Hot Springs Hotels in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan

For just over 1000 yen, getting a one-night stay with two meals for two people, plus a sea view, is incredible value! The dinner buffet, while not huge, had excellent quality ingredients. We feasted on delicious salmon and tuna. The room was spacious. Sure, there were a few minor imperfections in some corners, but for this price, I can't complain. The only real issue was that the hotel only offers free luggage storage until 3 PM. They didn't mention this when we dropped off our bags. Halfway through our Kumano Kodo hike, a friend behind me delivered the bad news. I ended up having to carry six people's luggage to our next accommodation all by myself. It was quite a heartbreaking experience.

Arrive at JR Shirahama Station and then transfer to the taxi for about 4 minutes. It is very close to Toretore market and can be reached on foot. The rooms are panda-shaped and spacious inside. Dinner and breakfast are buffet style 

Taoya Nachikatsuura is a refurbished property with excellent rooms and a great location, making it a VERY comfortable and convenient stay overall. Nice touch with the selection of yukata in chic designs—it adds a bit of personality to the experience. The hotel also offers free-flow alcohol and small bites throughout the day, you need to be careful not to over drink or overeat. Both the dinner and breakfast buffets stand out, offering a wide variety of options with solid quality across the board. That said, the in-room outdoor bath (our booking) felt unnecessary. In our view, it’s not worth the extra cost, as it doesn’t come close to the full experience of the main onsen downstairs.

The location would be very inconvenient if you don't have a car. The parking lot is large, so it was very convenient when I visited with a rental car. The dinner and breakfast were very good. The hot springs were too hot to stay for long, but the scenery was very nice.

This onsen hotel boasts an excellent location right by the sea, and it's also very close to nearby attractions. The hotel offers a half-board plan with dinner and breakfast, and each room has a private open-air bath. The public onsen, facing the ocean, is absolutely beautiful. For dinner, you can enjoy the famous Ise lobster while taking in the stunning sea views and sunset hues. The price is also quite reasonable for an onsen hotel of this quality. Overall, it's a very satisfying hotel.

I've previously stayed at Kamoike hotels in Izu Kogen, Arima Onsen, and Tazawako, and always had a good experience. So for my trip to Kii-Katsuura, I decided to choose this chain again. It's a budget-friendly and popular resort hotel (only the Izu Kogen one was relatively pricier). I compared it with nearby hotels like Hotel Urashima and Nakanoshima, but found them inconvenient for getting around. Nakanoshima was also too expensive for a solo traveler like me. Though this hotel has a history of several decades, it seems to have been renovated and is in good condition, with decent service, much like other Kamoike hotels. I stayed here for two nights, and my choice proved to be correct. On the first day, I arrived at Kii-Katsuura on the Kuroshio train around noon. After a short walk to the hotel to drop off my luggage, I went back to the JR station and took a bus to Nachisan, where I walked a highlight section of the Kumano Kodo trail. The second day was a leisurely stroll around Kii-Katsuura town. I had a seafood bowl at the pier, took a boat tour of Matsushima, and even visited the cave onsen for a day trip at Hotel Urashima. It was a very relaxing and enjoyable two-day itinerary. Furthermore, I found the kaiseki dinner provided by the hotel to be excellent, especially considering the price. I thought it was even better than the nearly 10,000 yen dinner I had at Shirahama Kaiyu. Plus, the menu changed both days. The Kumano beef was absolutely delicious! If I wasn't such a small eater, I would have definitely ordered an extra portion. I preferred the steamed version over the sukiyaki. For me, the portions were perfectly filling, even a bit too much. Around 9:30 PM, after my onsen bath, I passed by the free tantanmen stall. The sesame aroma was incredibly inviting, but since I had eaten so much at dinner for two consecutive nights, I didn't go in for the noodles, which is a bit of a shame. The breakfast set was also good, especially the tonjiru soup – it was really delicious!

We stayed in this lovely family hotel for a night, we opted for room stay with dinner and breakfast. There's no shops or restaurant near by, so highly suggest to choose the stay with meals option, otherwise there's cooking facility within the room also, so I think it's possible to cook your own meal if necessary. Location - the hotel is just round the corner of the famous Shirasaki Ocean Park, we even had a good view of the park from our room. There's parking space right in front of the hotel building, so it's very handy. We cycled to the Shirasaki Ocean Park then to the hotel, so it worked out perfect. There's a very steep slop going up to the hotel though, but it wasn't an issue for us as we pushed out bikes up. Facilities - this is a family run hotel which believes was built a while ago, so can't compare it to all those new built hotels. The ”room” we stayed is more like a mini flat, it has a big kitchen, good sized bathroom with changing area, a separate toilet, a living room, bedroom and an extra ”sitting” area. The entire flat is in traditional Japanese style which we loved, and it has all facilities that made our stay comfortable. It also has coined washing machine and driers. We could even access to rooftop on the 4th floor to view the sunset. If you're looking for a quiet place to have quality time, then this is a good place to do so. There's also ”public bath” within the hotel, it's small but wasn't an issue for us. There's also shower and bath in the room also if you want some privacy. Food - all food was cooked and prepared by the hotel owner, and she's a talented chef! Dinner was impressive, breakfast was standard. The hotel owner is very friendly and lovely, it's definitely ”the place” to stay if you're visiting the area. We highly recommend it.

The place has nice onsen pools with a good sea view. They let us change the check in date which was very helpful. It’d been better if the booking time for breakfast and dinner was informed before the arrival so guests could plan better for meals as the location is around 20 minutes walk from the railway station and restaurants.

The hotel is situated at a secluded corner of Wakayama prefecture. It is much preferable to drive here rather than relying on the infrequent hotel shuttle. Public transport is otherwise non existent. There are no restaurants around the hotel. However the hotel provides delicious meals with abundant fresh seafood. The in room dining experience is superb. The hotel staff service is impeccable. The room has a spectacular sea view allowing you to see the sunset on clear days. The onsen also faces the sea which provides a relaxing experience. A downside is that the hotel does not seem to sanitize the slippers for indoor use. All hotel guests had to change to their slippers to access their indoor facilities.

That ocean view alone made it all worth it! Room Facilities: It's an older hotel, so a bit dated, but it has everything you need and the hygiene was quite good. The best part was having two separate toilets – perfect for families traveling together. The lobby on the ground floor offers free drinks, and complimentary wine is served after 5 PM. They also have delicious Yuasa soy sauce ice cream (extra charge). Transportation: The hotel is just a 1-minute walk from the station, making it convenient to get anywhere. Breakfast: The Japanese-style breakfast, while perhaps not for everyone's palate, offered a wonderful sense of ritual. The sweet pickled salmon was tasty. The Japanese lady at the next table finished everything! The buffet breakfast is good for those who don't eat seafood or cold dishes; while the selection isn't huge, the food tasted good. Onsen (Hot Spring): It was decent, nothing spectacular but perfectly fine. Soaking in the hot spring at 5 AM was incredibly pleasant, and it wasn't overly crowded at 8 PM either. The beach is right downstairs, a mere 2-minute walk from the hotel. You can even buy fireworks and light them on the beach. There are tons of great restaurants nearby, and the lobby even has recommendations for the best local eateries. When checking in, we asked the front desk to book a taxi for our departure. Taxis are really hard to come by here, so if you have a lot of luggage, definitely book in advance, as the buses can get too crowded to board. There's also a 24-hour supermarket, Lawson, and FamilyMart across from the hotel, selling some good beer.