Reference price. The lowest rate on Rakuten Travel (single occupancy, in the least expensive season). For a family stay, expect it to be higher than this guide figure. Please check the booking site for actual rates.
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forumWhat families say
Rakuten Travel rating 4.38 out of 5 (1,505 reviews). Guests report that the communal bath has plenty of washing stations and lockers, so even families rarely find it crowded. They praise the open-air bath, which is spacious and fed straight from the source, and rate the food highly as well, including the signature tofu kaiseki. On the other hand, some point out that the baths are in a separate building, which makes getting there feel a little inconvenient on rainy days and in winter.
Kids Facilities
Private-hire baths
Private-hire baths
Private-hire baths where you can enjoy onsen water flowing straight from the source in a space of your own. There are 4 in all: 2 built of stone and Japanese cypress, and 2 with a barrier-free design, available from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. They are an option for bathing together with a child whose age makes the communal bath difficult.
- •Available from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m.
- •Guests with tattoos are not permitted to bathe
Rooms with an open-air bath or a semi-open-air bath
Rooms with an open-air bath or a semi-open-air bath
On the Lake Akaya side there are Japanese-style bedrooms with an in-room open-air bath fed straight from the source, as well as Japanese-style bedrooms and Japanese-Western rooms with a semi-open-air bath. The in-room open-air bath tubs come in two styles, Japanese cypress and cast iron, so your family can soak in the onsen on your own without leaving the room.
Japanese-style tatami rooms and Japanese-Western rooms
Japanese-style tatami rooms and Japanese-Western rooms
On the Tanigawa mountain range side, the 8-tatami Japanese-style rooms sleep 1 to 4 guests and the 10-tatami Japanese-style rooms sleep 1 to 5. On the Lake Akaya side, the Japanese-Western rooms (twin beds plus 6 tatami mats) sleep 1 to 4 guests, and those with a semi-open-air bath (twin beds plus 12 tatami mats) sleep 1 to 8. Counting Japanese-style tatami rooms, Japanese-Western rooms, Western-style rooms and rooms with an open-air bath, there are 52 rooms in all.
Categories
Overview
Sarugakyo Hotel is an Itoen Hotels onsen ryokan in Sarugakyo Onsen in Minakami, Gunma. Its 52 rooms look out over Lake Akaya and the Tanigawa mountain range and include Japanese-style tatami rooms, Japanese-Western rooms, Japanese-style bedrooms and rooms with an open-air bath. Alongside a communal bath and open-air bath fed straight from the source, there are 4 private-hire baths. Dinner is a creative Japanese set meal paired with a half-buffet, and breakfast is a buffet. Children's rates are set at 60% of the adult rate for infants and toddlers with bedding and 90% of the adult rate for elementary school children, with co-sleeping limited to one child.
Rooms
There are 52 rooms in all, counting Japanese-style tatami rooms, Japanese-Western rooms, Western-style rooms and rooms with an open-air bath. On the Tanigawa mountain range side, the 8-tatami Japanese-style rooms sleep 1 to 4 guests and the 10-tatami Japanese-style rooms sleep 1 to 5 guests, and there are 22 of the 10-tatami rooms. On the Lake Akaya side, the Japanese-Western rooms (twin beds plus 6 tatami mats) sleep 1 to 4 guests, while the Japanese-Western rooms with a semi-open-air bath (twin beds plus 12 tatami mats) sleep 1 to 8, so even larger families have a range to choose from. Tatami rooms make it easy to put a small child down to sleep, and the Japanese-style bedroom on the Lake Akaya side with an open-air bath is 12.5 tatami mats plus 8 tatami mats. The 8-tatami Japanese-style room on the Tanigawa mountain range side and the Japanese-style bedroom on that side are one per floor, so if you book several rooms they will be apart from one another. Every room has a bath and toilet, a toilet with a washing function, and free Wi-Fi. Pets are not allowed at the hotel.
Dining
Dinner is a creative Japanese set meal that the head chef has put great care into, paired with a half-buffet of side dishes, salads, desserts and more. The Japanese set meals are laid out in advance at assigned seats for the number of guests, and dinner normally starts at 6 p.m. or 6:30 p.m., with 7 p.m. the latest start; the meal time is 90 minutes. Breakfast is a buffet spanning Japanese side dishes, Western dishes and Chinese dishes. Breakfast and dinner are both served in the restaurant, and in-room dining is not available. Children's menus and children's tableware are not stated, so please confirm with the hotel. Itoen Hotels does not prepare food and drink for food allergies and does not disclose ingredient lists. The person with the allergy may bring in safe food such as retort pouches or frozen items along with their own tableware, so please let the hotel know when you book and again at check-in. Bringing food and drink into the restaurant is generally declined, but baby food and medically prescribed food may be brought in.
