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Hazu Bekkan is one of the most unusual and delightful overnight experiences to be found in Japan. The sixty-year-old concrete exterior, stuccoed in pale green, belies the traditional interior charm of exposed beam ceilings, hardwood floors, and broad windows overlooking the shaded banks of the Ure River. Indeed, the inn is full of surprises . . . |
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Hazu Bekkan offers 14 ensuite tatami rooms, most featuring expansive windows opening onto the river, perhaps with a moon rising behind the forest on the far shore up beyond the glistening waters. On arrival, you will be asked times preferred for dinner (between 5:30 and 7:00) and next morning’s breakfast (7:30 to 9:00), and are then left to yourself. |
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As seductive as it may seem to simply settle onto the cushioned “zaisu” floor-seats or in another corner’s western-style chairs and take in the lovely room and view, we recommend you change into the provided yukata robes, on chilly days layering with the tanzen half-coats, and softly pad out along the sedate hall and down stairs for a pre-dinner soak. Before the routes to the two bathing areas diverge, you come to a sitting area where you may pause for the cup set out for you of mountain ginger or citron juice. |
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Hazu Bekkan’s two bath areas are gender segregated, but guests can enjoy both sections---women are welcomed into a large glass-paned ceramic bath from the afternoon until 9 p.m. when the men must relinquish to them (until late the next morning) an indoor tub made of fragrant cypress, as well as an outdoor stone pool. |
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All three baths directly overlook the river. The mineral waters ease and refresh your body, and meanwhile you gaze upon the rushing Ure, where resident red-tailed hawks catch their meals. |
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While the baths feature the local water in natural surroundings, the meals are lavish with the abundance of the area. Dinner is gracefully served by cheerful staff, either in the privacy of your room or in a spacious dining area. |
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The varied menu of four or five magnificent courses (kaiseki ryori) usually includes seasonal sashimi, tempura, mountain vegetables and grilled fish from the river, as well as a local specialty stew of duck or wild boar. Breakfast is another lavish spread of fish, miso, pickles, salad, and succulent rice. Whatever the day’s offering, the chef is always inspired, creative, and a perfectionist. |
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Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this inn, and unique in Japan, is the payment system under which Hazu Bekkan operates its impeccable services: there is no set fee. Guests are invited to relax, feast well, enjoy soothing baths, and pass the night on comfortable futons, lulled to sleep by the sounds of the river. |
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Then they pay whatever they feel this luxurious pampering was worth. Such trust, coupled with the superior quality of the inn, is one of the many features that make Hazu Bekkan irresistible for repeat visits. |
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