네코나키 온센 시키부 노 야카나 이즈츠야

I stayed at this onsen ryokan in late November 2023 on my way to Hiraizumi, as it lies about halfway from the Kanto region. The ryokan calls itself the "mansion house of Shikibu", deriving from the lady poet of the Heian era Izumi Shikibu (Shikibu was a title for ladies in the imperial court), as she is purported to have been born and raised in Ishikawa Town where this ryokan is situated. It is quite a large and modern ryokan equipped with banquet and other function rooms, and appears to be the major accommodation and event venue in the area. The tatami room in the main building (honkan) was quite spacious and comfortable. I relaxed in their onsen bath (both indoors and outdoors) which were large enough and not congested at all. Dinner was served in our room. The course was plentiful and most enjoyable, including assorted appetizers, seafood sashimi and the main sukiyaki pot of local beef, pork and chicken stewed on the table. Breakfast was a relatively light Japanese meal (perfect for us ) served in a banquet room together with other guests. I noticed that the ryokan is a bit short of staff. I had been provided with a welcome drink voucher, but there was no staff in the lounge and I had to ask a staff in the gift shop for help. The lady staff (who was cheerful as well as helpful) that served us supper laid out our futon mattresses out as well (usually male staff handle this). There was only one lady staff helping serve breakfast in the banquet room (although some part was self-service). Other than that, we had a comfortable and relaxing stay.