Sanyoan

We chose to visit Otofuke Town because we were eager to experience the only area in Japan that features "Moor Onsen." Moor hot springs are different in that it gets its contents from reed and other native planets that are deep underground, and gets its high temperature from geothermal heat before making an appearance in the area around Tokachigawa Onsen. Also, once the hot spring makes contact with oxygen, it turns reddish brown in color. Moor hot springs also have a higher concentration of salt compared to the typical Onsen. While I'm not sure about the accuracy of the claims, supposedly the high content of organic matter and humic acid results in abundant natural moisturizing ingredients, which is why it's commonly referred to as "Bijin-no-Yu" (the hot spring for beauty) by locals and in marketing materials. Did I feel 10 years younger after taking a few dips? I doubt it, but the silky smooth feeling of bathing in Moor Onsen leads me to believe that doing it daily would likely have a positive impact on my skin's smoothness, that's for sure. Sanyoan and Seijakubo are the luxury choices among the Moor onsen ryokans, and we flipped a coin and went with the former. Sanyoan features a "Daiyokujo" (gender segregated open-air communal Onsen bath), although we didn't find anyone when we visited. That's because each of the ryokan's 11 rooms on site comes with its own en-suite Onsen. Only two, however, are of the open-air outdoor variety, including our "Tokubetsu Shitsu" (Special) room named "Haru No Umi" (which means Ocean in Spring.) It's a two-story maisonette-type unit that offers 97m² indoor living space. We knew going in that the room was not going to win any awards for design, and it feels more like a country home than anything (which is somewhat appropriate given its location in Hokkaido), but the first floor was more drab than we anticipated. It consists of a toilet, the main bedroom (with two beds) and a small living room that has a small yellow sofa, a fold-open wooden chair masquerading as a coffee table, and a large TV. The living room in particular felt constricting, mainly due to its small size... we really didn't spend much time downstairs, except when it was time for bed. We were relieved to find the second floor being far more inviting, consisting of a living room, a tatami room, the main washroom (with dual sinks), an indoor shower as well as a massive patio with the gensen kakenagashi (free-flowing and never recirculated) Moor Onsen bath. There was an abundance of natural light and a served as a place that we were able to relax in comfort. The dining experience takes place in the main restaurant, although there are 3 koshitsu (private rooms) that can be reserved upon request, which is what we did. Hokkaido is known for its wonderful produce, bountiful seafood (made particularly incredible thanks to the cold water and strong ocean currents) and its beef (and milk and cheese), and Sanyoan did a terrific job in representing the best t