Hotel Lucent Takamiya

Hotel Lucent Takamiya stands right in front of the Zao Chuo Ropeway, about five minutes on foot from the bus terminal, and runs a free shuttle. Rooms are spread over three wings in seven types: Japanese, Western and maisonette. Every bath takes the town's acidic sulfur water straight from the source. There is an open-air bath, Hagakure no Yu, a dry sauna, and two private baths, Ikoi and the open-air Nagomi, open from 7:00 to 22:00 for ¥2,200 (¥3,300 for day visitors). Dinner is Japanese food together with a buffet that has Yamagata beef, Komenomusume pork and imoni, Yamagata's taro stew. The hotel is one of the Takamiya group's inns, and guests can bathe free at the group's other inns from 8:00 to 10:00 and from 13:00 to 20:00, though not at Miyamaso Takamiya.