connect the property with JR Ueda Station and JR Matsumoto Station on scheduled departures. Reserve your seat in advance, as times and availability can change. On-site parking is also available when you travel by car.
