THE STORY

Discover the seasonal rhythm of life in Snow Country. Settled for over 8000 years, this rich land endures not despite the heavy winters snows but because of them. During the long winter, the accumulated snow grows tall enough to dwarf a man, but never freezes to a hard iciness in temperatures hovering around zero. In spring, the downy drifts protect the shoots of wild vegetables until foragers pluck them up, tender and sweet. In summer, snow preserved under thatch provides a cooling respite from summer heat. While in autumn, soil that was allowed to rest in earnest for half the year bursts into life with a bounteous harvest.

Ryugon is a ryokan with Snow Country in its DNA. It's 29 rooms are situated in an early 19th-century farmhouse that has been lovingly renovated to preserve the most beautiful elements of the traditional architecture, including a sitting room registered as an Important Cultural Property, while adding amenities that meet the highest standards of modern luxury. A hyper-local ethos transforms timeless regional recipes into innovative fine dining and stocks the cellars with a treasure trove of Niigata-made libations, which the passionate local staff can tell you all about. Even the modern furniture nods subtly to the life-giving snow, with chairs resembling the local igloos known as kamakura and headboards slanting off to one side like a wind-blown drift.

Nestled between the steep slopes of Sakado Mountain and the picturesque farmlands around Untouan Temple, the property is well situated both for enjoying modern outdoor sports and exploring the time-honored practices that have sustained and nourished this community.

Enjoy a taste of a highly unique regional culture, steeped in long tradition and rich terroir.

ROOMS

  • VILLA Villa Suite Terrace Villa Suite Terrace was added in September 2022. This suite has a water basin in front of the p…
  • VILLA Villa Suite Premium Part of a 2019 extension into the sprawling Japanese-style pond and garden, the spacious villa …
  • VILLA Villa Suite Standard The standard villa suite still has the same exclusive location, serene comfort, and eco-conscio…
  • ROOM CLASSIC Premium Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The deluxe class…
  • ROOM CLASSIC Standard A Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard roo…
  • ROOM CLASSIC Standard B Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard roo…
  • ROOM CLASSIC Standard C Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard roo…
    VILLA Villa Suite Terrace Villa Suite Terrace was added in September 2022. This suite has a water basin in front of the private open-air bath that vividly reflects the nature of Mt. Sakado. In addition, the hot spring water supplied to its open-air bath is made to flow directly from the source. Experience the slow flow of time in a space where the entire room feels like a terrace. Also, this suite has a private kitchen. If you wish, ryugon can arrange private dining with a chef visiting your room. Please enjoy this new style of Villa Suite.
    VILLA Villa Suite Premium Part of a 2019 extension into the sprawling Japanese-style pond and garden, the spacious villa suites (75-92m²) are connected to the original building via an open-air passage. While the chic gray-toned interior has a modern flavor, the suites maintain the all-important requirement in traditional Japanese architecture of connection to nature through a private deck with open-air bath facing the garden. Classic elements like earthen walls and wooden transoms join modern luxuries like heated flooring for an atmosphere of serene comfort. Overstuffed sofas and lounge chairs with plump ottomans hand-crafted by environmentally conscious Youbi Furniture provide ample space for relaxing and socializing, while a kitchenette with thoughtful touches like fair trade coffee beans and a hand mill ensure you needn't even venture out for a fresh cup of coffee.
    VILLA Villa Suite Standard The standard villa suite still has the same exclusive location, serene comfort, and eco-conscious design of the premium class villas, as well as their distinctive blend of traditional and modern architecture, at a slightly smaller size (55-78m²). Views from the private veranda and open-air bath are not as expansive but still open onto the Japanese-style pond and garden, providing the opportunity to slip directly from the warmth of the room into heated thermal spring waters. As with the premium class, the villa suite is outfitted with custom hand-made furniture from Youbi and luxurious touches like fair-trade coffee beans and fresh milk for superb private relaxation.
    ROOM CLASSIC Premium Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The deluxe class offers two Japanese-style rooms for separate sleeping and relaxing areas and views on the garden. Low beds are used rather than the traditional futon mats for guest comfort. Charming touches from bygone days like a glossy old rotary telephone or antique calligraphy scrolls written by a priest from nearby Untouan Temple add a particularly nostalgic atmosphere. Room 106 has a deck overlooking the garden.
    ROOM CLASSIC Standard A Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard rooms are characterized by classic elements like sliding shoji doors, sections of tatami flooring, and recessed tokanoma alcoves for displaying artworks. The layout of each is unique, with floor plans ranging from 43 to 60m². Many of the rooms in this class have a Japanese-style enclosed veranda called an engawa, equipped with a heated table known as a kotatsu. Enjoying a cup of tea with your legs tucked under the kotatsu's toasty skirt is a uniquely Japanese pleasure. Other rooms have a small open-air deck where guests can enjoy a natural breeze in warmer months.
    ROOM CLASSIC Standard B Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard rooms are characterized by classic elements like sliding shoji doors, sections of tatami flooring, and recessed tokanoma alcoves for displaying artworks. The layout of each is unique, with floor plans ranging from 43 to 60m². Many of the rooms in this class have a Japanese-style enclosed veranda called an engawa, equipped with a heated table known as a kotatsu. Enjoying a cup of tea with your legs tucked under the kotatsu's toasty skirt is a uniquely Japanese pleasure. Other rooms have a small open-air deck where guests can enjoy a natural breeze in warmer months.
    ROOM CLASSIC Standard C Classic rooms in the main building offer a more traditional ryokan experience. The standard rooms are characterized by classic elements like sliding shoji doors, sections of tatami flooring, and recessed tokanoma alcoves for displaying artworks. The layout of each is unique, with floor plans ranging from 43 to 60m². Many of the rooms in this class have a Japanese-style enclosed veranda called an engawa, equipped with a heated table known as a kotatsu. Enjoying a cup of tea with your legs tucked under the kotatsu's toasty skirt is a uniquely Japanese pleasure. Other rooms have a small open-air deck where guests can enjoy a natural breeze in warmer months.

