New Year
New Year Holidays With Kids: Meals Included and Nothing to Plan
Skip the crowds and the cold. Choose from three ways to relax as a family: a big resort with meals included, a warm southern island, or a snowy hot spring town
42 areas ยท 1679 hotels (total listings across these areas)
The New Year holiday is a tricky time for a family trip in Japan. Many Japanese families are traveling to their hometowns, popular sights are packed, and the cold can upset a child's health. The plans that work best with kids are the ones that don't try to pack in sightseeing. You can stay put at a large resort with meals included, escape to a warm southern island, or settle into a snowy hot spring inn. Once you decide how you want to spend the break, the area and the hotel almost choose themselves.
This collection lines up areas under each of those three styles. At the end, you'll find city-area options that pair well with visiting relatives or a hatsumode (the first shrine visit of the year), plus a regional index. Each area guide lets you filter by conditions such as kids buffets, Japanese-style or Japanese-Western rooms (tatami rooms with futon bedding), room dining (heya-shoku, meals served in your room), private dining rooms, and kids' playrooms, so you can find a hotel that keeps your child on their own rhythm even in a busy lobby and dining hall.
Whichever style you pick, two things make the difference when choosing a New Year stay with kids: how much of the day you can spend inside the hotel, and whether you can avoid the peak-price window of December 29 to January 3.
If you want to dodge the crowds and the price peak as much as possible, our collection of lesser-known places that stay calmer over the New Year holiday is a good next read. And if you haven't yet decided whether to travel at all, start with our column on ways to spend the New Year holidays, including staying home. It will help you size up dates and budget.
Features to look for in this collection
Do Nothing at a Big Resort With Meals Included (Easy Areas From Greater Tokyo and the Tokai Region)
With dinner and breakfast included, or a buffet, you don't have to think about the bill or the menu. If the hotel has a kids' play space or a hot spring on site, children stay entertained without leaving the building.
Izu
Hot springs and sea views, with plenty of large hotels offering dinner and breakfast
Atami
A hot spring town reachable by bullet train, where it's easy to find inns with private baths or room dining
Minami-Boso
Easy to reach by car from central Tokyo and mild even in winter, with many big resorts that include meals
Ise-Shima and Toba
Easy to combine with a New Year visit to Ise Grand Shrine, with a cluster of inns that include meals
Nasu Highlands
Large highland resorts, many where you can spend a whole day indoors, with snow play nearby
Kinugawa Onsen
Big ryokan (Japanese inns) along a river gorge, some with indoor pools and play areas
Fukushima
Ring in the new year at a large resort with hot springs and plenty of facilities on site
Shizuoka
Browse meal-included inns across the whole prefecture, including Izu and Atami
Chiba Prefecture
Browse family-friendly inns across the prefecture, focusing on seaside stays with buffets
Head South Where It's Warm (For Families Worried About Cold and Health)
Daytimes are comfortable even in winter, and many days are good for playing outdoors. Book your flights early.
Okinawa's Main Island
Resorts on the main island. Tourist numbers settle down in winter, so you can use the kids' facilities at big hotels at a relaxed pace
Miyako Island
Ring in the new year by the Miyako Blue sea. Choose from resorts with children's pools or whole-house rentals with a private pool
Ishigaki Island
The slow pace of a remote island, with day trips to nearby islands from Ishigaki
Okinawa
Browse family-friendly stays across all of Okinawa Prefecture
Kagoshima
Hot springs in Ibusuki and Kirishima with a mild climate, ideal for a Kyushu New Year trip
Nanki-Shirahama
A warm hot spring town close to the Kansai region, with an animal attraction nearby
Cozy Up With Snow and Hot Springs (A Snowy New Year)
Play in the snow close to your inn, then spend the rest of the time relaxing with the baths and meals inside. Keep travel short with a bullet train or a hotel shuttle. Even among snowy areas, your shortlist changes depending on whether you prioritize hot springs, easy snow play, or a hotel connected directly to the ski slopes. Our collections on winter hot springs, snow play, and ski-in hotels line up the same areas from different angles, so if you already know your priority, start there to narrow things down faster.
