Naruko Onsen in Yamagata is a quiet hot springs resort famous for kokeshi wooden dolls. The history can be dated back over 1,000 years and it’s said to be one of the largest onsen villages in Japan. But as with most onsen stays one checks into the ryokan inn and maybe spend some time in the village to buy omiyage gifts for friends and family.

There are only a handful of shops selling kokeshi dolls, wagashi sweets, postcards, lacquerware, and boxes of sweets and crackers for gifts. Getting off the train the smell of sulphur from the hot springs is overwhelming at first. There are some giant kokeshi dolls throughout the city, perfect for taking photos for Instagram. There is also a foot bath at the station and a hand bath nearby in the local park.

We opted to have only breakfast in our ryokan so we scouted out where to have dinner in town. We love soba so Egaho near the station was ideal. We had tempura of vegetables and fuki no to butterbur, a bitter mountain vegetable. There was only one other solo diner at the restaurant. It’s assumed that most travelers are having dinner in their ryokans.

Egaho

Miyagi-ken, Osaki-shi, Naruko Onsen Yumoto 2-4

Getting here from Tokyo take the shinkansen bullet train to Furukawa Station and then change to a local line to Naruko Onsen. It’s about three hours by train (plus some time to transfer).

http://en.naruko.gr.jp/

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