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4.0
#1 of 2 onsen ryokans in Kawachinagano
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Located in a quiet corner of Osaka prefecture, far from the bustle of the big city... Surrounded by beautiful nature, you can have a relaxed and unforgettable time at Nanten-en. Make yourself at home - whether you are walking through our traditional Japanese garden or refreshing your body in our natural hot springs. Then, enjoy exquisite Japanese cuisine carefully prepared with the freshest seasonal ingredients. Once you step into Nanten-en, you can experience the depth of Japanese culture, ranging from traditional and historic interior furnishings to the renowned Japanese omotenashi hospitality of our staff. We also offer lunch + onsen plans for guests who want to enjoy the ryokan experience without the need to stay over night. Don't forget to inquire about joining us for a traditional tea ceremony, guided by an English speaking member of staff or rent some bicycles to explore the natural beauty of the surrounding countryside!
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
I cannot believe I didn’t make a review for this amazing ryokan!!!! Short and sweet version: my family is from USA and my now husband’s family is from Osaka. We decided to get married in Japan last Autumn 2019 and since this was the first time our extended family would be meeting each other, why not be relaxed and have a cultural experience at a historic ryokan together?? When we checked it out in Summer 2019 I just knew this was the place within 5 minutes of being there!
This ryokan is so special; built in early 1900s by famous architect who also designed Tokyo Station. The food was fantastic (not toooooo exotic haha) and the Annex building where we (just me and husband) stayed + held our wedding ceremony and reception was perfect for 20 person group. My family enjoyed their rooms within the main building too. There is also an English gent named Gary who is the most delightful and helpful guy!
The only open air onsen is within the Annex building so if it is occupied you cannot use - only can use the inside ones. Omg the bathroom in the Annex building is heavenly I must say! A lot of the rooms inside can be partitioned which was great for snoring people or kids to have own privacy area. A local train is within walking distance. Highly recommend going to Mt Koya too if you stay here.
Cannot wait to come back here. Will probably splurge on the Annex room again even if it’s just 2 of us. Interested to stay in summertime to use their outdoor swimming pool and try their summertime menu!
Note: we used a local business for our wedding event planning and Nanten-en was merely the venue + catering. If you have questions feel free to drop me a line though!!!!
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Perfection. The staff was incredible, the location and setting unparalleled, and the food was impeccable in taste, presentation, and uniqueness. If you want a serene stay in a traditional Ryokan where every need will be met, this is it.
Highly recommend the Kaiseki dinners and doing a tea ceremony with the owner of the Ryokan, who is absolutely lovely!
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Date of stay: July 2024
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:It's a traditional Ryokan, so be prepared for sitting and sleeping on the floor, which can be...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A small traditional Onsen hotel within a 2 min walk from a train station. Picturesque, excellent English speaking staff. All very accomodating.
The traditional tatami rooms are basic but comfortable. The room we stayed in only had a toilet and sink. Any bagging takes place in the Onsen party.
Yakutas are provided. The Onsen part is very small, but still lovely.
Dinner can be served in your room big breakfast is served in the common area.
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Date of stay: October 2024Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Attention ! Very unfavorable cancellation conditions. Having had to cancel my night more than 2 weeks before the stay, and despite my various motivated requests, they were inflexible and collected the entire reservation. Sometimes there are unforeseen events during a trip!
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Date of stay: April 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
It's good for people who want to experience a retro atmosphere. The regular rooms don't have baths, only a communal bath. There is a special annex room with an open-air bath, but I'm not sure about the other rooms... I could faintly hear the laughter from the next room, as you would expect from an old wooden building. The food is delicious, and apparently the owner trained at a Kyoto restaurant, so the yuba dishes were very good. The owner seems to have a hobby of collecting antiques, and I was able to see a lot of them.
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Date of stay: November 2023
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
A relaxing space at the edge of Osaka where you can forget about the present. I learned that the building was relocated from Sakai, and it seems like a very tasteful structure. The landlady and the other staff were very cheerful and polite, so it was a great trip.
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Date of stay: June 2024
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Trip type: Travelled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nanten En was a disappointment to us. We planned a Ryokan towards the end of our long journey in Japan to relax, bathe and eat gastronomic Japanese food like we did in our previous trips in Japan.
I must say, staff is very kind and helpful, but the rest is close to a disaster...
- It is not exactly peaceful, since the train station is a minute walk from the Ryokan.
- Baths are old, not exactly inviting since no investment has been done since probably 1960's and don't get me wrong, I love antic stuff, but that's just not it!
- Toilets and rooms are smelly, no wonder they keep on using incense when you get there so you don't turn back right away.