Hokkaido
Big ski resorts with snow play and indoor pools. Check whether airport transfers are offered before you book
Niseko
A world-famous resort with well-equipped snow play facilities for kids
Echigo-Yuzawa
Hot springs and snow within walking distance of a bullet train station. Short travel makes it a good fit for families with babies and toddlers
Kusatsu Onsen
Ring in the new year in the hot spring town around the Yubatake (the steaming hot water field), with snow play nearby
Nagano
Browse snow play and hot spring inns across the prefecture, including Karuizawa
Niigata
Browse snow and hot spring inns across the prefecture, including Echigo-Yuzawa
Pair It With a Hometown Visit or Hatsumode (Near Big Cities)
Add a one-night stay to a trip to see relatives or visit a shrine for the first time in the year. Choose a city hotel with kid-friendly facilities.
Osaka
Easy to combine with hatsumode or a theme park. Many large hotels welcome families
Kyoto
Home to many famous hatsumode shrines. To beat the crowds, pick a hotel location that lets you set out early in the morning
Tokyo
For city hotels in Tokyo, choose by on-site facilities and transit access
Fukuoka
The gateway to Kyushu. Pair it with a hatsumode visit to Dazaifu
Kanazawa
Winter delicacies and hot springs, reachable by the Hokuriku Shinkansen
Family Inns for the New Year in the Kansai Region
If you're planning a New Year family trip in Kansai, four areas make a strong shortlist: Awaji Island, Arima Onsen, Nanki-Shirahama, and Kinosaki Onsen. All have inns offering room dining or private dining rooms, which suits families who want a New Year meal without a crowded dining hall. The New Year holiday can be a worry: prices peak from December 29 to January 3, and restaurants nearby often close. Whether an inn is open over the holidays, what it charges, and whether it serves dishes such as osechi (traditional New Year food) or toshikoshi soba (New Year's Eve noodles) all vary by inn and plan, so check each inn's information before you book. In each area guide, you can filter individual hotels by conditions such as room dining and private baths.
Awaji Island
8 inns offer room dining and 8 have an indoor play area, making it easy to keep both meals and play at your hotel
Arima Onsen
9 inns offer room dining and 8 have a private bath, so it's easy to ring in the new year with just your family
Nanki-Shirahama
Reached from Osaka on the Limited Express Kuroshio, with 7 inns offering room dining and 6 with an indoor play area
Kinosaki Onsen
7 inns offer room dining, 9 offer private dining rooms, and 8 have a private bath, so meals and bathing can stay within your family
Browse by Region
Over the New Year holiday, the travel itself can be hard on kids, so narrowing down a region within easy reach of where you're starting from will speed up your hotel search. In Kansai, you can compare options that differ in both travel time and style: Arima Onsen with its short trip, Nanki-Shirahama reached on the Limited Express Kuroshio, Naruto in Tokushima reached overland via Awaji Island, and Kyoto with its many hatsumode shrines. You can also choose inns with private or room dining, which suits families who want a New Year meal without a crowded dining hall. Central Kansai fills up with hatsumode visitors during the first three days of the year, so it helps to pick either a hotel close to a station or one big enough to spend the whole day inside. In Kanto, many hot spring towns such as Hakone, Nasu Highlands, and Kusatsu Onsen can be reached by train and bus. If you check in advance whether the inn runs a shuttle, you can avoid highways where traffic is hard to predict. Kyushu offers a wide choice of hot spring destinations, including Beppu Onsen, Kurokawa Onsen, and Kagoshima, and whether you pick the coast or the mountains changes both how easy the trip is and how cold it gets over the New Year. In the Tokai region, the shortlist narrows to Ise-Shima for hatsumode and Gero Onsen, which makes scheduling simpler.
