The hotel is located in the center of Shikoku near the Kazurabashi Bridge in Iya. If you stay there you probably should come by car. The highlight of the hotel for us was the open air bath that is build into the side of the hill behind the hotel and that can be reached by a short cable car ride from within the premises. We also like the food (we had japanese food) for all diners and breakfasts. We had a very spacious japanese style room that looked onto the street. in front of the Hotel. This came with a nice view including monkeys sitting in the cherry blossom on the opposite side of the road. It also seems perfect for a more fancy break while hiking the 88 temple route.

The hotel is a bit remote and while we liked the food a lot it was quite similar the two nights we stayed there.

Love the outdoor onsen area, especially the extra bit with the cable car taking you up. Food was great, amazed by the quality of food and service provided by the team at Kazurabashi and thank you to the hotel owner for the traditional song at dinner service. The private outdoor onsen/bath was definitely a plus if you are worried about using the public bath.

Slight suggestion is for first arrival, maybe a sign out the front asking guests that just arrived to park at the front door would be great as carpark was full on the day and it was difficult to find a space until one of the team asked us to park right in front of the hotel entrance.

Overall amazing experience, level of service and dedication from the staff was amazing and the amenities offered were better than I had expected My room was pretty much like an appartement with high quality showers and toilets

A couple of things did frustrate me a bit , one was I was traveling solo and at dinner i felt that sometimes the staff focused a bit more on larger groups and didn’t clean my table as fast My room was amazing but the outside bath is open early in the morning until later in the evening which means that I would still hear the cable car while trying to sleep and hearing it when I was still in bed in the morning They should probably try to do something about sound proof with the walls and windows

As expected from a traditional ryokan. The service is impeccable. We are coming from Takamatsu and Oboke is right on the path to toward Hotel Kazurabashi. Allowing us to check out Oboke Gorge along the way and reach there just on time for check in. Upon reaching, the staff immediately help to remove the luggage and park our car. Check in is quick and we able to ready to enjoy the onsen Stayed in a standard japanese style room. Booked the private onsen upon check in. Even though this was my forth visit to Japan and after countless onsen i had went to quite a unique experience having to reach the onsen via cable car. The 45min time allocated is short but still it was enjoyable. View was great and onsen felt even better as the weather is cold. Dinner was well prepared and the staff explain each and every dishes so that we can enjoy it to the fullest. Variety of seasonal dishes was served. I'm particularly like those citrus favour dishes like sudachi agar, yuzu-orange miso paste. Also we have hotpot, grilled eal, noodle and even amago don. It was truly satisfying. The hotel owner gave us a perform during the dinner. Her voices is so comfortable, beautiful and memerizing. It felt like you can listen to her all day long. You definely have to come and stay and listen by yourself~~ XD Then we quickly head back to room to get change for the bus tour to Kazurabashi bridge. Probably the fastest 5min cloth change in my left as the tour start on 8pm. Luckily we still manage to get on the bus. On the next day, the breakfast is serve on 7am. Since it was a cold day and raining, yuzu citrus to stimulate the appetite and chicken hotpot is great way to start the morning. Normally i am only meat eater but ended up ate all the vegetable and the mikan pudding was a perfect ending. Yes, we could understand and speak little japanese but the staff tried their best to also speak in our language which makes this even more heartwarming. Definitely will be back again.

Yes, the only this we hate is that we had to leave. TnT

Beautiful hotel hidden between the mountains in the valley. The japanese rooms were big and comfortable, loved having access to very fresh water all the time. The staff were really attentive, friendly, helpful and kind. The hotel also offers a free night tour to the vine bridge, which I highly recommend. The outdoor onsen is breathtaking, you reach it by using a cable car(or climbing it yourself). Very well maintained and beautiful setup, and you can literally sit for hours looking at its beautiful real nature background. Outside of the onsen, there is a very old rest area with tea and water, and a sunken hearth (irori). The smell of its burning wood creates a very pleasant aroma. Highly recommend sitting on the tatami in the room while the sun shines through the windows so you experience shades of red you have never seen before. Dinner and breakfast use local ingredients, and everything you try is explained in great detail. Also, you get to hear the beautiful singing voice of the owner of the hotel while she sings you a traditional japanese song during the dinner time. Because the hotel is located in a remote valley and unless you have a car, it will be hard to get around. The buses pass scarcely and they are small and can be crowded. If you try to walk, you will always be walking on the road. You can rent assisted bicycles in the hotel, which makes it easier to get around. Oh, and you will probably see wild monkeys crossing the roads if you venture around.

