Hotel Hot Springs di Aomori Prefecture, Japan

Here’s a polished Trip.com-style review you can use: ⸻ We stayed at Dormy Inn Aomori in a twin bed room and had a very pleasant experience. We were assigned a high-floor room on the 12th floor with a beautiful ocean view, which made the stay even more enjoyable. The room was spacious, and the beds were large and very comfortable, ensuring a good night’s sleep. The hotel is well-equipped with excellent hot spring facilities, including both indoor and outdoor baths as well as a sauna — a perfect way to relax after a day of exploring Aomori. Hotel breakfast is delicious and many choices. We also appreciated the practical amenities provided. The laundry machines are free to use, with a 30-minute wash cycle. The dryer costs only 100 yen for 20 minutes, which is very convenient for longer stays. The room also features a large, modern TV, and the hair dryer provided is a premium Refa brand, which was a nice touch. Overall, a very comfortable and convenient stay with great onsen facilities and thoughtful amenities. Would definitely recommend for anyone visiting Aomori.

Right above Aomori Station, this hotel's location is super convenient, with direct access to JR from the lobby. It's often fully booked, so the hot spring is usually quite busy no matter when you go, but they do have real apples in the onsen! There's a hot bath and a slightly cooler one, both very comfortable. The spa, yoga, and dining are mostly extra charges, but there are plenty of activities. The rooms don't have bathtubs, which makes sense since everyone's expected to use the large hot spring. The facilities and equipment are quite new, the bed is very comfortable, and you can see all the best parts of Aomori from your window, including the bay and the bridge.

I booked a Japanese-style tatami room. I originally planned to visit Mount Hakkoda and Sukayu Onsen, but unfortunately, it was snowing heavily, making it impossible to get around without a car. So, I ended up just watching TV and building snowmen at the hotel the whole time. The hotel itself has good views and dining options. There's a small convenience store at the hotel (selling simple food like instant noodles and peanuts, ski equipment, etc., but no daily necessities). The bathing facilities are communal, though there's also a shower in the room, but no toiletries like shower gel. I recommend using the public bathhouse to experience a Japanese inn's bathhouse, which has indoor and outdoor pools, plus free ice cream. There's a shuttle bus from the hotel to Aomori Station at 9:00 AM, and another from Aomori Station to the hotel at 3:30 PM (pre-booking required). A taxi from Shin-Aomori Station to the hotel costs 15,000 JPY. During the snow season, you can't get an Uber at all, so you're reliant on the hotel shuttle. This hotel is suitable for skiers. For sightseeing, I recommend visiting during the non-snowy season. (P.S. The snow-covered mountains in Aomori are truly magnificent, and the snowy scenery is beautiful.)

I tried the Japanese-style room. The location is very close to central Hirosaki, and there's a shuttle service to JR Hirosaki every morning, though you need to book it in advance. The open-air onsen was a novel experience! After soaking, there were ice cream and ramen available. The front desk offers fully self-service check-in and check-out, which was very convenient, and the service was excellent.

Service was good. There was a staff who is stationed at the entrance, checking with guest who arrived by car. They will ask for your name, provided clear instructions of where to park. Unfortunately, I have accidentally left the lights in the car switched on. A few moments later when I was doing my check-in, the front desk staff quickly informed me about it. The facilities are good. Food is really good, very different from the other Hoshino resorts in Aomori that I have stayed. At KAI Tsugaru, it is Kaiseki instead of the usual buffet style. The staff took pains to explain and share the reason for each dish that was served. There are only 41 traditionally-furnished and generously-sized rooms offering both Western and Japanese-style designs which gives a very unique and dedicated experience as compared to other hotels which has many rooms.

My first night in Japan 2024 Trip. In a faraway county. Very peaceful. I drove there alone in the darkness. Thought that there might be very few people there. But I met so many grandmas stayed there as a large group. Met them in onsen too. Very strange experience but very touch. Can feel of aging society. The ryokan guys also booked a local izakaya for me, so I had dinner easily, no need to nervous there won’t be a seat. The Room was so nice and big. Many hidden rooms inside. Would be much better if they haven’t prepared ice water for me during early winter. (I need normal temp water or hot water) Breakfast was great Overall was great I love this place. Very relax and no tourist. I spent the morning in a small garden in front of the hotel alone. Listen to water sound. Recharged my energy.

We stayed at Asamushi Onsen (about 20mins drive from Aomori downtown) as part of our 2025 Spring trip to Aomori area, and booked Tstsumikan Onsen hotel to stay for the night. The hotel location is great. I think all guest rooms come with open ocean view. No private hot spring tub in the guest room but the large gender-specific hot spring pools are open privately to the overnight stay guests from 8PM to the next morning. The stay comes with 2 meals. The food is good and the dinner was served directly in the guest room. The next morning Japanese breakfast was served in the great tatami dinning room, and the breakfast package even comes with free coffee in the gift shop café after the meal. The staff are warm, and the service is good. My recommendation to this hotel come with no hesitation.

The Towada Winter Story Festival was a total bust, but Lake Towada itself was an unexpected delight – absolutely stunning. By chance, I even hiked a portion of the Oirase Stream in the morning. The weather, with snow one minute and clear skies the next, added so much character to the lake's scenery. The hotel room was spacious, and it was quite an interesting check-in experience, using very old-fashioned keys and a metal door.

My main reason to go to Ajigasawa was to visit the Takayama Inari Shrine with its snaking Tori gates. It’s about a tenth the length and size of Kyoto’s. Found this ryokan by reviews in the area. It was a toss up between this and the nearby hotel; which turns out to be run by the same group! The ryokan shows its age. But it’s very comfortable, clean and the service, especially by Noro who used his translation app so well, was impeccable! They have map of the property in English. If you drink (alcohol), it’s available in spades! There’s unlimited snacks, water, soda, popsicles, coffee, tea and alcohol for guests. The onsen is open to public, it seemed like the whole village descends after dinner to have a dip! We spent one night: dinner and breakfast were excellent!

It's best to be prepared for power outages. Public toilets and water rooms are standard features of traditional Japanese B&Bs. The Japanese breakfast is good. Please note that the check-in time is before 9 pm. If you can't arrive, be sure to contact the owner in advance. The B&B is on the mountain, so be careful when driving at night. There are no street lights.