I kicked off 2020 with a trip to a new prefecture in Japan: Yamagata Prefecture! I finally got to visit Ginzan Onsen, the place I’ve been obsessing over since 2017; I even included it on a post here on the blog without having visited it yet. I said there that I would like to visit this dreamy winter place for Christmas someday. The plan was to go for 2019’s Christmas or New Year’s; however, booking accommodation there can prove to be quite difficult, even two months in advance, everything was fully booked. I was fortunate to find one available room on January 4th, and it was a great way to start the new year doing what I love most: exploring new places.
I already mentioned that I would like to visit all the 47 prefectures in Japan, and with Yamagata, I am halfway through this goal, with 23 prefectures visited so far. It is fun visiting different prefectures in Japan because each has beautiful places to see, yummy & unique foods to try, limited edition souvenirs and sweets, and often the Japanese spoken in these prefectures might be slightly different from the language spoken in Tokyo. The Japanese spoken in Yamagata was so different that I could barely understand when locals were talking among themselves, which was interesting for me to find out. I was not expecting the dialect in northern Japan to be so different from the standard language; for example, in the Kansai region, the dialect spoken there is still pretty much understandable for a standard Japanese speaker.
If you are planning a trip to Japan, I’d recommend going somewhere different from Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto as well if you can. Of course, these three are must-sees, and they are like that for a reason; however, exploring lesser-known places might help you get a better image of what Japan has to offer and how diverse the country is. Japan knows how to promote its various regions through posters at train stations, pamphlets, tourist guides. However, I noticed that it does not promote these places too much to foreign tourists, and a lot of the information found about different regions is mainly in Japanese. It might be challenging to get around certain places in Japan without knowing the language. Still, nowadays, with all the online information and with Google Maps, I’m sure anyone can smoothly travel around Japan.
Now, back to Yamagata prefecture, it is located in the Tōhoku region of Japan, and its capital is Yamagata city. In winter, this prefecture is famous for its ski resorts and onsens (hot springs) and in summer for summer festivals such as the Hanagasa Festival. Many fruits such as cherries, La France pears, or watermelons are produced here, and the region is also known for the Yonezawa beef, a high-quality type of wagyū (Japanese beef). Cakes, candies, wines made of cherries, or La France pears can be found at souvenir shops in tourist places or train stations.
There are three main tourist attractions that Yamagata is famous for: the Zao snow monsters, Ginzan Onsen, and Yamadera temple. I planned to see the first two of them for this trip; unfortunately, not everything went according to the plan, and you will see why below.
How to get there?
As usual, the best way to travel around Japan is by the bullet train or Shinkansen, and if you are traveling to Japan from abroad, you can have a good deal with the JR Pass, which allows you to use the Shinkansen or other JR lines as many times as you want for 7, 14 or 21 days, depending on which plan you choose. Unfortunately, as I am a resident here, I cannot purchase this pass, so I have to pay the full price whenever I choose to travel by Shinkansen (I used to have a small student discount when I was a student, but unfortunately, now that doesn’t apply anymore either haha).
So here is the route we took:
Tokyo -> Yamagata (3 hours)
| Unreserved seat | Reserved seat | Green seat |
| 10,450 yen | 11,340 yen | 14,560 yen |
Reservations for shinkansen tickets start one month before the date when you want to travel, and by purchasing them early, you might be able to get some discounts (we managed to buy the tickets to Yamagata for around 10,000 yen for a reserved seat). We were traveling during one of the busiest seasons in Japan, New Year’s holiday, when many Japanese people go back to their hometowns, thus to make sure we had our tickets, we booked them well in advance. I recommend you to do the same if you plan to travel by Shinkansen during busy seasons, such as the Golden Week, Silver Week, Obon, or the before-mentioned New Year’s holiday. Taking unreserved seats during these seasons might be pretty risky; you might not be able to find any empty seats and have to travel while standing.
Yamagata -> Zao Onsen (not Zao station) (1 hour)
1000 yen by bus
We went to Zao by bus from Yamagata station, which is 1000 yen one-way. For the little onsen town Zao Onsen or the Zao Ropeway, you should take the bus from Yamagata city as the Zao station is quite far from them, and it seemed there weren’t any available buses from Zao station.
Yamagata -> Oishida (40 minutes)
1,440 by Shinkansen
Oishida is the station you need to go to for Ginzan Onsen. It can be reached directly from Tokyo; however, we stopped in Yamagata first as we also chose to go to Zao. There are a few stations between Yamagata and Oishida, and the trip by Shinkansen took less than one hour; you can also go by regular train, but there are not too many available times, and the trip will be longer.
Oishida -> Tokyo (3.5 hours)
From Oishida station, we returned straight to Tokyo (a pretty long trip even by Shinkansen, 3.5 hours)
A cheaper option to go from Tokyo to Yamagata is to go by bus; the night bus can be as reasonable as 2,500 yen if tickets are bought well in advance! But be ready for eight long hours of travel…
Accommodation
In Yamagata, we chose to stay at an affordable hotel near the station. What I liked most about this hotel was its convenient location, only a 5-minute walk from Yamagata station, very convenient if you want to go around the region. I also liked that it had many excellent restaurants with specialties from Yamagata.
