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Jozankei Onsen ryokan with a private bath near Sapporo: 5 picks
Approximate, at the rate on 2026-10-02. You pay in yen.
- Five Jozankei onsen ryokan where you can bathe without strangers, about an hour from Sapporo
- Yuraku Soan has a hot-spring bath in all 102 rooms and four free private baths
- Suichokan takes women only; Shiraito, the cheapest, refuses guests with tattoos
The five
| Best for | Where to book | Score | Weeknight (per person) | Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Women-only spa inn with free private bath and bedrock bath — if you can’t decide | Jozankei Onsen Suichokan, Inn for Women Check price |
82/100 | ¥24,000–28,000 | ¥29,000 |
| Old inn with two bath halls and three private baths | Jozankei Hanamomiji Check price |
81/100 | ¥21,000–30,000 | ¥29,000–46,000 |
| Folk-craft inn with an irori hearth, English-speaking staff | Jozankei Onsen Nukumori no Yado Furukawa Check price |
78/100 | ¥26,000–39,000 | ¥30,000–39,000 |
| Hot-spring bath in every room, plus 4 free private baths | Jozankei Yuraku Soan (Kyoritsu Resort) Check price |
70/100 | ¥33,000–72,000 | ¥31,000–48,000 |
| Seven-room inn with a family bath and private-room meals | Jozankei Onsen Yukyu no Yado Shiraito Check price |
66/100 | ¥18,000–20,000 | ¥21,000–24,000 |
Prices are the cheapest per person found on Rakuten Travel for Wednesdays and Saturdays between 2026-10-31 – 2026-12-23, for 2 adults in one room (checked 2026-10-24). They move daily — the link shows live prices.
The booking links go to Agoda, which shows today’s price and lets you pay in your own currency. Its price can differ from the Rakuten Travel figures above.
Women-only spa inn with free private bath and bedrock bath
Jozankei Onsen Suichokan, Inn for Women
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.61/5 (543) · Agoda 9.1/10 (283) · 826 in total
- 20 rooms, built around gentle food and beauty treatments
- An esthetic salon, with treatments by reservation
- 82/100, the top score of the five
Why it made the five
- Women only, aged 13 and over; just 20 rooms.
- The private bath and the bedrock bath free, one 40-minute session each.
- Free shuttle from Odori Nishi 5-chome at 14:40 or 17:00, booked on the inn’s website by 19:00 the day before.
- 4.61 across 543 reviews; breakfast rated 4.64.
Getting there: Free shuttle bus from in front of the Showa Building at Odori Nishi 5-chome, central Sapporo, at 14:40 and 17:00 (back from the inn at 10:20 and 12:50); book through the form on the official website by 19:00 the day before, first come first served. About 60 minutes by car from JR Sapporo station and about two hours from New Chitose Airport.
Language and payment: English support and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. Rakuten lists Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, UC, DC, OMC and UFJ Card. The private bath is used by your own party alone.
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Right for: Women travelling alone or together who want onsen, a private bath and beauty treatments with nothing to worry about.
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Not for: Men, mixed couples and families — the inn takes women only.
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Worth knowing: Women aged 13 and over only. There is no lift, and there are steps inside. The ¥150 bathing tax and the accommodation tax are charged on top.
Score breakdown — 82/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | Room, bath and dinner average 4.55 on Rakuten Travel |
| Value for money | ★★★★☆ | ¥24,000–28,000 per person on a weeknight (Rakuten, dinner and breakfast) — 92% of the median of everything we compared |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out 11:00; a free shuttle from in front of the Showa Building at Odori Nishi 5-chome (14:40 and 17:00), booked on the official website’s form by 19:00 the day before; women only, aged 13 and over; the private bath and the bedrock bath free for one 40-minute session each; an esthetic salon, treatments by reservation; plenty to borrow, from hair irons to hot-water bottles; only 20 rooms. |
| Trust | ★★★★☆ | 4.61 across 543 reviews (Rakuten Travel 543) |
| Only here | ★★★★★ | The only inn among the candidates that takes women only and adds a free private bath, a free bedrock bath and beauty treatments. |
Old inn with two bath halls and three private baths
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.55/5 (1,215)
- A long-established inn at the source of Jozankei’s springs
- Table tennis and a games corner
Why it made the five
- Two large bath halls and three private baths.