FACILITIES &
SERVICES

  • Communal Bath ryugon's communal bath is a special kind of heaven: soaking outdoors in a natural stone hot spring, while billows of steam rise up to meet falling snow or a night sky studded with far more stars than city dwellers would believe. Every now and then, the silence is broken by the gentle susurration of snow slipping from the slanted awning into the dark waters of the garden pond. The soft alkalinity of the thermal waters are said to be beneficial for muscle and joint pain, while Cotte amenities from local sake brewer Hakkaisan, made from the same snowmelt water and amino acids as the famed sake, help preserve youthful skin.
  • Dining Room The main dining room is a pleasing blend of clean modern lines and old-fashioned touches full of figurative and literal warmth. An iron stove burns aromatic zelkova and other local wood, beating back any hint of a chill from the garden-view window occupying the opposite wall. A massive hearth sits in the center of the floor, ideal for cooking meat and fish on skewers in traditional tateyaki style. Simple black wood tables and low grey upholstered chairs keep focus on the vibrant beauty of the food while providing a subtle contrast to the snowscape of the winter garden. Private rooms are also available for a more intimate experience.
  • Cuisine This is an undiscovered gem of destination dining. For those ready to venture beyond the rigid formalism of kaiseki and the well-known populist delights of sushi and ramen, ryugon offers the novel experience of a distinctly Japanese cuisine deeply rooted in the local culture. Defined by the blessings of nature and techniques of preservation handed down through the generations, meals in Snow Country are full of wild greens and mushrooms with no English name, the unexpected sweetness of root vegetables preserved under snow, seafood pulled that morning from the cold waters of the Sea of Japan, and the ever-satisfying finish of hot Koshihikari rice.
  • Wood-fire Cooking Experience ryugon has preserved the detached kitchen from the original farmhouse as a space for guests to experience local gastronomy workshops, offering them a unique chance not only to learn simple recipes to prepare the healthy natural bounty of Snow Country, but also to chat with born-and-bred locals about food culture in Niigata and share a freshly cooked meal together. The spacious kitchen still uses an old-fashioned wood-fired stove and is festooned with food being preserved in time-honored ways, from vegetables pickling in massive jars to fish and game being strung from the rafters to cure in the dry winter air.
  • Irori Lounge and Garden Terrace This beautiful common space is open for guests to use at any time, including before check-in and after check-out. On one side, complimentary drinks and snacks are spread out around a toasty irori, a traditional sunken hearth where charcoal smolders invitingly. Fresh-baked bread awaits in the morning, cookies with tea and coffee in the afternoon. And in the evening, a homemade plum wine makes the perfect aperitif. On the opposite side, plush high-backed sofas face the sprawling Japanese-style pond and garden, providing both superb views and a private space for a romantic tête-à-tête. On Saturday evenings, guests can enjoy a live shamisen performance.
  • Bar Between the Irori Lounge and the Garden Terrace is a chic blond wood bar, where guests can perch on a comfortable stool and chat with a friendly bartender who is warmly passionate about the rich local beverage offerings. In Snow Country, delicious sake is a given, since pure snowmelt water and some of the finest rice in the country provide ideal raw materials, but there are also excellent Niigata craft beers and wines. And for those who would like to wade into the world of Japan's other national drink, there's regional shochu, either on its own or used to create original ryugon infusions with produce like yuzu citrus, green tea, and quince.
  • Spa Housed in the storerooms of the old farmstead and located at the far corner of the property, this intimate spa contains just one treatment room for a blissfully quiet and totally private wellness experience. Tucked behind the original heavy sliding door, the thick-walled space once would have protected stores of tea and other foodstuffs. The spa nods to that by offering facial and body treatments using products from Themae Paris, luxury French cosmetics derived from tea leaves and full of skin-preserving antioxidants and polyphenol micronutrients. Couple's treatments are also available.
  • ryugon cafe The café is next to the earthen floored space on your left as you come through the entrance gate to ryugon. The cafe offers onsen- coffee made by hot spring water and patissier’s handmade pastries during the day. Enjoy the luxurious cafe time.

