Nishimuraya Honkan is an absolutely superb ryokan and amongst the top ryokans I have visited across many onsen towns in Japan. We stayed 3 nights. The atmosphere was beautiful and peaceful, the staff and service top notch, and the food is exquisite. Not all staff speak fluent English, but we had no issues communicating. We had the half board so dinners are served in our room while breakfasts are in a common room, with different menus every day. Every meal was meticulously prepared and a feast. We had the large Japanese style Horai room that had an open air bath (as well as open air shower - some may find it a bit cold in cooler months but it was fine for us in Spring), which was very enjoyable and relaxing. Don't miss the coffee/tea/juice area on the first floor that looks out to a lovely garden, and taking a walk in the garden to see their beautiful koi fish. Although the ryokan is about a 12 minute walk from Kinosakionsen Station, there is a bus from the station that can take you directly to the ryokan, and we were also able to get on the hotel's shuttle back to the station when we left. An amazing and highly recommended experience that's not to be missed if you ever visit Kinosaki Onsen.

I loved everything, but our room was visited by a lot of stink bugs due to the changing season. The staff are super helpful in helping us catch them, but they were a minor nuisance that subtracted a bit from an otherwise truly amazing experience. I'd still recommend this ryokan regardless.

This place was incredible. They make you feel very special here, with multiple people always welcoming you back, welcoming you to breakfast, greeting you as you walk by. The in room meal was amazing, every meal we had here was beautifully crafted and presented and the taste matched the presentation. Beds were the most comfortable out of any Ryokan we stayed in, the gardens were beautiful, and the complimentary drinks in the main room were so delicious! The location is perfect as you are minutes away by walking to multiple onsens, as well as Onsenji, where we were able to hike up to, and were blessed with an incredible view of the Sea of Japan and permission to soak in the waters of kinosaki onsen. This was our favorite experience of our whole 23 day stay in Japan!

Loved everything about this ryokan, from the room to the food to the services provided. We had a Japanese suite room which was at the top of the ryokan and had a lovely view overlooking the ropeway and the garden. The room and ryokan were both clean, offered Yukata and geta to use for the duration of your stay, and comes with access to the many onsens in the town. There are two onsens within the ryokan, too, which are worth checking out that switch genders each night, so it's worth going at night and in the morning to experience both (one is Japanese-themed, the other is Greco-Roman). The food is lovely, both dinner and breakfast are plentiful with a wide selection of seafood, noodles, and other ingredients. The crab is exquisite. Service from all hotel staff, from the receptionists to the servers to even the maintenance staff were all so polite and helpful. Loved every thing about our stay.

Not a single thing. Perhaps the only small inconvenience (and it really is small), is the distance from the centre. The ryokan is located close to the ropeway at the western side of the town, up a gentle hill. If wearing getas, it can be a bit of a slog walking up the hill back to the ryokan...but, that's all part of the experience and means your legs feel they need the onsen!

We knew this was going to be a great hotel to stay at. But it definitely blew way past our expectations. The dinner(s) and breakfast(s) (Japanese style) were some of the best food we’ve eaten in Japan AND I’d even go as far as most of what we’re used to in our day to day life. They also have a magnificent garden that you can stroll in. The onsen inside the hotel was just perfect as well. A tad warm but that’s what’s expected. The staff was incredibly helpful, kind and most of their staff could speak great English. I had the impression the hotel radiated the best of what Japan has to offer. Respect, kindness, helpfulness.

The Wifi had it quirks and at times it was difficult to keep online but to be honest, you quickly forget the online world when you’re in the hotel.

While pricey I'd say it's 100% worth the value through the beautiful garden-view rooms, INCREDIBLE five-star dinner and breakfast experience and the service + you have the best onsen in town right in the hotel. Even though their sister hotel was closed - the staff went above and beyond to accommodate a morning private onsen before we left which is exceptional service. This stay be a lifetime memory for us, we loved it.

The shower is a touch dated - but you don't use it much due to onsen. And the arrival experience could have been smoother - some of the staff were a bit chaotic, grabbing different guest bags and double-checking names - when it could have easily been as calm as the rest of our stay was

Everything was amazing. Beautiful historic property. Service was amazing and the food was excellent. The rooms are spacious, very clean and relaxing. The town is amazing, straight out of a postcard - it was really nice to walk around in our robes and visit the public onsen. Absolutely worth the trek to this town! About 2.5 hrs from Kyoto on the train.

My husband has tattoos on arms and legs and they required you to cover all tattoos with stickers at the hotel, or book the private onsen. Unfortunately at the time we stayed there the private onsen at the sister property was not open, so he was not able to use the hotel onsen at all. The rest of the town is tattoo friendly and it would seem to make sense to allow tattoos at this onsen as well?. The stickers are not really going to work for larger tattoos. The hotel onsen is beautiful but I think it needs to be more flexible for paying guests!

Staying at Nishimuraya Honkan was an incredible experience from start to finish. The staff could not have been more helpful; from assisting with transport to providing a vegetarian kaiseki meal for me, they really went out of their way to make the stay really special. The property is beautiful - we loved the onsen, and making use of the lounge in the evenings.

This Honkan has perfect location in Kinosaki Onsen, it is an traditional Japanese property, more like a museum, with beautiful Japanese Garden and hot spring baths. Our room had this amazing view over the garden, it has been traditional Japanese experience, with sitting on tatami mats, futons, beautiful yakutas that were changed frequently, all possible amenities, afternoon matcha and absolutely delicious kaiseki dinners prepared of highest quality products. Breakfast was served in a beautiful room and has been out of this world (we chose Japanese breakfast). Service provided by the personal, was exceptional and diligent.

There wasn't anything that we did not like.

My teenage son and I wanted to book a ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) and also visit some onsen at the beginning of our time in Japan. This ryokan exceeded our expectations. Such gracious service by the entire staff. The yukata that was presented to us to wear during our stay was a wonderful surprise. Juice, coffee and water are available all day long, in a quiet, beautifully furnished lounge. We enjoyed an incredible breakfast both mornings - the first morning we chose the Japanese breakfast, and the next day we tried the Western breakfast.

The only thing that could have improved our stay was a little more explanation/information in English regarding what to expect during our stay. For example, presenting a map of the town, with information about accessing each of the onsen. Also, my son and I both have large feet -- the largest geta were still 2+ inches too short for his feet, which made walking onsen to onsen on the cobblestone streets a bit of a challenge. Otherwise, we just could not have had a more positive experience at Nishimuraya Honkan.

Good food, great service. Awesome garden and the onsens were nice. Convenient location, excellent in most ways. Really cool the cocktail bar up nearby had great cocktails and could charge them to the room. Definitely visit the cocktail bar if in KinosakiOnsen, say hi to the barman from the Midori sour couple.

The meals at the Sister Hotel Shogetsutei were better.