After living in Japan for more than six years, I finally stayed at a Ryokan. I went to “Yuga Onsen Hotel Santoka”. The staff picked us up by shuttle bus from Kurashiki station, but we were the only ones on the bus. As it turns out, all the other guests came by car. It was like we had our own private driver.

We were lucky because there were few guests staying that night. When I went to the hot spring, there was only one other person there. I eventually got the entire space to myself. The dinner area was also private. We spent about two hours eating a huge (and delicious) traditional Japanese style meal.

The next day, we once again had our own private car back to Kurashiki station. Not a bad way to spend the weekend.