Bettei Oborozukiyo

We loved almost everything about Bettei Oborozukiyo. It has a classic Japanese aesthetic, but is actually quite new, modern, stylish and fresh (it was established in 2015.) It's also small, private and quaint - it consists of only 19 rooms, which is a big departure from many of the mega hotels that litter the Dogo Onsen landscape. And it's only a short walking distance away from the main tourist sites in the area. All in all, we couldn't have asked for much more than what Bettei Oborozukiyo offered. We booked a "G-Type Special Room with Open-Air Bath" (Room #307, "Oborozuki" to be specific), the highest room category at the property. It's a nicely laid out and tastefully furnished and decorated suite room that features not one but two open-air, free-flowing Onsen (hot springs) baths. One is small bath (large enough for only one person) and is completely open air, while the second Onsen is much larger, and can be either fully enclosed or open-air, depending on whether you open all of the sliding glass windows. You really get the best of both worlds here. We had the smaller Onsen set to a hotter temperature and used it to quickly warm up our bodies, while the larger Onsen was set to a slightly lower temperature - allowing us to spend a longer amount of time enjoying the bath. It was pure bliss. It's worth noting that every single room at Bettei Oborozukiyo has at least one open-air Onsen bath, which is a real luxury and probably the main reason people would visit Dogo Onsen in the first place. And the Onsen hot springs water comes from the same source as the one used by the famous Dogo Onsen Honkan public bath house, so you know that it's going to be a special experience. A few other advantages of our room - it featured two separate toilets (Mrs. KI-NRT loves separate toilets!), and a bedroom that is completely separated from the main living area, which allowed her to take a peaceful nap while I was conducting a video conference with business partners. Meals for all guests are served in private dining rooms, which was nice (although if we were to nitpick, we prefer to be served in our the actual room that we're staying in.) And the Kaiseki meal was delicious and beautifully presented. While it was not the best meal we've ever had, all of the ingredients were locally-sourced and super fresh, especially the awesome seafood that was offered (including sashimi-style.) And the Iyo Beef Sirloin "Shabu Shabu" hot pot was a great way to enjoy the local meat delicacy. Both dinner and breakfast were served by Riyo Miyauchi, a charming, engaging and enthusiastic young lady who was born and raised in the area, prompting us to ask many questions about the region and learning a great deal about Ehime as a result (especially the food.) Given that Japan was in the middle of a big pandemic wave, it was great to be able to enjoy top quality Onsen in the comfort of our room, without having to result to the communal bath at Bettei Oborozukiyo, or at Dogo Onsen Ho