Hakone
Reachable from central Tokyo by train, so you can avoid New Year highway traffic and predict your travel time
Nasu Highlands
Travel time is easy to keep short by bullet train. Check for a shuttle and pick an inn where you can spend the whole day inside, and it's easier to avoid the New Year crowds
Kusatsu Onsen
The area around the Yubatake gets crowded at the start of the year, so choose an inn where baths and meals are all on site for a calmer stay
Arima Onsen
Many inns have private baths, so your family can soak while avoiding the busy times at the large communal bath
Nanki-Shirahama
A seaside hot spring town, a good fit for families who want to stay away from the hatsumode crowds
Kyoto
A short trip from other Kansai areas, so it's easy to build an itinerary by adding a stay
Beppu Onsen
The town center tends to be crowded at the start of the year, so an inn where you can bathe on site means less moving around with kids
Kurokawa Onsen
Mountain travel takes longer, so once you arrive, a plan with no outings keeps children from getting tired
Kagoshima
Easy to combine airport transfers with city sightseeing. The hatsumode crowds peak during the first three days of the year, so adding one day at the inn's hot spring cuts down on travel
Ise-Shima and Toba
The hatsumode at Ise Grand Shrine is busiest during the first three days of the year, so shifting your stay to before or after makes travel easier
Gero Onsen
Inns cluster in the hot spring town and travel is short, but shops in town sometimes close over the New Year, so plan to have your meals at the inn
Naruto
Reachable overland from Kansai, an option for families who want to avoid crowded New Year flights and bullet trains
Tips for traveling with kids
- checkOver the New Year holiday, a plan with no sightseeing tends to feel better. Choose a large resort where everything happens inside, or an inn where room dining and a private bath let you stay in your room
- checkJapanese-style rooms, Japanese-Western rooms, and kids' rooms are limited in number at each inn. Some require a minimum stay or consecutive nights, so check room type and booking conditions together
- checkIf you're visiting relatives, take the bullet train or choose an inn with a shuttle. New Year highway traffic is hard to predict
- checkIn case your child suddenly gets a fever, check the date the cancellation fee starts and the location of a nearby holiday clinic when you book
- checkRooms in winter inns tend to be dry. Check before booking whether the inn lends humidifiers
Recommended hotels in this collection (84)
Selected automatically from the top-ranked hotels in each area.
Hotel & Spa Anda Resort Izukogen
Pleasure Resort Izu Akasawa Onsen (Akasawa Onsen Hotel)
Kamenoi Hotel Atami
TAOYA Atami
Grand Mercure Minamiboso Resort & Spa
Kisui no Yado Monya
Todaya
Toba View Hotel Hanashinju
Grand Mercure Nasu Highlands Resort & Spa
Hotel Epinard Nasu
See all hotels in this collection (84)expand_more
- Hotel & Spa Anda Resort Izukogen
- Pleasure Resort Izu Akasawa Onsen (Akasawa Onsen Hotel)
- Kamenoi Hotel Atami
- TAOYA Atami
- Grand Mercure Minamiboso Resort & Spa
- Kisui no Yado Monya
- Todaya
- Toba View Hotel Hanashinju
- Grand Mercure Nasu Highlands Resort & Spa
- Hotel Epinard Nasu
- Kinugawa Onsen Hotel
- Nikko Kinugawa Hotel Mikazuki
- Hotel Listel Inawashiro Wing Tower
- Tsuchiyu Onsen Hotel Sansuiso
- Hotel Wellseason Hamanako
- Izu Kogen Hanairotei
- Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel
- Hotel Emion Tokyo Bay
- PGM Hotel Resort Okinawa
- Yuinchi Hotel Nanjo
- Hotel Breezebay Marina
- Hotel Shigira Mirage
- Fusaki Beach Resort Hotel & Villas
- Ishigaki The Miyara Garden
- Fukugi Terrace
- Kanucha Bay Hotel & Villas
- Kirishima Bijin no Yu Yuyuan
- Kirishima Kokusai Hotel
- Shirahama Yanagiya
- Shirahama Coganoi Resort & Spa
- Hoshino Resorts TOMAMU The Tower
- Kitayuzawa Mori no Soraniwa
- Ki Niseko
- Niseko Annupuri Onsen Yugokorotei
- Angel Grandia Echigo Nakazato
- Atema Kogen Resort Belnatio
- Hotel Sakurai
- Kusatsu Onsen Yunoyado Misago
- Dormy Club Karuizawa
- Shirakaba Resort Ikenotaira Hotel
- Echigo Yuzawa NASPA New Otani
- Maiko Onsen Iishi no Yu Maiko Kogen Hotel
- Anda no Mori Osaka Tennoji Tower
- Ooedo Onsen Monogatari Premium Minoo Kanko Hotel
- DoubleTree by Hilton Kyoto Station
- Nanzenji Yachiyo
- Tokyo Dome Hotel
- Hotel Villa Fontaine Grand Tokyo Ariake
- Miyako Hotel Hakata
- Mars Garden Hotel Hakata
