Hi all, I am visiting this onsen resort next week and was looking for travel tips from fellow residents who have visited before. Any good places to eat and or things to do? I will be visiting with my wife. It's just a one night two day visit. We are staying at Yumoto Kissho. We are thinking of trying to visit the Naruko Gorge. I think there is a bus there… is that right? I know November is a better time to visit the resort, but we already booked, so just got to make the most of the visit somehow. I realize there is a traveltips subreddit, but I wanted to ask for tips specifically from residents, because I think our priorities and interests are different from tourists. Thanks in advance
Post visit update: first of all, thank you to everyone who shared info. We had a good time despite non-stop heavy rain. We had to cut our trip to the gorge short due to the downpour but it was still worth the visit and thanks to a handy little bus service that is available we managed to also get to the Katanuma Swamp, which was as blue as promised, and the kokeshikan, which was a lot more interesting and fun than we expected; you can actually watch an artisan making a doll and play around with lots of kokeshi toys and games like kokeshi bowling. We ate at a burger bar called Tumbleweed Burgers and had soba at the gorge rest stop, both pretty good. The town definitely looked a bit rundown, probably suffering from population decline, but it still had some of its original charm, and the onsen waters were amazing, I would say beginner level heat.
So, if anyone like us is wondering whether Naruko Onsen is worth the visit and stumbles ipon this post, our verdict is yes, but one or two days is probably ample unless you have a car and can use it as a base for a wider exploration of the area.
We stayed at the Naruko Kissho onsen hotel which has some of the best private and shared hot springs we have ever experienced. Bit pricey, but worth it if your budget matches.
Final note: the resort is a bit tricky to reach by train right now due to suspended services on the rikubane east line.
by kadoka66