Now that every thing sound already awful, the worst is to come...
THE FOOD!!! What happened to the food!? We even took the highest recommendation on the menu to make sure we would have a blast, but instead, we had the worst Japanese food ever! Tasted like as if it was made in a huge batch years ago and got frozen since then.
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Date of stay: April 2017
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Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My wife and I usually stay 1 night at a ryokan per trip to Japan to pamper ourselves with onsen and kaiseki dinner. We chose Nanten-en on basis of its easy accessibility from Osaka via train.
Location: Excellent. Nanten-en is 70m (Google map said so) from the Amami train station along the Nankai-Koya line. It's clearly sign-posted from the train station, hence impossible to get lost. Hard to imagine getting this little sphere of serenity 45 min from highly urbanized Osaka via public transport!
The grounds: Nanten-en is a beautiful property. The grounds are well-maintained and consist of a thoughtfully sculpted miniature Japanese Garden. Even in the dead of winter, the garden was very alive with colorful winter blooms and evergreens. I can only imagine how nice it would be in spring/summer.
Rooms/Bathrooms: There are 13 rooms in this establishment. Ours was a standard 2-futon Japanese ryokan room. Sparcely furnished: a table (for dinner), tea set and a tiny 14" TV (haven't seen one in a decade). We love it for what it is with a pretty garden view and good natural lighting. But have to say that the room was chilly that day (much of the day was below 5 degree Celsius outdoors) even though there were 2 heaters going in the room. Wash basin and toilet (separate) en-suite but bath/shower is shared in the onsen, which is the norm in such ryokans.
Onsen: Personally we like our onsen in a smaller establishment like this due to lower human traffic. There's no private onsen in Nanten-en, like others that we had been to. But at the time when I was in there, there was only 1 other user and he went off after a short while, probably to give me a bit of privacy :) The onsen was overlooking the garden by the river. A pretty sight.
Service: Excellent, efficient Japanese service. Hotel staff spoke basic English, so we did not encounter communication problems. We arrived early (around noon), way before check-in time @ 1500 hrs. We asked about lunch, and was originally told to go to the nearest small city (Kawachinagano) 3 train stops away. After a bit of probing, we got to the slightly complex ryokan policy of needing lodgers to spend at least 5,000 yen for lunch so that they can waive the early check-in fee of 2,000 yen/hour (which would have cost us 4,000 from 1300 hrs). We gladly put together a 5,600 yen lunch and had an excellent meal served in our room. That gave us more time to enjoy the place and onsen. We highly recommend it, if you are lucky like us to have a ready room available.
Kaiseki dinner: It was a 10-course dinner that was included in our room rate. We had it with their in-house Daiginjo sake (2600 yen for 360ml). The dishes were well presented and had good variety (includes raw, hotpot, grilled, fried. The full works). Unfortunately, the quality is a little lacking in terms of taste and raw material. Overall experience was good but uninspiring. We actually found the lunch better.
Breakfast: Traditional Japanese breakfast which was actually better than the dinner.
Side-notes: Amami is a really small town. The train station is unmanned and there are no other eateries/attractions nearby. For us, that adds to the rustic charm of the ryokan.
Summary: A nice ryokan good for a side-trip from Osaka. Not sure if we will make a return trip as we live for good meals during our travels and the kaiseki was a bit of a letdown. We would recommend it if you happen to be passing by as the whole Nanten-en package is pretty good value for its price. Hope you find this review helpful and like it!
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Date of stay: February 2016
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
My mom and I came here for one night with dinner and breakfast included. When we first got off the station, we were a little worried because there was truly nothing but greenery, but as soon as we arrived all our worries dissipated.The staff were unbelievably welcoming, almost all spoke English and were so helpful and kind. The dinner was an 11 course delicious (and for my mom to think so too means it was truly a treat) and the Onsen was perfect and relaxing. They provided us free colorful yukatas to wear and we got to take some beautiful pictures in their small garden out back. The breakfast was also delicious (Japanese style) and the views were delightful. I highly recommend this place as the staff are truly dedicated to providing incredible service and the experience is one of a kind.
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Date of stay: June 2019Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
They didn’t vigorously check for tattoo. My Friend and I have so we were worried but we got in and out without any hassle. But our tattoos are small - not sure if they will stop those with full or half bod filled with tattoos though.
There are more places to choose from in the Kawachinagano area.
PRICE RANGE
S$262 - S$442 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
JapanKinkiOsaka PrefectureKawachinagano
NUMBER OF ROOMS
14
Prices are the average nightly price provided by our partners and may not include all taxes and fees. Taxes and fees that are shown are estimates only. Please see our partners for more details.
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