- Free morning coffee, a glass of wine, and tea in the after-bath lounge.
- One minute on foot from the Yunomachi stop on the Jotetsu bus.
- Bath rated 4.58, across 1,215 reviews.
Getting there: From JR Sapporo station, take the Namboku subway line to Makomanai, then the Jotetsu bus for Jozankei to Yunomachi; the inn is one minute on foot from the stop. Rakuten lists a shuttle bus among its facilities but gives no times, so ask when you book.
Language and payment: Per Rakuten, a few staff understand a little English, Chinese and Korean. Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, many Japanese cards and debit cards are listed. Tattoo rules are not published. The charge and booking method for the private baths are not given, so ask when you book.
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Right for: Families and friends who want to try bath after bath, large and private, under one roof.
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Not for: Wanting dinner in your room or a private room — dinner is in the restaurant and breakfast is a buffet.
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Worth knowing: Check in after 20:00 and dinner cannot be served. Check-out is 10:00. The ¥150 bathing tax and the accommodation tax are charged on top.
Score breakdown — 81/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | Room, bath and dinner average 4.52 on Rakuten Travel |
| Value for money | ★★★★★ | ¥21,000–30,000 per person on a weeknight (Rakuten, dinner and breakfast) — 79% of the median of everything we compared |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Two large bath halls and three private baths at an old inn by the springs’ source; the Jotetsu bus from Makomanai subway station to Yunomachi, then one minute on foot; free morning coffee, a glass of wine and tea in the after-bath lounge; a few staff understand a little English, Chinese and Korean; meals adapted for allergies; 77 rooms, with table tennis and a games corner. |
| Trust | ★★★☆☆ | 4.55 across 1,215 reviews (Rakuten Travel 1,215) |
| Only here | ★★★★☆ | The only qualifying inn that states two large baths and three private baths, so you can tour several baths in one place. |
Folk-craft inn with an irori hearth, English-speaking staff
Jozankei Onsen Nukumori no Yado Furukawa
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.63/5 (1,419) · Agoda 9.4/10 (1,215) · 2,634 in total
- A folk-craft-style inn with an irori sunken hearth inside; rare in Hokkaido, says its listing
- Large bath and open-air bath as well
Why it made the five
- Most staff speak English close to natively, per Rakuten.
- A private open-air bath and a private bedrock bath, ¥2,200 per room for 50 minutes (included in some plans).
- Dinner in a private room or the dining room.
- 4.63 across 1,419 reviews — the best average of the five; breakfast rated 4.74.
Getting there: Right by the Jozankei Yunomachi stop on the Jotetsu bus Jozankei line. A free shuttle runs once a day at 14:30 from Odori Nishi 1-chome, opposite the north side of the TV Tower in central Sapporo; book it ahead.
Language and payment: Per Rakuten, most staff speak English close to natively, and most handle everyday Chinese and Korean. Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, several Japanese cards and debit cards are listed. Tattoo rules are not published, so ask if you want to use the shared baths. The private baths are used by your own party alone.
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Right for: Staying in a traditional ryokan without worrying about Japanese.
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Not for: Wanting a hot-spring bath in your own room — none is listed.
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Worth knowing: The private baths cost extra unless your plan includes them. The large baths are closed from 1:00 to 5:00 while the men’s and women’s sides swap. Check-out is 10:00.
