Things to Do | Visit Chiba | Latest update:2024/03/12
Exploring beyond Tokyo and staying at a local hot spring hotel will help you discover deeper and more authentic travel experiences while you’re visiting Japan. Chiba is located on a peninsula next to Tokyo, and its charming coastal communities are a great place to start your search for a break from the usual Tokyo tourist spots. Here along the Pacific Ocean, about a two-hour limited-express train ride from Tokyo Station, is the city of Kamogawa, home to the Kamogawakan hotel. We chose to feature the Kamogawakan here on Visit Chiba because it offers overseas tourists an ideal blend of both modern comfort and the traditional feel of a local Japanese style inn. You’ll also find a variety of ways to enjoy hot springs here, with private and communal baths, and even a rooftop hot spring pool.
You’ll find Kamogawakan situated within a beachside pine grove, a stark contrast to the concrete jungles that surround most Tokyo-area lodgings. The rooms themselves are designed to fit within this environment, adorned in the classic Japanese aesthetic of wood grains and gentle earth tones. The social media personality Emma Bassett, who goes by @bassetts.bouken on Instagram, took a Visit Chiba sponsored trip to the Kamogawakan and was kind enough to share the pictures of her experience with us. On her visit, she stayed in one of the “Japanese + Western” style rooms with a private semi-open-air bath overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
If this is your first time visiting a Japanese hot spring and you’re not quite comfortable getting naked in front of strangers (or you have tattoos, which are generally forbidden in Japanese hot springs), take comfort in the fact that you can book a room like Emma’s with your own private bath. An outdoor “Madoka-no-yu” bath space within the hotel can also be reserved, offering another way to soak in the mineral-rich waters with a degree of privacy. If you work up the courage to try a truly authentic onsen experience, there are two massive public bath spaces as well, one for men and one for women.
Reserve the private "Madoka-no-yu" onsen - Photo Courtesy of Kamogawakan
A rendering of one of the public bath spaces. Courtesy of Kamogawakan
Our top recommendation though is the stunning rooftop Haruka hot spring pool. This bath not only offers the best view in the hotel, it’s also a unisex space meant to be enjoyed in swimsuits, allowing all members of your party to enjoy the stunning ocean view together!
Haruka Hot Spring Pool - Photo Courtesy of Kamogawakan
A stay at Kamogawakan also gives you the chance to enjoy a traditional Japanese kaiseki dinner featuring select local seasonal ingredients. This dinner set is served at the Yoshidaya restaurant, where a reservation of up to six people can be made to book your own private dining room. If you’d prefer to choose from an ala carte menu of both Japanese and Western dishes, check out the restaurant MAIWAI, where no reservation is required.
From Emma's stay at Kamogawakan: The seasonal kaiseki dinner at Yoshidaya
Special thanks to Emma for staying at Kamogawakan and sharing her pictures with us! To see the entire experience from her point of view, please see the video below:
_____
For more Kamogawa trip inspiration from us at Visit Chiba, please check out the links below:
Kamogawa Trip | Seaside Sights, Historic Temples & Terraced Rice Fields | Visit Chiba
Nanabatake Road | Welcome Spring with a Field of Yellow in Chiba | Visit Chiba
Awa Kamogawa Station | Kamogawa Beach Town Rental Bicycles | Visit Chiba
1179 Nishicho, Kamogawa City
(5 minutes by car from JR Awa-Kamogawa Station)
