🏨Sozankyo（蘇山郷）| Aso City
Facilities, Dining & Access
A brief guide to hot springs, dining, and travel directions.
Facilities🎌・Hot Springs♨️
Soft sunlight streams through the courtyard as morning arrives, shadows of leaves dancing across washi paper sliding doors, and the sound of water pouring into the kettle quietly signaling the start of hospitality. Uchinomaki is a hot spring town overlooking the spectacular Aso Five Peaks and surrounded by majestic outer rim mountains. SOZANKYO is a traditional inn where the charm of this hot spring town lingers—by sharing our awareness and pride in being a historic building, we create a unique space found only here.
Private Spring Source (43.5°C) / Rare Sulfate Spring
Rain falling on Aso seeps underground, warmed by magma heat and mingling with volcanic gases to become hot spring water. Our private spring source is located beside the main bathhouse. With abundant water volume and a spring temperature of 43.5°C, we fill the baths directly with source water, keeping it in its natural underground state. The spring quality is a sulfate spring, rare in Kyushu—known for skin-beautifying, moisturizing benefits and often described as an “anti-aging” hot spring.
Non-Recirculating (Fresh Water, Daily Drain & Refill)
We do not recirculate hot spring water. Fresh water collected directly from the source is stored in a new tank and delivered via a continuous flow system to each room and the large bath. Because of this non-recirculating system, we completely drain, clean, and refill every bath between check-out and check-in—repeating this meticulous ritual daily, 365 days a year.
Dining🍣
Delicious Koshihikari rice grown in nature-rich Aso City, Kumamoto. Located at an elevation of 550m, this cool highland area benefits from significant day-night temperature differences—ideal for cultivating rice in vast paddy fields. We also insist on using locally grown Aso vegetables. We are particular about our milk as well, serving [ASOMILK] from Abe Farm Co., Ltd., awarded two stars by the International Taste Institute in Brussels, Belgium. Pasteurized at a low temperature of 63°C for 30 minutes, it highlights natural sweetness with a subtle, grassy aroma. We serve it at breakfast—please enjoy.
Aso Koshihikari & Local Vegetables
Taste Koshihikari grown in Aso’s highland climate alongside locally grown Aso vegetables—ingredients chosen with care for freshness and regional character.
[ASOMILK] at Breakfast
Enjoy [ASOMILK] from Abe Farm—low-temperature pasteurized (63°C for 30 minutes) for a naturally sweet taste and a gentle hint of pasture aroma.
Access🚀
By Car
- 50 minutes from Kumamoto Interchange on the Kyushu Expressway
Parking: Limited (reservation required)
By Bus / JR / Airplane
By Bus (from JR Aso Station)
- From JR Aso Station, take the bus bound for Uchinomaki Onsen → get off at Aso Shokokai Mae (Aso Chamber of Commerce and Industry Front) (15 minutes) → 2-minute walk from the bus stop.
From Aso Kumamoto Airport
- Take the Airport Liner to JR Higo-Otsu Station (15 min) → Limited Express Bus Yamabiko to JR Aso Station (40 min) → bus bound for Uchinomaki Onsen → get off at Aso Shokokai Mae (15 min) → 2-minute walk.
