Winter in Yamagata: Hot springs, gourmet food, snow...an incredibly satisfying and relaxing trip!

I stayed here when I came to ski in Zao! The slope is right across the street! Also, the ropeway to go see the frost-covered trees is pretty close by, so this hotel is recommended not only for skiing but also for sightseeing! There is no open-air bath, but the price was quite reasonable, so I chose this inn! There is also a sister hotel about a 5-minute walk away that has an open-air bath and hot springs! So it's nice to go on a hot spring tour! (It's a little cold on the way there!!💦) The room was a Japanese-Western style and easy to use, but the bathroom and bath were a little smelly🥲 For dinner, I chose the basic pork shabu-shabu plan, and I also wanted to eat Yamagata beef, so I added Yamagata beef! As the staff said, there was a lot of food and I was full! lol The meat was soft, sweet, and filling, and it was delicious! At the end, I asked if I wanted some rice porridge, and they brought me some eggs🥚, but you can't eat dessert right away, right? The staff were very considerate and delivered dessert to our room, so the service was excellent! Breakfast had a wide variety of items, and we were able to enjoy local specialties, which was great! You can also take a bath, so it's great to be able to ski after checking out and warm up in the hot spring before heading home! The hot spring water was also very smooth and amazing! It helped relieve some of the fatigue from snowboarding! By the way, you can take a shuttle bus from Yamagata Station to Zao Ski Resort, and if you contact them when you arrive, the hotel's shuttle bus will come to pick you up at the entrance to the ski resort!