- Hotel MyStays Premier Kanazawa
- Kanazawa Yuwaku Onsen Hyakurakusou
- Yumekaiyu Awajishima
- Grand Mercure Awaji Island Resort & Spa
- Arima Onsen Arima Grand Hotel
- Kobe Arima Onsen Motoyu Ryusenkaku
- Shirahama Onsen Hotel Sanrakuso
- Ooedo Onsen Monogatari Premium Shirahama Saichoraku
- Kinosaki Onsen Onishiya Suishoen
- Kinosaki Onsen Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei
- Hakone Hotel Kowakien
- Sengokuhara Shinanoki Ichinoyu
- Pension Ajiwai
- Hoshino Resorts RISONARE Nasu
- Kusatsu Onsen Kusatsu Now Resort Hotel
- Kusatsu Onsen Pension Hino Ataru Basho
- Arima Onsen Hyoe Koyokaku
- Arima Gyoen
- Kishu Shirahama Onsen Musashi
- Nanki Shirahama Marriott Hotel
- Hilton Garden Inn Kyoto Shijo Karasuma
- RIHGA Royal Hotel Kyoto
- Beppu Onsen Shinhorii
- Suginoi Hotel
- Kurokawa Onsen Yumerindo Hanadomari
- Kurokawa Mori no Cottage
- Kyukamura Ibusuki
- Koshikano Onsen Ryokan & Glamping
- Resort Club Iseshima
- Senpokaku
- Gero Onsen Fugaku
- Gero Onsen Bosenkan
- AoAwo Naruto Resort
- Grand XIV Naruto The Lodge
Choose by destination
Areas in this feature and nearby attractions. Attraction pages list hotels from nearest to farthest.
Areas
Great for kids
Classic sights worth a stop
Frequently Asked Questions
How far in advance should I book a New Year trip with kids?
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Popular inns and family-friendly room types start to fill up in the fall. Once your dates are set, book by October or November at the latest, and check the cancellation policy. Rates over the New Year are higher than usual, and some inns require a minimum stay.
Where is easiest for a New Year trip with a baby?
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Large resorts with short travel where you can spend the whole day inside, and hot spring inns where room dining and a private bath let you stay in your room, are a good fit. If you're worried about cold and health, warm areas such as Okinawa are also an option. In each area guide, you can filter by conditions such as Japanese-style rooms, room dining, and baby crib rental.
What are the benefits of choosing an inn with meals included over the New Year?
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Nearby restaurants are often closed or crowded over the New Year, so an inn that includes dinner and breakfast takes the worry out of meals. Inns with a buffet or a kids' menu handle picky eaters more easily, and you skip going out to eat in the cold. You can also choose inns that offer allergy-friendly meals.
Can I go to a snowy region over the New Year without a car?
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Areas close to a bullet train station, such as Echigo-Yuzawa, or large resorts with a shuttle make it easy to plan without a car. If you aren't used to driving on snowy roads, the safer choice is an area you can reach entirely by train and shuttle. Check each inn's information to see whether a shuttle is offered.
Will the crowds over the New Year make my kids cranky?
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Communal baths and buffet halls get busier at certain times, so going early or late helps you stay relaxed. If you choose an inn with room dining or a private bath, you can avoid the crowds altogether. A kids' room in the hotel gives children a place to retreat whatever the weather.
Are there any cheaper days over the New Year?
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Even at the same inn, dates from December 29 to January 3, especially those around New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, tend to be the price peak, and shifting before or after can lower the rate. If your end-of-year work schedule or hatsumode plans have any flexibility, compare daily prices on a booking site. Shifting your stay just one day off the peak can sometimes get you the same room type for less. Our column on when to book also covers booking timing and how prices move.
Will osechi, toshikoshi soba, or mochitsuki be served?
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New Year meals and events vary by inn, and even the same inn can change what it offers from year to year. Whether you get osechi-style kaiseki (a multi-course meal), toshikoshi soba, or mochitsuki (rice cake pounding) is often set by your stay date and rate plan, so check each inn's New Year plan information before you book. It's also reassuring to find out whether portions are prepared for children.