I can’t state enough just how amazing my stay was here. After having a terrible experience at Omiya Ryokan, I came here and was welcomed with warm hands and the laughter of children. The entire ryokan is family owned and operated. During dinner I was able to converse with the owner at length and she told me how all the food is locally sourced and gathered by family members (she personally forages all of the mushrooms!). She told me that at her ryokan they treat guests like family, and she wasn’t kidding. I told her I had a meeting later that night, and when I came back to the ryokan with some beer she scolded me and said I shouldn’t drink until after my meeting, haha. I wouldn’t have it any other way! Aside from the amazing service, the room was clean, futon was super comfy, TV was big (for a ryokan), and the biggest kicker was that the WiFi was FAST. It’s so rare to find ryokans that have good WiFi, so I was truly impressed. Another big plus is that you can choose whether to have breakfast/dinner, whereas all other ryokans in the area force you to have it. As someone who never eats breakfast, this was a great choice to have. Regarding onsens, you are given tickets to attend any of 4 onsens in the area FOR FREE. This includes the big outside onsen, and they will drive you to and from it if you don’t want to walk. Just a perfect experience that I can’t wait to relive whenever I visit Yamagata.

A lovely little family-run ryokan. The rooms are very comfortable, the bath is not huge but we came before ski season so the town was mostly empty. The meals here are incredible! Make sure to book with Dinner and Breakfast and come really really hungry. Lots of fresh ingredients from the area and tons of flavours. Seriously there’s so much food it was a struggle. The town is lovely at night and the public baths are within walking distance.

I work in travel, and spend my time touring al over the entire country, and so when I say that this ryokan is truly something special, I mean it from the bottom of my heart. I come back year after year (on year four) just to see the incredible family that runs this local gem, and enjoy a weekend away at a true paradise. The rooms are excellent, that's a given. Location-wise, it's right by the bus station and 1 minute to either of the public bath houses, which is nice. But the true gem of the experience is the food of which I can only liken to ambrosia. Sincerely, I have eaten at Michelin Star restaurants in Tokyo that are not nearly half as incredible as what they serve here. If you are looking to come to Zao, or even just Yamagatata in general, I cannot recommend Takasagoya enough, as I will be back here next year and the year after as well. Really exceptional.

The meal here is AMAZING! All fresh local ingredients painstakingly prepared by the female owner herself. Just the meals here alone is worth the visiting and the price. No onsen bath in the hotel, but there are three public bath houses available within 5min walk, just pickup coupons in the front desk and you can use all three of them for free! The female owner speaks good English(although she won't admit), and the son speaks perfect English. A very pleasant experience. P.S. The onsen here is so strong, I could still smell sulphur off my underwear after it has been washed three times... Not a bad sign.

Excellent hospitality from the lovely family at the ryokan. Owner was very hospitable and speaks good English. Room was comfortable for 2 - sleeping on futons with good heating in the room. Very fast WiFi accessible throughout the inn as well. There is a public bath in the ryokan with onsen but take note not the natural sulphur ones. There are 3 free public baths around the inn but the size is similar to that in the ryokan and with no bathing facilities. I’d recommend skipping those and opt for the paid ones with outdoor onsen and better facilities. Most of them close by 630pm in winter. We opted for breakfast which was a sumptuous spread. The male owner(?) noticed I brought a packet of milk down and offered us additional glasses for the milk. Very thoughtful. Location was 3min walk from the bus station and 5min walk to the Zao Ski resort / cableway. There is a Lawson 5min walk from the inn and several eating places. One ramen place he recommended just opened 24 Dec ‘19 - it was yummy and just a 4min walk away and opened till 10pm. Summary: highly recommended for anyone looking for a place to stay in Zao Onsen area.

When you make reservations, remember to choose dinner/breakfast-included plan!! The food here was absolutely one of the highlights of this weekend getaway.

Excellent food. Bath is small but easy access to public bath around. Must visit again if I come back to Zao

Nice and basic Ryokan. Shared bathrooms. Great food for breakfast and dinner.

Accommodating host. Helpful and detailed skiing advice to us! Excellent location and service

Clean and feel like home. Very delicious food. You can enjoy public bath for free unlimited 3places. Very close to foot onsen and liquor shop

We had an excellent stay here at Takasagoya, the family who run the Inn are so friendly and helpful. They gave us all the information we needed for the nearby skiing, and generally made us feel so welcome. I recommend you walk to the Zao gondola or Zao Chuo gondola to ski, and there are various rental shops on the way. We ate dinner there which was great, lovely food, both quality and quantity! Nice cosy onset bath, super comfortable new style futon beds, just so happy we chose this place

Our stay at Takasagoya is such a highlight in our trip. First experience in a ryokan. Everything was amazing, the food was delicious for breakfast and dinner. Walking distance to ski lift 🤗 free tickets for the public onsens. What a special place. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

We had a really good stay in Takasagoya hotel. The family are really nice and friendly. The room and bed are comfortable and clean. Like to come back.

I've stayed at the Takasagoya Ryokan in 2018. The staff was heartwarmingly welcoming and they cared for me in every possible way. They offered me a coupon for the big nature Onsen on the top of the mountain and they also wanted to drive me up the mountain to get there. I slept like a baby after getting in the town bath in front of the Ryokan and after a third bath in the bath, they had inside the Ryokan! If I ever manage to return to Zao Onsen I will definitely stay at the Takasagoya Ryokan.

A friend and I stayed there during one week-end. It was a very good experience. The room is quite large and very clean. The highlight of this stay was for sure the dinner. The food was delicious, made with high quality products and with a large selection of different dishes. The owners were very nice with us. If you want to have an experience in a traditionnal family owned ryokan, I highly recommend to stay there :) It is exactly the kind of place that I hope will still exist in some years!

Friendly staff and clean spacious room Traditional Japanese room with local breakfast