EXPERIENCE

  • Fall in Love with Treasures of Niigata More
  • Meet the Inspired Metalworking Artisans of Niigata More
  • Artistic Discovery at Echigo-Tsumari Art Field More

Map &
Transportation

Closest Train Station Muikamachi Station
Closest Bus Station N/A
Free pick-up service YES
Complimentary transfer from/to HATAGO ISEN in front of Echigoyuzawa Station (30min) / Reservation Required. Depart HATAGO-Isen at 15:15 and 17:15 / Reservation Required
Key Gate Way Int'l Airport and Train (Shinkansen) Station

MOVIE

Ryokan Data

Area Minami Uonuma / 南魚沼
Name of Ryokan ryugon / 龍言
Address 1-6 Sakado, Minami-Uonuma, Niigata 949-6611
〒949-6611 新潟県南魚沼市坂戸1-6
Total Number of Rooms 29 rooms
Check-in Time 15:00
Check-Out Time 12:00
Credit Card Yes

Meals

Dinner Start Time 17:30 / 19:30
Breakfast Start Time 7:30 - 10:00
In Room Dining Available No
Bar
Special Dietary Arrangements YES
Vegan Friendly Yes
Western Breakfast Available YES

Other Facilities & Services

Communal Bath Yes
Family Bath No
Private indoor bath in room Yes
Private open-air bath in the room Yes

Room Rates

ROOM RATES
Room Type Description Number of guest per room (JPY)
1 2 3 4 5 6
Villa Suite Terrace 55 - 92m²
93,500 55,550 42,900 36,575 N/A N/A
Villa Suite Premium 75 - 92m²
84,820 49,620 37,886 32,020 N/A N/A
Villa Suite Standard 55 - 78m²
71,620 43,020 33,486 28,720 N/A N/A
CLASSIC Premium 48 - 54m²
56,220 35,320 28,353 24,870 N/A N/A
CLASSIC Standard A 44 - 60m²
40,820 27,620 23,220 21,020 N/A N/A
CLASSIC Standard B 40 - 58m²
34,220 24,320 21,020 19,370 N/A N/A
CLASSIC Standard C 43 - 57m²
34,220 24,320 21,020 19,370 N/A N/A
Note:
Non-smoking room: All
Barrier free: NO

Ryokan rate is for one person, includes one night accommodation, Japanese full course dinner, breakfast, service charge and tax.

Please be advised that rate will change depending on number of guests and dates. Please contact us for details.

- The mentioned rates and service are available only for LRC Members who book through LRC's website.
- The rates are subject to change without any prior notice.
- Please note that a particular room cannot be guaranteed in advance unless otherwise stated by The Ryokan Collection