Overview

Tamaya Ryokan welcomes you to Bessho Onsen, a historic hot spring town in Ueda, Nagano, known as “Shinshu no Kamakura” for its temples, shrines, national treasures, and important cultural properties. You can stay in a long-established 16-room ryokan with more than 150 years of history, soak in free-flowing Bessho hot spring water, and enjoy Shinshu flavors in a private dining setting.

The atmosphere feels calm, intimate, and deeply local. From Tamaya, you can walk through the old onsen town to Kitamuki Kannon, Anrakuji Temple, Jorakuji Temple, and the three public bathhouses of Bessho Onsen.

Accommodation

Tamaya Ryokan has 16 rooms across five main types, with Japanese-Western rooms at the center of the stay. All rooms are non-smoking, and free Wi-Fi is available throughout the building and in every room.

Premium Suite Room with In-Room Hot Spring
Opened in June 2024, this two-room-only suite gives you Tamaya’s most private stay. You have a living room, dining room, bedroom, and a hinoki bath with hot spring water inside the room. You can soak whenever you like, enjoy dinner and breakfast in your room, and spend your stay without moving between shared spaces for meals or bathing.

Standard Japanese-Western Room
This room combines a sleeping area with two Simmons semi-double beds and a sofa space in a Japanese-Western layout. You can relax without sitting directly on the floor, which makes it a comfortable choice if you prefer beds over futons.

Deluxe Japanese-Western Room
This one-room-only corner room gives you a roomier Japanese-Western space with two Simmons semi-double beds and a Ryukyu tatami relaxation area. It suits you well when you want more space while keeping a ryokan-style atmosphere.

Junior Suite Japanese-Western Room with Hinoki Bath
This one-room-only special room sits on the top floor in a corner location. You have two Simmons semi-double beds, a Ryukyu tatami relaxation area, and a hinoki bath inside the room, giving you a private onsen-style bathing option.

Pure Japanese Room
This traditional tatami room gives you the scent and feel of a classic ryokan stay. From the window, you can look out toward the quiet satoyama countryside.

Dining

Meals focus on Shinshu Premium Beef and the seasonal tastes of Nagano. You dine either in your room or in a private dining room, with seating options such as horigotatsu-style spaces and table seating.

For dinner, you can enjoy kaiseki-style plans built around ingredients such as Shinshu Premium Beef, Ise lobster, shark fin, and abalone, depending on the plan you choose. The basic kaiseki features Shinshu Premium Beef cooked on hot stone, while the upgraded kaiseki adds Ise lobster sashimi and a choice of shark fin or butter-grilled abalone.

If you stay in the Premium Suite Room, you can enjoy a suite-only dinner in your room’s dining area, with Shinshu Premium Beef Chateaubriand steak as the main dish. Breakfast for this room is also served in your room, with a choice of Japanese or Western breakfast.

Breakfast highlights Shinshu flavors, including Bessho Onsen tofu, creative Shinshu soba dishes, vegetables, and Shinshu Premium Beef soboro miso.

Onsen and Wellness

Tamaya Ryokan uses 100% free-flowing Bessho Onsen water with no circulation and no added water. The spring is a mildly alkaline simple sulfur spring with a pH of 8.0–9.0, known for its soft feel on the skin.

You can bathe in two gender-rotating large bath areas. Meigetsu has an indoor bath and a stone open-air bath, with fresh spring water flowing from the spout. Awayuki has an indoor bath, open-air bath, sauna, and cold bath. Its open-air bath uses tourmaline, and the sauna is available from check-in until 22:00.

The shared baths are available from check-in until 10:00 the next morning, except from 19:00 to 20:00 during the gender switch. The Premium Suite Room lets you enjoy Bessho hot spring water in your own room 24 hours a day.

Guests with Tattoos

Because you can soak in a private onsen inside selected room types, you can enjoy the onsen regardless of tattoos.

For the public bath, if you have tattoos, check with the hotel directly before using the shared bathing areas.

Facilities

Tamaya Ryokan offers a lobby and entrance hall, the Irori lounge Kusa no An, private dining rooms, a banquet room, the souvenir shop Nanokuri, the relaxation area Zen with three free massage chairs, large hot spring baths, sauna, free Wi-Fi throughout the building, an elevator, free parking, and free yukata and samue rental.

At Kusa no An, you can enjoy complimentary soft drinks, coffee, tea, and draft beer service until 18:00. At Nanokuri, you can browse Shinshu sweets, local sake, pickles, and other souvenirs.

The building is non-smoking, with smoking rooms on the 3rd and 5th floors. The 3rd-floor smoking room is for the Premium Suite Room.

Activities

Bessho Onsen makes it easy to combine hot springs with cultural walks. You can visit Kitamuki Kannon, a north-facing temple connected with Zenkoji in Nagano City, or walk to Anrakuji Temple, home to a rare wooden octagonal three-storied pagoda designated as a National Treasure.

You can also explore Jorakuji Temple, Bessho Shrine, and the three public baths of Bessho Onsen: Ishiyu, Oyu, and Daishiyu. For a wider Ueda trip, you can visit Ueda Castle Ruins Park, stroll along the old streets of Yanagimachi, or drive out toward Utsukushigahara Highland and Sugadaira Highland.

Additional Features

• 16-room ryokan with more than 150 years of history
• 100% free-flowing Bessho Onsen water
• Two large bath areas with indoor and open-air baths
• Sauna and cold bath in Awayuki
• Premium Suite Room with in-room hot spring bath
• Junior Suite Japanese-Western Room with private hinoki bath
• Dinner and breakfast served in-room or in a private dining room
• Premium Suite Room with suite-only dining and room check-in
• Free Wi-Fi throughout the building
• Free parking
• Non-smoking building with designated smoking rooms
• Shop KAGAJI