Overview

Leave busy roads behind and spend the night surrounded by Kiso cypress forest at Takimi House, also known as Takimi Onsen Takimi no Ie. Only one group stays each night, giving you exclusive use of the entire Japanese inn, its natural hot spring baths, and its fireside dining rooms.

A waterfall and clear mountain stream run beside the building, filling the house with the gentle sound of moving water. You can sit beside the windows, step onto the wooden veranda, or soak beneath the open sky while looking into the forest.

Tsumago-juku and the Nakasendo route are within easy reach, making Takimi House an inviting retreat after walking through the Kiso Valley. Complimentary transport from Nagiso Station or Tsumago-juku also helps you reach this secluded mountain setting.

Accommodation

Rather than booking one room in a shared ryokan, you reserve the entire house for your group. Four Japanese rooms, a spacious living room, a waterfall-facing dining room, and two traditional irori rooms become yours for the night.

Tatami floors, shoji screens, exposed wood, and carefully chosen furniture give the interiors a warm, nostalgic character. Futon bedding is prepared in the Japanese rooms, while windows look toward the cypress trees, stream, and waterfall.

You can move between the rooms freely, choosing a quiet corner to read, spending time together in the living room, or stepping onto the veranda after your bath. The house works especially well when you want privacy as a couple, family, or small group.

Dining

Dinner follows the ingredients available in Kiso that day, so there is no fixed menu. Seasonal vegetables, mountain produce, river fish, and regional specialities shape a meal designed around freshness rather than a standard selection.

Your dinner may include salt-grilled iwana, Shinshu salmon, wild boar hot pot, Shinshu beef, seasonal tempura, and gohei mochi coated in a rich house-made sauce. Around ten dishes are normally prepared, although the exact selection changes with the season.

One of the most memorable parts of the evening takes place around the irori hearth. You can watch fish and gohei mochi cook slowly over charcoal while listening to the fire crackle. Breakfast is also prepared for you, allowing you to begin the morning without leaving the quiet of the house.

Onsen and Wellness

You have exclusive use of both the indoor and open-air natural hot spring baths. Built with fragrant hinoki cypress, the baths look toward the waterfall, clear stream, and surrounding forest.

The open-air bath lets you listen to the water while you soak beneath the trees. On a clear night, you may also see the stars above the forest. The indoor bath gives you the same cypress aroma and natural scenery through wide windows.

The spring is an alkaline simple sulfur spring known for its gentle feel on the skin. The bathing water receives a continuous supply from the source and also passes through a circulation and filtration system for cleanliness.

Overnight bathing hours run from 5:00 AM to 9:00 AM and from 6:00 PM to midnight. Because your group has the entire property, you can enjoy the baths without sharing them with anyone else.

Guests with Tattoos

You can use both the indoor and open-air natural hot spring baths if you have tattoos. The entire inn and its bathing facilities are reserved exclusively for your group.

Facilities

You have access to four Japanese rooms, a large living room, a waterfall-facing dining room, two irori hearth rooms, a hinoki indoor bath, and a private open-air onsen. The veranda and windows provide peaceful places to enjoy the stream and forest between meals and baths.

The property also has a pond where you may be able to catch iwana. Fish caught during this experience can be grilled over the irori as part of your evening meal. Complimentary parking is available when you arrive by car, and free Wi-Fi helps you stay connected during your mountain retreat.

There is no shared self-catering kitchen or advertised laundry facility for your use. Dinner and breakfast are prepared as part of the ryokan experience.

Activities

Travel to Tsumago-juku to walk beneath the dark wooden eaves of one of the Kiso Valley’s best-preserved post towns. From there, you can follow the historic Nakasendo trail through forest, small settlements, and mountain scenery toward Magome-juku.

Around the house, you can take gentle walks through the cypress forest, listen for birds, and spend time beside the stream. The waterfall next to the property remains part of the experience even when you decide not to go sightseeing.

For a longer outing, visit Kakizore Gorge for a short walk beside clear pools and waterfalls. Atera Gorge is known for its striking blue-green water, while Akasawa Natural Recreational Forest offers woodland trails and a seasonal forest railway.

Additional Features

Takimi House normally welcomes one group of two to six people each night. All sleeping areas use Japanese-style futon bedding.

Complimentary pickup is available from Nagiso Station or Tsumago-juku when arranged in advance. This makes the house practical when you are walking the Nakasendo and do not have a car.

With exclusive use of the entire building, private natural onsen bathing, seasonal meals, irori dining, and the sound of a waterfall outside, Takimi House gives you a deeply personal way to experience the forests of Kiso.