Ginzan Onsen is a small onsen town with just a few accommodation options, and as it is very popular among Japanese and foreign tourists alike, it is pretty hard to find a place to stay there. I wanted to stay at a traditional inn (ryokan) located in the center of Ginzan. When I saw Kosekiya Bekkan, I fell in love with its architecture, location, and everything it had to offer. It is located right by the main river in Ginzan, and you can get a view over the little town from your room or one over the nearby mountains. When I first checked their website, the inn was fully booked for the next three months. However, there was a little note somewhere on the website saying that you can try calling to see if there are any empty rooms. We were super lucky to find a room after calling them, so without any hesitation; we booked that room (although it was a bit pricy, 20,000yen per person); this was around one month before the trip.
Staying at a ryokan is not cheap in general, but especially during busy seasons and in a popular place like Ginzan Onsen. After doing some research, I found that most ryokans in Ginzan are priced somewhere around 20,000 yen per person during the peak season in winter but can get cheaper in summer. It is, however, totally worth it for the traditional Japanese experience you can have there, excellent services (omotenashi – Japanese hospitality), the experience of sleeping on the tatami, onsen available inside the ryokan, + dinner and breakfast are included, so you don’t need to worry about them.
At Kosekiya Bekkan, our room was very spacious (two Japanese-style rooms). We had a great view over the river. Both dinner and breakfast were delicious, with Yamagata specialties such as Yamagata beef. As for the onsen, they offer an onsen with many therapeutic properties; they have separate baths for men and women, both located inside, on the first floor. Both baths are for everyone staying in the ryokan to use, and they cannot be reserved for private use (as I have seen at other ryokans).
They also offer free access to Ginzanso’s rotenburo (open-air bath), which I loved! Ginzanso is their newer branch ryokan, located outside the onsen town but still pretty close to Ginzan. Ginzanso is a modern-style ryokan with a luxurious atmosphere and amazing baths, so if you don’t necessarily want that “vintage” experience of staying in an old-style ryokan, I would recommend Ginzanso; I am thinking to stay there next time if I get another chance to visit Ginzan (maybe in summer). They also have rooms with private onsen baths attached to them!
They provide a shuttle bus from Oishida station to both Ginzanso and Kosekiya Bekkan, which takes around 30-40 minutes. You can also go to Ginzanso’s bath by the bus they provide from Kosekiya Bekkan or to the onsen town from Ginzanso (instead of walking for around 5 minutes).
Kosekiya Bekkan is a well-preserved Taisho Roman style ryokan, Taisho Roman referring to the architectural style, fashion, and so on of the Taisho period (1912-1926), and roman stands for romantic. Ginzan Onsen is the epitome of romantic. At this ryokan, you can truly feel that time has stopped as they try to keep everything similar to how it was 100 years ago. What I liked about this ryokan was its excellent position right in the middle of Ginzan and our room with a great view over the river, the friendly staff who invited us to come again in summer and try the delicious watermelons they have there, the great variety both the dinner and breakfast had and also small details such as them offering boots, umbrellas or jackets to go out in the snow. Like any ryokan, they also provide yukatas for you to wear inside and outside when it is not too cold (I couldn’t miss the chance to take some photos in my yukata outside as I could rapidly go back inside when I got too cold, haha).
What to see & do?
Zao Snow Monsters 樹氷 Juhyo
Zao Onsen is a small onsen town located 1 hour away by bus from Yamagata. You can find plenty of snow in winter, beautiful onsens, and some unique “snow monsters,” also known as juhyo 樹氷, frost-covered trees in Japanese. Due to heavy snow and strong Siberian winds, trees start looking like some “snow monsters.” From Zao Onsen, you can take the ropeway to the top of Mt. Zao for a 3,000 yen round-trip and hope to see them. Unfortunately, when we went there, both visibility was very low, and there was not enough snow for the snow monsters to form… however, it was my first snow of the year, so I had quite a lot of fun there although the goal of the trip to Zao has not been reached this time. I read that the snow monsters are most spectacular around mid-February, so I should pay another visit and hope to see them next time (I also wanted to go skiing there, so it might be a great occasion to do so!).
Ginzan Onsen 銀山温泉
Ginzan Onsen 銀山温泉 is a small onsen town located in the mountains of Yamagata. Its name can be translated as the Silver Mountain Hot Spring, and silver miners around 500 years ago discovered it. Its economy flourished thanks to the booming silver production, however in the 17th century, the silver industry started declining. During the Taisho Period (1912-1926) and early Showa Period (1926-1989), many wooden ryokans were built along the banks of Ginzan River, and Ginzan Onsen became one of the most beautiful onsen towns in Japan. It was not rare at that time to find buildings in that architectural style; however, nowadays, it is not so common to see old Japanese architecture so well preserved, that is why this place is so special. The snow only adds to the magical atmosphere of this little onsen town. Ginzan Onsen also gained popularity with the Japanese drama Oshin aired between 1983-1984. It is also believed that it has inspired Hayao Miyazaki’s famous Spirited Away, which attracts many visitors every year, foreigners and Japanese alike.