Absolutely fantastic stay - best welcome we had in Japan and the facilties were incredible - it was such a that I wish we could have stayed longer. Onsen was so beautiful and fun cable car to the top. Iconic rope bridge just a short walk from the hotel and could have spent more time in the river. Dining was a fantastic experience with the hotel owner singing to us. Such a fantastic spread of all the foods in Japan. We caught the train here from osaka, a bit of a slog but we'll worth it.

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This is truly a perfect Japanese hotel. They do everything right, down to the last detail. Amazing staff, really great food, super comfortable quiet room, the owner even sang for everyone at dinner! They tried very hard to make sure dinner was to our liking before we even arrived. I worked 15 years at a 5 Diamond hotel in Hawaii, Hotel Kazurabashi surely rates 5 Diamonds! The outdoor onsen and the night historic bus tour are not to be missed.

Perfect, don’t change anything.

Hotel Kazurabashi has all the elements of a Magical onsen experience at a very high level of quality and authenticity. The suite was so spacious, and with attire supplied to allow for a full traditional onsen experience, the scene is set for complete immersion in the traditional elegance. The restaurant is exceptional and special at both breakfast and dinner with staff putting on a show of excellent local dishes and ingredients. The host’s performance of a traditional song was gentle and perfect for guests. The onsen experience includes so many options but all of them are stunning and reached by the phenomenal and scenic funicular at the hotel. Oh and the nearby vine bridge is amazing.

tldr: perfect stay, we'd stay there again! Nice staff, good food, amazing Onsen, good value for money. Long version: Well kept, well maintained and clean hotel. We stayed in a tatami-style room, which was very roomy for 2 people. Our room on 3rd floor was facing the road, with a nice view of the mountains. Despite being located next to a road, it's no problem as there is little traffic during the day and almost none at night. There is an outdoor Onsen with a view of either the mountains during the day or the stars at night. It is so relaxing to enjoy the stars in the onsen after a day of hiking! For people arriving by car, there's plenty of parking spaces right in front of the Hotel. For people arriving by bus, the bus stop is right in front of the Hotel. Very convenient. The staff is amazing! They really, really made us feel welcome and put in a lot of effort to make our stay great. Big "Thank You" to the staff!! The food (breakfast and dinner) was great as well. It's a variety of local and general Japanese food, served on traditional low tables (that allow western type of sitting with a hole in the floor below the table). The Hotel is a bit more expensive than what we usually book and we were hesitant when we booked it, but after staying we think everything considered (food, onsen, staff) it's good value for money and we'd stay there again. Iya Valley: We stayed for 3 nights, which means two full days. We didn't have a car so we relied on the public bus, which means there's basically one bus to Mount Tsuragi in the morning and one bus back in the afternoon. We went hiking on Mount Tsuragi & sight-seeing in Ochiai village on one day, to Nogoro (Scarecrow) village & double vine bridges the other day. By car, it can be done on a single day, by bus you need 2 days due to the timetable. Arrival & departure day can be used for the vine bridge close to the Hotel, visiting Oboke and the temple in Kotohira.

The open-air spa is situated atop a hill at the hotel. My sister and I took a small self-manual cable car to reach the spa. It was a fantastic experience that I had never encountered before, even though I have visited many ryokans. The owner of the ryokan was very welcoming and fluent in English. She sang a beautiful local folk song and placed a plaque with our family name in front of the dining room entrance, which made us feel special. My sister and her friends are already planning to come back to the spa in the next six months. I also plan to return when I have the time. There are trains from Tokushima that arrive at Oboke station, where you can take the ryokan's service bus. They even offer to pick you up from the station if you inform them of your arrival time. Alternatively, there is a bus from Tokushima station to Iya, or you can rent a car from JR Tokushima station. There are plenty of fun activities to do in the area all year round. However, I would highly recommend visiting from the end of October to mid-November, as it is the best time to experience the area's beauty. I would like to express my gratitude to Okami-san, the ryokan's owner, for making our stay so special.

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