Score breakdown — 78/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | Room, bath and dinner average 4.61 on Rakuten Travel |
| Value for money | ★★★☆☆ | ¥26,000–39,000 per person on a weeknight (Rakuten, dinner and breakfast) — 100% of the median of everything we compared |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | A free shuttle once a day at 14:30 from Odori Nishi 1-chome, opposite the north side of the TV Tower (book ahead); meals in a private room; most staff speak English close to natively, and most handle everyday Chinese and Korean; a private open-air bath and a private bedrock bath, ¥2,200 per room for 50 minutes (included in some plans); a folk-craft inn with an irori hearth, rare in Hokkaido; right by the Jozankei Yunomachi bus stop; dinner in a private room or the dining room; rooms for wheelchair users and handrails in the large bath. |
| Trust | ★★★★☆ | 4.63 across 1,419 reviews (Rakuten Travel 1,419) |
| Only here | ★★★★★ | The only qualifying inn where Rakuten’s language information says most staff speak English close to natively — and its 4.63 average is also the highest of them. |
Hot-spring bath in every room, plus 4 free private baths
Jozankei Yuraku Soan (Kyoritsu Resort)
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.52/5 (291) · Agoda 9.4/10 (2,608) · 2,899 in total
- 102 rooms
- The four private baths each come in a different style
- A large bath, an open-air bath and a sauna as well
- Cleanliness rated 4.62
Why it made the five
- A natural hot-spring bath in every room.
- Four private baths, all free.
- Free shuttle from Sapporo station’s north exit at 14:30 (book ahead).
- Bath rated 4.65 — the best of the five.
Getting there: Free shuttle bus at 14:30 from the north exit of JR Sapporo station (the group bus stop), by advance reservation. By bus from Sapporo station, about 60–70 minutes.
Language and payment: Per Rakuten, a few staff understand a little English. Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club and several Japanese cards are listed. Tattoo rules are not published; the bath in your room and the private baths are used by your own party alone.
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Right for: Bathing only in your room’s hot spring and the free private baths, never with strangers.
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Not for: Wanting an open-air bath in your room — the in-room baths are not described as open-air.
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Worth knowing: Check in after dinner time and dinner may not be served, with no refund. Children aged three and over booked without meals or bedding pay a ¥3,300 facility charge.
Score breakdown — 70/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | Room, bath and dinner average 4.56 on Rakuten Travel |
| Value for money | ★★☆☆☆ | ¥33,000–72,000 per person on a weeknight (Rakuten, dinner and breakfast) — 127% of the median of everything we compared |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out 11:00; a free shuttle at 14:30 from Sapporo station’s north exit (the group bus stop), booked ahead; a natural hot-spring bath in every room; four private baths in different styles, all free; a large bath, open-air bath and sauna; a low-allergen menu for the 29 specified allergens if requested two days ahead; a few staff understand a little English. |
| Trust | ★★★☆☆ | 4.52 across 291 reviews (Rakuten Travel 291) |
| Only here | ★★★★★ | The only qualifying inn with a natural hot-spring bath in every room plus four free private baths — and its 4.65 bath score is the highest. |
Seven-room inn with a family bath and private-room meals
Jozankei Onsen Yukyu no Yado Shiraito
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.24/5 (140) · Agoda 8.5/10 (3) · 143 in total
- The smallest inn here, with only seven rooms
- Large and open-air baths as well
Why it made the five
- From about ¥18,000 per person with two meals — the cheapest of the five, on a Saturday too (from about ¥21,000).
- Only seven rooms.
- A family bath alongside the large and open-air baths.
- Dinner and breakfast in a private room or the dining room.
Getting there: About 70 minutes by bus from JR Sapporo station; get off at the Shiraito-no-taki stop.
Language and payment: English support is not published, so ask when you book. Rakuten lists Visa, Mastercard, JCB, American Express, Diners Club, Discover and many Japanese cards, and there is free Wi-Fi throughout. The inn refuses guests with tattoos altogether, not only in the baths. The family bath appears in Rakuten’s list of bath types with no booking details or charge given.
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Right for: A quiet night in a small inn rather than a big ryokan, at the lowest price here.
