Yamagata the Takinami

This is my second time at Yamagata the Takinami, and it is the best place I have stayed at. The staff here are amazing and do everything possible to make sure you have an excellent time. It's a very special place. Dinner and breakfast is included and the food is top tier restaurant quality. The chefs previously worked at Michelin starred restaurants, and they use the best seasonal produce from local farmers. Every room has a private onsen bath, which makes this stay extra luxurious! The rooms are just as perfect as you can see in the images here. If you want an extended look, check out Abroad in Japan's YouTube channel, and look for the video "What Owning a Traditional Japanese Inn is Like" for a behind the scenes look at this ryokan. Everything is very accommodating to English speakers. The staff reached out to me via email ahead of my stay to make sure everything was perfect, and all the staff here carefully explained everything to me in English. I booked a massage during my stay, and it was excellent! The Takinami is also very easy to get to with public transport. There is a Shinkansen from Tokyo which arrives at the nearby station (only 5 mins away), and the lovely staff will pick you up directly from the station. Everyone at Yamagata the Takinami went above and beyond to ensure I had a wonderful stay. Looking forward to coming back soon!

If you are only able to have one luxury experience in life, make it a stay at the Takinami Ryokan, for as many nights as you can. It is easily accessible by train from Tokyo or Sendai, and this provides many opportunities to explore the local area. I can’t give more than five stars for the service, and the staff deserves it. Visiting from outside Japan, we were very glad that all of the staff was happy to interact with us. Even before we arrived, the staff reached out to us to confirm details and to ensure our stay would be spectacular. A shuttle was provided to pick us up at the station, and our shuttle driver was the President’s brother, who told us about the town and history of the area and the ryokan. We instantly felt welcome! We were warmly greeted upon arrival and provided several options for a welcome drink and a snack as we reviewed our check-in details and selected the times for our activities during our stay. We were then given a tour of the facility as we were shown to our rooms. The room was clean and as beautiful as the pictures from the website. We had a private onsen for the room, which was incredibly convenient and enjoyable. There is a public onsen available for guests as well. The beds were very comfortable and the facility has been beautifully renovated while maintaining its historical beauty and charm. Lounge clothes of two different styles (several designs/colors for each) were provided for use throughout our stay. The food was phenomenal, and I ate every bite. I cannot say enough about our dining experiences for dinner and breakfast (both included), so I will just say it was some of the best food I’ve had in my life, and the counter dining experience was beyond amazing. I have been looking for a “chef’s table” type experience and this exceeded my expectations. I did not expect to be provided so many opportunities for experience during our stay, but they provided many. We got to see the soba noodles (very special flour) made for us before we were served them for dinner. We were provided a site seeing tour the following morning (spoken in Japanese) on their beautiful bus, with a stop atop the mountain for some coffee and juice in the clouds. While I don’t speak Japanese (my wife is my translator) the experience was one I will cherish for the rest of my life, and the joy and passion with which the stories were shared makes me wish I did understand Japanese (time was taken to ensure important details were provided in English, and I’d never have expected everything to be repeated for me). President Minami-san took a lot of time throughout our stay to speak with us and the other guests, so we felt very cared for. If you’re looking for an amazing time in Japan, look no further. We will be back on our next trip and for a longer stay, and while we have a lot more time in Japan now, our next visit can’t come soon enough. To everyone at Takinami Ryokan, thank you so much for this magical experience!

This is the best Ryokan experience I have ever had. Minami-san and his amazing staff made me and my husband feel like family and even gave me a special desert for my birthday! Then Minami-san and all of the staff and fellow guests sang Happy Birthday to me! The fellow guests were very friendly as well and spoke to me as well. My Japanese speaking ability is still not the greatest but most of the staff can speak some level of English so it is a very English friendly! Minami-san’s brother gave us a tour of the city and explained the rich history of the area when he picked us up at the station! He also does a bus sight-seeing tour in the morning that can’t be missed! Even thought it is Japanese there sights are breathtaking! Can’t recommend enough!

The whole staffs welcome the guests and offer them professional and attentive services. The owner of the hotel and brother are not sitting back and supervising their staffs, but are contributing their parts to take care of the guests directly. They drive the guests to/from the station from/to the hotel; they do’t use a bus boy.

Style. Revived 450 years old historical family owned inn Setting. Akayu Onsen town is almost 1000 years old Known for natural hot springs that heals Explore. Eboshiyama Park. The hotel organizes tours and soba making lessons Rooms. 19 room. Cypress wooden bath in my room. Was in Yamagata 05. Was hoping for the stone tubs but those are on the ground floor and I did not do my research before booking. Once I got past my initial disappointment, spent tons of time sitting in the rejuvenating open air bath @ the hotel. Warm welcoming staff, many are fluent in English. Intimate and comfortable lobby to just read and go phone free Food & drinks. Pretty amazing meal paired with sake or wine. I came with zero expectations and was blown away. They have Kenzo wines and Juyondai sake. The super hands on owner makes the buckwheat soba and makes sure you are having a good time. I initially thought he was the sommelier but apparently Hiroshi Minami-san is like Michelle Yeoh in everything everywhere all at once. Prices. US$588 including dinner and breakfast for two. Rating. 5/5 well worth the 2 hour 19 minutes train ride from Tokyo and I would love to go back