Overview

Suhaku gives you a lakeside ryokan stay in Kamisuwa Onsen, with Lake Suwa in front of you and the mountains of Shinshu beyond the water. The ryokan reopened with a renewed look in May 2025, bringing larger renovated rooms, a refreshed dining space, and a more comfortable atmosphere while keeping its strong connection to the hot springs of Suwa.

This is the only ryokan in Kamisuwa Onsen where you can enjoy two different hot spring sources inside the building. The name Suhaku comes from these two waters: “Shu no Yu,” a reddish-brown spring, and “Shiro no Yu,” a clear spring. You can soak in top-floor baths with views over Lake Suwa, choose a room with a private open-air hot spring bath, and enjoy Shinshu cuisine prepared in a dining room with an open kitchen.

Accommodation

Suhaku offers lake-view rooms, modern Japanese rooms, Japanese-Western rooms, and standard Japanese rooms. All rooms are non-smoking, with smoking booths available on each guest-room floor. The renovated rooms combine tatami, beds, soft lighting, and practical layouts, giving you a stay that feels Japanese without giving up comfort.

The Lake Front Modern Japanese Room with Open-Air Hot Spring Bath is one of the strongest room choices. It was created by combining two former rooms into one larger 60㎡ space, with twin beds, tatami comfort, and a private open-air bath facing Lake Suwa. The bath uses Shiro no Yu, the clear hot spring water, so you can enjoy the lake view and your own bathing space without following the public bath schedule.

The Modern Japanese Room with Open-Air Hot Spring Bath is a one-room-only option and the only guest room where you can enjoy Shu no Yu, the reddish-brown spring, in a private open-air bath. The room has twin semi-double beds, a renewed interior, and a washing area added near the open-air bath.

The Deluxe Modern Japanese-Western Room gives you a larger renewed space with tatami and beds. The Modern Japanese Room has twin beds, a daybed, tatami flooring, and a shower booth instead of the previous unit bath. The Japanese-Western Room is barrier-free friendly, with fewer steps, twin beds, and tatami space, making it easier to use if you want a gentler room layout. The Standard Japanese Room keeps a more traditional style, with 12 tatami mats and futon bedding.

Rooms include useful comforts such as Wi-Fi, TV, refrigerator, washlet toilet, safe, kettle, towels, samue roomwear, and bath amenities. The room experience focuses on lake views, tatami comfort, and easy access to the baths rather than unnecessary decoration.

Dining

Dining at Suhaku focuses on Shinshu ingredients, seasonal flavor, and the energy of a renewed dining space. The restaurant has wide views toward Lake Suwa and an open kitchen where freshly grilled and freshly fried dishes add movement to the meal.

Dinner is based on Suhaku Gozen, the standard seasonal course prepared with selected Shinshu ingredients. Depending on the season, the course may include dishes such as Shinshu salmon, local pork, carp, mountain vegetables, Suwa Koshihikari rice, Shinshu miso soup, and seasonal sweets. The menu changes with ingredient supply and season.

Upgraded kaiseki courses give you a deeper taste of Shinshu. Suwa Kaiseki includes richer local ingredients such as Shinshu Premium Beef, seasonal sashimi, mountain vegetables, and carefully prepared small dishes. Hanatsumugi offers a refined seasonal kaiseki with a lighter, balanced feeling when you want a special meal without too much volume.

Local ingredients are central to the cooking. Shinshu beef, Shinshu salmon, iwana river fish, seasonal vegetables, wild plants, and regional rice all help connect the meal to Nagano. Breakfast is served in the same dining area and gives you a Japanese morning meal before lakeside sightseeing or another soak.

Onsen and Wellness

Suhaku has two hot spring sources inside the building, which makes it especially distinctive in Kamisuwa Onsen. Shu no Yu is a reddish-brown simple hot spring that rises from about 160 meters underground. It has a light yellow-brown color and a faint sulfur scent, and it helps warm the body well. Shiro no Yu is a clear simple hot spring that rises from around 1,500 to 2,000 meters underground. It has a smooth, gentle feel and a weak alkaline quality.

The top-floor bath area gives you views over Lake Suwa from the shared indoor and open-air baths. Kocho no Yu combines a Shiro no Yu open-air bath with a Shu no Yu indoor bath. Hobo no Yu combines a Shu no Yu open-air bath with a Shiro no Yu indoor bath, and the open-air area also includes a reclining bath. Men and women use different bath areas depending on the time, so you can enjoy both spring types during your stay.

Bathing hours are from 15:00 to 24:00 and from 5:00 to 9:30. The public baths include barrier-free support, and the reserved private open-air bath Honoka lets you enjoy both spring colors in a private space. Honoka can also be used with wheelchair access into the bathing area.

The hot spring water is associated with support for muscle and joint stiffness, cold sensitivity, neuralgia, muscle pain, joint pain, frozen shoulder, chronic digestive concerns, fatigue recovery, and skin comfort. The private open-air bath rooms give you another way to enjoy the hot spring without using the shared bath area.

Tattoos and Onsen Use

Suhaku has shared public indoor and open-air hot spring baths. Tattoos should be fully covered before using the shared bathing areas. If your tattoo cannot be fully covered, use the reserved private open-air bath Honoka or choose a room with a private open-air hot spring bath.

Facilities

Suhaku has a renewed lobby and lounge, a shop, lake-view dining space, open kitchen, top-floor public hot spring baths, reserved private open-air bath, vending machine, café space, front desk, smoking booths, nursing room, AED, barrier-free toilets, and Wi-Fi.

The lobby and lounge use a refined Japanese design with a more open layout after the renovation. The shop carries Suwa and Nagano souvenirs, while the dining room combines lake views with the lively feel of an open kitchen. The top floor is dedicated to the bath experience, with shared indoor and open-air baths and the private bath Honoka.

The ryokan also supports easier movement through the building. The public baths, dining venue, and key shared areas include barrier-free features, while selected rooms offer layouts with fewer steps and wider access.

Activities

Suhaku places you close to Lake Suwa’s year-round activities. You can walk along the lakeside, cycle or jog around the Suwa Lake Cycling Road, take a sightseeing boat across the lake, or enjoy seasonal flowers and views around the water.

Spring brings cherry blossoms along the lakeshore and late-season blooms in the wider Suwa area. Summer brings lake activities, fishing, and the famous Suwa Lake fireworks, including the large summer fireworks festival and seasonal night fireworks. Autumn is good for lakeside colors, cycling, walking, and nearby highland outings. Winter brings swans, wakasagi fishing, ski areas within reach, and the rare Omiwatari ice-ridge phenomenon when the lake freezes under the right conditions.

You can also visit Suwa Taisha shrines, Takashima Castle, local museums, cafés, and sake breweries around the area. The lakeside setting makes it easy to choose between active sightseeing and a slower stay built around the view, food, and hot springs.

Additional Features

Suhaku is best for you if you want a Lake Suwa ryokan with two different hot spring sources, top-floor lake-view baths, renovated rooms, selected rooms with private open-air hot spring baths, Shinshu cuisine, and easy access to Kamisuwa sightseeing. Check-in starts at 15:00, and check-out is at 10:00. The final check-in for standard stays is 18:00.

You also have free Wi-Fi, all non-smoking rooms, smoking booths on each guest-room floor, barrier-free room options, a renewed lobby lounge, a shop, lake-view dining, an open kitchen, a reserved private bath, and access to Lake Suwa’s walking, cycling, boating, fireworks, and seasonal nature experiences.