Relaxing Kochi: Hotel Matsubagawa Onsen

Winter is the best time to warm your body with a soak in an onsen (hot springs) and the secluded baths of Matsubagawa Onsen in the rural mountains of the Kubokawa area of Shimanto town are the perfect antidote to the chilly January weather. Day visitors can stop in for a quick dip, but spend the night to enjoy the bountiful feasts cooked up in the attached hotel’s kitchen. Beef shabu shabu, fresh river fish, and an assortment of vegetables and locally-grown rice are sure to satisfy any diner. 

For those who feel the need to walk off some of their meal, the hotel is surrounded by a network of trails. Wind through a quiet forest, home to wild boar and numerous birds, or sit and relax to the sound of the river.