Overview

Stay at the foot of Mount Sakado at Shunsai no Sho Sakadojo, a traditional hot spring inn in Minamiuonuma. The surrounding region is known for deep winter snow, mountain scenery, historic castle ruins, and some of Japan’s most celebrated rice.

You can spend the morning walking through the countryside, climb towards the former Sakado Castle site, or visit nearby temples and old post-town streets. After returning, Muikamachi Onsen gives you a warm place to recover before a dinner built around local produce and freshly cooked Minamiuonuma Koshihikari rice.

Sakadojo also has strong connections with the history of Uesugi Kagekatsu and Naoe Kanetsugu. Displays and local sightseeing routes help you discover the samurai heritage that shaped this part of Niigata.

Accommodation

You can choose from Japanese rooms in the Main Building and East Wing, a Japanese-Western twin, and a compact Japanese room suited to a simple business stay. Wi-Fi is available throughout the room collection.

The East Wing Japanese Room is non-smoking and accommodates up to six people. It includes tatami flooring, futon bedding, a private bathroom, and a toilet. This is the most practical choice when you are travelling with family or want more space.

The Main Building Japanese Room accommodates up to five people. It has tatami, futon bedding, and a private toilet, but you use the communal bathing area instead of an in-room bath. Both non-smoking rooms and rooms that permit electronic cigarettes are sold under this category.

The Japanese-Western Twin combines beds with a Japanese sitting area. A private bathroom and toilet are included. This category permits electronic cigarettes, so it does not suit you when you require a fully smoke-free room.

The compact Business Japanese Room accommodates up to three people. It has tatami and futon bedding but no private bathroom or toilet. This room also permits electronic cigarettes.

Your room includes climate control, a television, tea, towels, a bath towel, yukata, slippers, toiletries, and a safe. Some rooms have a refrigerator and hairdryer, while other equipment can be borrowed.

Futons may already be prepared when you arrive, allowing you to settle in without waiting for the room to be rearranged later in the evening.

Dining

Dinner brings you the ingredients and cooking traditions of Minamiuonuma. Current meal plans include a seasonal Japanese kaiseki and a shabu-shabu dinner featuring Wa-ton Mochibuta pork.

The Uonuma kaiseki may include local produce, seasonal mountain vegetables, sashimi, grilled food, soup, and freshly cooked Koshihikari rice. The menu changes with the season and the ingredients available that day.

The pork shabu-shabu plan lets you cook thin slices of Wa-ton Mochibuta with local vegetables at your table. The pork has a mild sweetness and works well with the rice and traditional side dishes served alongside it.

Meals are usually served in a restaurant, private dining room, or banquet space according to your selected plan and party size. Gongen creates a traditional setting around a sunken hearth inside a building constructed with zelkova timber reclaimed from an old regional residence.

Niigata sake is available with dinner, including labels from breweries around Minamiuonuma and the wider prefecture.

Breakfast is one of Sakadojo’s main food experiences. The buffet uses around 70 local and seasonal ingredients, including vegetables, mountain plants, mushrooms, eggs, and traditional countryside side dishes.

Minamiuonuma Koshihikari rice is cooked in a traditional nuka-gama stove. You can return for more rice and combine it with the changing selection of local breakfast food.

When the number of people staying is lower, breakfast may change from a buffet to a prepared Japanese meal.

Onsen and Wellness

Muikamachi Onsen was discovered in 1957 when hot water emerged during natural-gas drilling in a rice field. The area later developed into a recognised National Recreational Hot Spring Area.

Sakadojo uses a mixed source drawn from Muikamachi Onsen’s No. 13 and No. 15 springs. The water is classified as a sodium chloride spring with a hypotonic, weakly alkaline, high-temperature character.

The spring contains metasilicic acid, while its salt content helps your body retain warmth after bathing. Traditional bathing indications include muscle and joint discomfort, sensitivity to cold, fatigue, minor cuts, and dry skin.