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Not for: Guests with tattoos, and anyone who wants to stay out late.
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Worth knowing: Guests with tattoos may not stay or enter. Curfew is 22:00, and the front door is locked at 21:30 because no staff are on duty at night. Last check-in is 18:00. Ask the inn how to book the family bath and what it costs.
Score breakdown — 66/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★☆☆☆☆ | Room, bath and dinner average 4.23 on Rakuten Travel |
| Value for money | ★★★★★ | ¥18,000–20,000 per person on a weeknight (Rakuten, dinner and breakfast) — 68% of the median of everything we compared |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Meals in a private room; only seven rooms; a family bath among its bath types; both dinner and breakfast in a private room or the dining room; about 70 minutes by bus from Sapporo station to the Shiraito-no-taki stop; free Wi-Fi throughout; guests with tattoos may not stay or enter. |
| Trust | ★★☆☆☆ | 4.24 across 140 reviews (Rakuten Travel 140) |
| Only here | ★★★☆☆ | At seven rooms, the smallest of the qualifying inns, with a family bath and both meals in a private room. |
Know before you book
- Jozankei lies within Sapporo city, in the hills of Minami ward. The inns’ listings put it about 60 minutes from JR Sapporo station by car and 60–70 minutes by bus, which makes it an easy single night on a Sapporo trip.
- Three of these five run free shuttle buses from central Sapporo in the afternoon — from Odori Nishi 5-chome, from Odori Nishi 1-chome opposite the TV Tower, and from Sapporo station’s north exit. Every one must be booked ahead, and one only through the inn’s own web form by 19:00 the day before. Book the bus when you book the room.
- Without the shuttle, take a Jotetsu bus for Jozankei — straight from Sapporo station, or from Makomanai, the end of the Namboku subway line. Most inns are near the Yunomachi stops in the middle of the town.
- From New Chitose Airport it is about two hours by car, per the inns’ listings, so most visitors come by way of Sapporo.
- Japanese shared baths are nude and you wash at the taps before you get in. One inn here refuses guests with tattoos altogether; the others publish no rule. A bath in your room or a private bath for your party is the way to bathe without strangers.
- Prices here are per person with dinner and breakfast, for two sharing. A bathing tax of ¥150 per adult and an accommodation tax charged since 1 April 2026 — ¥300, ¥400 or ¥1,000 per person per night depending on the rate, per the inns’ listings — come on top.
How we chose: theme, conditions, scoring
How we chose
- Candidates: every property in Jozankei Onsen listed on Rakuten Travel — 21
- Passed the review filter (counts and averages on Rakuten Travel, the one site that lists every property in the area): 17
- Met every condition below: 6
- Kept: five, each the best at something different
Where the facts come from
- Facts: Rakuten Travel property information (in some articles, each hotel’s own site too)
- Prices: Rakuten Travel live availability, Wednesdays and Saturdays over eight weeks
- Reviews: the count and average on Rakuten Travel, as given in each hotel’s Trust row. Agoda’s reviews are shown under each hotel name for reference only and do not count towards the score
Conditions (all of them, not most of them)
- In Rakuten Travel’s Jozankei district of Sapporo, with a hot spring
- At least 50 reviews on Rakuten Travel, averaging 4.0 or better
- The cheapest rate falls between ¥10,000 and ¥40,000 per person per night
- A bath you need not share: an open-air bath in the room, or a private or family bath you can use with your own party
Scoring
Five criteria, one to five stars each, weighted to one hundred points. Every star says where the number came from.
- Quality25 pts
- The average of the scores Rakuten Travel publishes for the room, the bath and the food.
- Value for money20 pts
- The cheapest rate with dinner and breakfast against the median of the inns we compared.
- Easy to stay30 pts
- A free shuttle from Sapporo or minutes from the bus stop, private baths, meals in a private room, language support, and check-in and check-out times.
- Trust20 pts
- Review counts and averages published by Rakuten Travel.
- Only here5 pts
- What this inn has that the other five do not.
