Yamamizuki

One of our best highlights and experiences for this Fukuoka trip. Liked the food spread for breakfast and dinner that comes with the stay. Although the drive in and out can be dangerous as the road width is narrow for a two way. Loved the onsens. The outdoor Onsen is unforgettable as it's in the open space. The water is a bit too hot though. They are the few kid friendly hotel around the place. So we greatly appreciate that.

The 20 to 30-minute walk from the city center takes you through an idyllic forest along a babbling brook, rewarding you with one of the most beautiful onsen baths. As a day visitor, I stayed in the public bathing area. The men’s bath is located directly on a wooded hillside above the stream. It is surrounded by stones that invite you to linger and soak up the sun.

Pretty good experience overall. Nice spacious rooms, nice looking and clean ryokan, access to 3 onsens close by, river views. There was a quite major issue though: their main outside onsen for men was unusable during my visit, the water temperature stayed around 45-46 celsius (estimated) for hours. It is way too hot, even Japanese guests were yelling "Atsu! Atsu !" and getting out quickly. I would have expected better temperature control from such a place. At least all other onsens were okay, even the outside female one according to my girlfriend was fine. Another disappointment was a soup we had during the kaiseki contained an oyster feeling like rubber, basically inedible. It was a bit gross. Well cooked oysters are usually tender. The rest of the meal was pretty good however!