Tsuki Mikage no Yu includes a spacious indoor bath, jet bathing, and a low-temperature aroma sauna. Its Kaiun Chashitsu open-air bath has a tatami-edged design inspired by a tea room. Decorative coins inside the bath received a good-fortune blessing at Kaishi Daikokuten.

Hana Mikage no Yu includes another large indoor bathing area and the Seasonal Fragrance Bath. The added herbs and fragrance change by month, bringing a different bathing theme through the year.

The two bathing areas change between men and women at 19:30. Tsuki Mikage no Yu serves men from early morning until the change and women afterward. Hana Mikage no Yu follows the opposite schedule.

The baths normally open from 5:00 until 1:00 the following morning. They close from 1:00 until 5:00 and briefly during the evening cleaning and gender change.

Day-use bathing normally operates from late morning until 21:00 from Tuesday through Sunday. Monday service begins later, while Saturday admission ends in the afternoon. The baths also close briefly for evening cleaning. Day-use entry is capacity-controlled and requires advance confirmation.

There is no reservable private bath and no accommodation with its own natural onsen.

Guests with Tattoos

Tattoos are not allowed in the shared indoor baths, open-air bath, sauna, or communal changing areas.

Cover seals do not provide an exception. Sakadojo does not have a private bath or an in-room onsen, so there is no tattoo-friendly hot spring alternative inside the property.

Facilities

The lounge overlooks the inner garden and gives you somewhere to sit with coffee, a soft drink, ice cream, beer, or a cocktail.

Ak tombo sells Minamiuonuma Koshihikari, Niigata sake, local food, small crafts, and textiles from the surrounding region. You can also order selected foods through the online store after returning home.

Private dining rooms accommodate smaller meals and gatherings. Ryusho no Ma supports larger celebrations, while Zuiun no Ma is used for breakfast, meetings, and organised events.

Meeting rooms, banquet halls, vending machines, bicycle rental, parcel delivery, and a ski-drying room support group trips, winter holidays, and longer stays.

The entrance has step-free access, and wheelchairs can be borrowed. An adapted toilet and elevator controls positioned for wheelchair use are also available, although the East Wing does not have an elevator.

EV charging equipment, including a Tesla charger, is available in the parking area.

Activities

Mount Sakado rises directly behind the inn. The mountain reaches 634 metres and contains the remains of Sakado Castle, once an important stronghold of the Uesugi clan.

A typical climb takes around one hour and 20 minutes each way, depending on your route and fitness. From the summit, you can look across the Uonuma Basin and surrounding mountains. Spring brings colonies of katakuri flowers, while autumn adds colour to the wooded slopes.

Untoan is around ten minutes away by car. Uesugi Kagekatsu and Naoe Kanetsugu studied here during childhood, and the temple remains closely connected with the area’s samurai history.

Bokushi Street is around 15 minutes away. Traditional snow-country architecture and covered gangi walkways introduce you to the way people adapted daily life to the region’s heavy snowfall.

The Hakkaisan Ropeway is around 20 minutes away by car. It carries you high above the mountain slopes for wide views over the Uonuma Basin, with hiking and autumn foliage during the green season.

In winter, several ski areas are within driving distance. Sakadojo’s ski-drying space helps you store wet equipment after returning from the snow.

The rooftop barbecue garden opens during July and August. Evening sessions include grilled Mochibuta pork, seafood, vegetables, drinks, and side dishes. Reservations are required for at least four people and must be completed two days ahead.

Additional Features

Standard check-in begins at 15:00, and check-out is by 10:00. Selected direct-booking plans allow check-in from 14:00 and departure by 11:00.

Muikamachi Station is around 13 to 15 minutes away on foot or approximately five minutes by car. A complimentary transfer can be arranged with qualifying accommodation plans.

Complimentary parking includes spaces directly in front of the building and a larger area around two minutes away on foot. Snow reduces the number of available spaces in winter.

Wi-Fi is available in every room. Room smoking rules differ by category, with non-smoking rooms and rooms that permit electronic cigarettes both offered.