Syoho En in Akita

Visited here for the day onsen. Beautiful building and onsen water was Iodine based which was my first time to experience and I have to say it's my favourite type so far, my body felt amazing after.

I stayed at Momineen, a registered tangible cultural property and a member of the Society for Preserving Secret Hot Springs.
The stately building and luxurious interior evoked a sense of history and elegance.
Even though it was old, it was well maintained and very clean, which made it seem even more luxurious.
As expected, the hallways were cold this time of year, but the rooms had ceiling-mounted air conditioning and were very warm.
And the hot springs were amazing.
The spring water is said to be a rare, very concentrated type. The cloudy water had an iron smell, and when I licked it, it was quite salty. My shaving marks on my face stinged. It felt like the water really penetrated my skin, and I'm sure it had excellent effects.
For meals, we chose a variety of regional dishes made with local ingredients, and ordered the famous river crab.
Everything was seasoned simply to bring out the best in the ingredients. The sweet and sour carp was delicious, even the bones were not noticeable, and the grilled rock trout was perfectly salted. It was cooked perfectly and piping hot, so I ate it whole, head and bones. The small bowl of vinegared food was really tasty and I liked it.
However, the river crab with miso shell was too oily for my taste.
Everything else was delicious.
The black bean tea served after the meal was also great.
It went really well with the chestnuts boiled in their skins for dessert.
The homemade tofu for breakfast had an interesting texture and was delicious, and the strong-necked Chinese cabbage and golden sesame seeds made it a breakfast you won't find anywhere else.
The building was charming, the hot springs were excellent, and the food was also delicious.
They also offer day-trip hot springs, so I recommend just experiencing the hot springs.

Having travelled in amd around Akita for 10 days, this ryokan was our final night stay before 6 of us travel to Narita for flight home. We had merely wanted a traditional stay experience with a morning soak in onsen before we board the shinkasen from Akita JR station - a mere 30 min drive from ryokan. But we received more than we sought! We hah had the healthiest and delicious home-cooked dinner and breakfast, and wonderful outdoor onsen reserved for guests only. And.....all of us didnt realise until we got home in Singapore that the ryokan had cleansed our very muddy shoes squeaky clean! Wow, such amazing service certainly deepened our memories of Akita!

I'm glad I made the effort to visit! I'm glad I found out about this hot spring and inn! I'd like to visit again, and I hope it stays around forever.

It was heartfelt and very comfortable

Beautiful and unique ryokan. If you are looking for the a typical ryokan this may not be the place for you, but it’s ramshackle charm is gorgeous and the town it sits in is very beautiful. One issue would be the room we booked was shown in the images to have a balcony, however not all in this category have this feature. That slight disappointment aside, the food is delicious, the family very friendly and the onsen being private and salt water is the most unique I’ve seen in Japan.

A great experience indeed!

Highlight of my 3 weeks in Japan. Absolutely Love this place. The family is so friendly and wonderful, the food is oishii. Gorgeous gardens and hot tubs. 2 thumbs up.

I stayed at the ryokan and had the wonderful dinner here. It is a 98 years old house with beautiful onsens. The food was delicious and the ryokan is lovely. Will bring friends here next time!