Baths and Onsen
There is a communal bath and an open-air bath fed straight from the source for men and for women, both open from 3 p.m. to midnight and again from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. The water is a calcium-sodium sulfate onsen (a hypotonic, weakly alkaline, high-temperature spring). There are 4 private-hire baths: 2 built of stone and Japanese cypress, and 2 with a barrier-free design, available from 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. and from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. They are an option for bathing with your children without worrying about other guests. On the Lake Akaya side there are room types with an in-room open-air bath or a semi-open-air bath fed straight from the source, with tubs in two styles, Japanese cypress and cast iron. There is also a sauna and a cold-water bath. Guests with tattoos are not permitted to bathe. Children aged 7 and over cannot bathe in mixed company in the communal bath or the open-air bath; if you want to bathe together with a child aged 7 or over, the way to do it is to use a room with an open-air bath or a private-hire bath. Infants and toddlers who are not yet out of diapers may enter the communal bath itself, but they may not get into the tubs. Since every room has a bath and toilet, the bathtub in your room is the option in that case.
Family-Friendly Features
Co-sleeping is limited to one child. Elementary school children, both older and younger grades, are charged 90% of the adult rate; infants and toddlers with bedding are charged 60% of the adult rate, and are free of charge with no meals and no bedding. The age brackets for young children and the options you can choose differ by plan: one plan defines young children as ages 0 to 5 who have not yet started elementary school, with meals and futon bedding for ages 3 to 5, and no meals and no futon bedding for ages 0 to 2. Cribs and bed guards are not stated, so please confirm with the hotel. There is no childcare service, and there is no indoor or outdoor pool. Itoen Hotels states that the property is not completely barrier-free, but 2 of the 4 private-hire baths have a barrier-free design, the tubs in the communal bath have handrails, and wheelchairs are lent out by advance request as numbers are limited. You are free to bring food and drink into your room, so you can bring along whatever your children are used to eating. The hotel has karaoke, billiards and table tennis, all available from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. at no additional charge. For karaoke you write your room number in the reservation book beside the karaoke room on the day, and table tennis and billiards run on a 20-minute rotation per group only when busy. Go, shogi and mahjong sets are lent out from the front desk for use in your room. The bathing tax is 150 yen per night for adults only; children are not charged.
Access
About 20 minutes from the Tsukiyono IC on the Kan-Etsu Expressway along Route 17 toward Niigata, or 35 minutes from Jomo-Kogen Station on the Joetsu Shinkansen on the bus bound for Sarugakyo, or about 20 minutes by taxi. A free shuttle bus connects Jomo-Kogen Station and Gokan Station with the hotel once a day in each direction: it leaves Jomo-Kogen Station at 2 p.m. and Gokan Station at 2:10 p.m., arriving at the hotel at 2:40 p.m., and on the return it leaves the hotel at 10 a.m., reaching Jomo-Kogen Station at 10:30 a.m. and Gokan Station at 10:40 a.m. It runs by advance reservation, so you need to contact the hotel by the day before your stay. Parking is free for 70 cars. Check-in is at 3 p.m. (last check-in 6 p.m.) and checkout is at 11 a.m., and checkout cannot be extended.
Access & Information
| location_onAddress | 1171 Sarugakyo Onsen, Minakami-machi, Tone-gun, Gunma 379-1403 |
|---|---|
| directions_carAccess | By car: about 20 minutes from the Tsukiyono IC on the Kan-Etsu Expressway, along Route 17 toward Niigata. By train: from Jomo-Kogen Station on the Joetsu Shinkansen, 35 minutes on the bus bound for Sarugakyo. A shuttle is available; please inquire. |
| trainNearest station | Jomo-Kogen Station |
| local_parkingParking | Parking for 70 cars, free of charge. |
| callPhone | +81-570-069-780 |
| paymentsCards | VISA, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, Mastercard, Rakuten Card |
| languageOfficial site | https://www.itoenhotel.com/sarugakyo/open_in_new |
Map
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Reference price. The lowest rate on Rakuten Travel (single occupancy, in the least expensive season). For a family stay, expect it to be higher than this guide figure. Please check the booking site for actual rates.
Check rates & availability
Opens the booking site in a new tab.
Frequently Asked Questions
What ages is Sarugakyo Hotel best suited to?
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It has facilities that work especially well for babies and toddlers (ages 0 to 2). There is no age limit, and families with children of any age can stay.
Is there parking at Sarugakyo Hotel?
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Parking: Parking for 70 cars, free of charge.
How do you get to Sarugakyo Hotel?
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By car: about 20 minutes from the Tsukiyono IC on the Kan-Etsu Expressway, along Route 17 toward Niigata. By train: from Jomo-Kogen Station on the Joetsu Shinkansen, 35 minutes on the bus bound for Sarugakyo. A shuttle is available; please inquire.
Is there a private-hire bath?
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Private-hire baths are among the facilities, and there are also rooms with an open-air bath, a communal bath and a sauna.
What are the check-in and checkout times?
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Check-in is between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., and checkout is at 11 a.m.
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Information on this page was compiled by directly consulting Official website, Rakuten Travel, Ikyu.com (a Japanese booking site), Jalan (last verified: September 2026). Prices, availability and seasonal operations change. Please check each booking site for the latest information.
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