What we dropped
| Property | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Jozankei Daiichi Hotel Suizantei | Runner-up (64/100) | 64/100, two points behind Shiraito. It has the most reviews of the six and the only barrier-free private open-air bath, but at ¥32,000–55,000 per person on a weeknight — 125% of the median, against Shiraito’s 68% — value pulled it out of the five. |
| Oku-Jozankei Onsen Kasho Gyoen | Outside the theme | 4.78 across 192 reviews, the highest average of any inn above our review floor, and every room has a natural hot-spring ‘forest view bath’ — but the listing does not call it open-air and shows no private bath, so we could not confirm the condition. |
| Kuriya Suizan | Outside the theme | Our filter matched it on the word ‘private’, but that was a private sauna (90 minutes for ¥5,500). Its listing shows no private bath and no bath in the rooms. 4.33 across 111 reviews. |
| Jozankei Shikanoyu | Outside the theme | 1,852 reviews averaging 4.10, but its cheapest rate is under our ¥10,000 floor, and its listing shows only large and open-air baths. |
| Suigan | Below the floor | 4.54, but from only 48 reviews — just under our 50-review floor. |
Questions visitors ask
Which one would you book?
Suichokan tops the five at 82/100 — but it takes women only, aged 13 and over. Its private bath and bedrock bath are free, and weeknights run about ¥24,000–28,000 per person with dinner and breakfast. For everyone else, Hanamomiji at 81/100, with two large baths and three private baths from about ¥21,000–30,000 on a weeknight. If the cost matters most, Yukyu no Yado Shiraito is about ¥18,000–20,000 per person on a weeknight, the cheapest of the five.
How do I get there from Sapporo without a car?
Three of the five run free shuttles, all by reservation. Suichokan leaves from in front of the Showa Building at Odori Nishi 5-chome at 14:40 or 17:00, booked on its website by 19:00 the day before; Furukawa from Odori Nishi 1-chome, opposite the TV Tower, at 14:30; Yuraku Soan from Sapporo station’s north exit at 14:30. Otherwise take a Jotetsu bus: Hanamomiji is a minute from the Yunomachi stop, reached from Makomanai at the end of the Namboku subway line, and Yukyu no Yado Shiraito is about 70 minutes by bus from Sapporo station, at the Shiraito-no-taki stop.
I don’t want to bathe with strangers. Will that work at all five?
Yes — that was a condition. Yuraku Soan has a natural hot-spring bath in every room and four free private baths. Suichokan gives every guest one free 40-minute session in its private bath. Furukawa has a private open-air bath at ¥2,200 per room for 50 minutes, Hanamomiji three private baths, and Yukyu no Yado Shiraito a family bath. Hanamomiji and Shiraito do not publish how to book theirs or what they cost, so ask.
Do any of them have English-speaking staff?
Nukumori no Yado Furukawa is the one to pick: Rakuten’s listing says most staff speak English close to natively, and most handle everyday Chinese and Korean. Hanamomiji and Yuraku Soan say a few staff understand a little English. Suichokan and Yukyu no Yado Shiraito publish nothing, so write when you book — and of the runners-up, Suizantei notes several staff who handle everyday English.
Can I stay with a tattoo?
Not at Yukyu no Yado Shiraito, which refuses guests with tattoos altogether. The other four publish no tattoo rule. Their private baths, and Yuraku Soan’s in-room baths, are used by your own party alone, but ask the inn before you count on any shared bath.
When were these prices checked?
We searched Rakuten Travel availability for Wednesdays and Saturdays between 31 October and 23 December 2026, taking the cheapest room with dinner and breakfast for two adults and showing it per person (checked 24 October 2026). The ¥150 bathing tax per adult and the accommodation tax charged since April 2026 — ¥300 to ¥1,000 per person per night depending on the rate — come on top. Prices move daily — the link on each inn shows today’s.
Changes
- 2026-10-29 First published. Scored from 21 candidates.