There are 12 ryokans in Ginzan, and 10 of them are located along the river. The symbol of Ginzan Onsen is Notoya Ryokan, established in 1892. Kosekiya Bekkan is another example of the old Taisho Roman type of architecture. And I would also like to mention Fujiya Ryokan, which has quite an interesting story. Not long ago, its Okami 女将 proprietress used to be a foreign lady nicknamed the blonde Okami 金髪の女将; she married the owner of the ryokan. However, the owners of this ryokan decided to change the old design of the building and go for modern Japanese-style architecture. For this, they hired the famous Japanese architect Kengo Kuma. The blonde Okami opposed this idea; as a lover of Japanese traditional culture, she said the new architecture would not fit into the retro atmosphere of Ginzan Onsen. I think she was right; even though the new ryokan looks very interesting and keeps details specific to the regions, such as white walls and wooden elements, it stands out among the older style ryokans. It seems this was one of the reasons why the blonde Okami decided to leave Japan and return to her country.
Besides admiring the architecture in Ginzan, one popular activity to have when visiting Ginzan Onsen is to go to an onsen! And there are plenty of options for everyone. There are two public baths (300-500 yen), a free-of-charge foot bath, and a public bath open for private use (Omokageyu,) which is 2000 yen for 50 minutes, and you can reserve it at the Haikarasan’s Currybread shop. Many ryokans also open their baths to non-staying travelers for a fee. Many of the baths in Ginzan are indoor baths, and their waters have various therapeutic properties. Ginzanso offers a gorgeous rotenburo (open-air bath) with a view over the nearby forest. Going to an onsen while it was snowing outside was a first-time experience for me. Still, undoubtedly an unforgettable one, and it represented one of these moments when I felt so lucky to be able to experience Japan like this.
日本っていいなあと思う瞬間
One of the best parts about Ginzan Onsen is that it is not as crowded as other places in Japan and we could enjoy it in peace. As there are just a few available places to stay, many tourists choose day trips, and they come especially to see the night scene of the town illuminated by gas lights. After 7 pm, most tourists were gone, and the little town was almost empty.
Besides enjoying the retro atmosphere of this little onsen town, you can also enjoy the beautiful nature around Ginzan Onsen, such as Shirogane no Taki (Shirogane Waterfall), which is located right at the exit of the town. Senshinkyo Valley and one of the remaining silvers mines are other places you might want to check out, but the trails will be closed during winter and the beginning of spring because of snow.
I was so happy I could finally make it to Ginzan Onsen and truly enjoyed the town from day to night.
Where to eat?
One of the things Yamagata is famous for and I didn’t know before is Yamagata beef, the Yonezawa brand. You can have Yamagata beef at several restaurants specializing in shabu shabu, yakiniku, and so on.
Shabu sen しゃぶ専
In Yamagata City, we went to this family-owned restaurant for dinner to try their Yamagata beef shabu shabu. Shabu shabu is a Japanese type of hot pot with thin slices of meat and vegetables. It is perfect for enjoying during cold winter days.
When staying at a ryokan, both dinner and breakfast are usually included.
For dinner, we enjoyed kaiseki ryori (multi-course) Japanese-style dinner featuring Yamagata beef yakiniku (grilled meat), nabe (hot pot), sashimi, pickles made of Yamagata vegetables, and other specialties specific to the region.
For breakfast, we had a traditional Japanese-style breakfast with fried salmon, rice, miso soup, simple but tasty and healthy.
There is a popular restaurant/cafe in the afternoon and izakaya at night in Ginzan. Located right at the entrance of the small onsen town, it is hard to miss it. I tried their duck soba and soba flavored soft cream, and both were very yummy.
Haikarasan’s Curry bread
A small but cute shop when you go towards the Shirogane waterfall. They specialize in curry bread, a Japanese invention consisting of curry-filled fried bread (as the name suggests). You can often find curry bread at bread shops and convenience stores across Japan, and I have had it a few times, but I have to tell you that the one in Ginzan is the best I have had so far. The outside was crunchy, but the inside was soft and warm, perfect for enjoying when it’s cold outside. They sell it by itself or along with coffee for 600 yen. I didn’t know curry bread would go well with coffee, but it was super yummy. They also sell traditional Japanese sweets such as manju or daifuku. I tried their suika (watermelon) daifuku because some of the best watermelons are produced in the region during summer.
Yamagata was the perfect destination for an unforgettable winter trip; I could see breathtaking landscapes, walk around the romantic town of Ginzan, enjoy delicious food, soak in one of the best onsens I have experienced so far. I recommend Yamagata if you are traveling around Japan in winter!
Thank you for your visit, and happy traveling!
