Taketoritei Maruyama Bettei koki

We wanted to experience at least 1 stay in a high-​end traditional ryokan with natural spring onsens and meals. Somehow i stumbled upon a blog of «top ryokans with private onsens.» and this place make the short list of 5. reference here:
As a shy american… private onsens was what I was looking for. aaand located near the city of Kobe, I suddenly had Kobe beef on my mind. You see, I’d never had TRUE Kobe beef and what better way to experience than while indulging all-​around at a lovely resort.
I gotta say, Taketoritei delivers. from the professional staff, the beautiful and spacial traditional rooms, to the relaxing onsens, to the AMAZING food from the kitchen… just wow. it was just what we needed after a week in the hustle and bustle of Tokyo and Kyoto to «reboot.»
Their website is very user-​friendly and fully in english. You have a plethora of packages to choose from and we went (nearly) all-​out with a night in a traditional ryokan with kobe beef tenderloin dinner and breakfast plan. If you are on a romantic getaway as a couple, honeymoon, etc, a room with a private onsen inside might be nice, but given you can reserve private ones at the resort for an hour at a time, I don’t find the extra expense needed or worth it. And honestly, for the huge suite we basically got, private baths, and fantastic high-​end meals we got, a cost of ~$ 340 a person didn’t seem outrageous — heard you can spend much much more for a fancy ryokan experience. No, the meals arent served in your room, but you are in a private dining room and the experience is phenomenal. I selected the forest (?) view over the city and I think that was a great choice.
A few days before our reservation I received an email confirming everything and details to get there. After you arrive at the Arima Onsen station, you head up the hill a little ways to the information center on the left corner where they will call for your pickup on the free shuttle. They come QUICK. The hotel is close, but up a VERY steep hill so the shuttle is great.
If you arrive before check-​in, you can drop your bags off and take the shuttle back down the hill to walk around the little shops. It is very touristy, but nice window shopping and lots of free samples offered. But keep your stomach empty if you got an included meal!!! They feed you like royalty in great abundance. Once you reach your check-​in time you will be given tea, a little snack, the rundown of the hotel and get to pick out your robe to wear around the hotel and your take-​home gift bag that you use for your belongings goings to the onsens. You will also get to select your first reservation for a private onsen. You get to reserve one at a time, when you turn in the key you get to pick another.
Best ones to experience? #2, followed by #1. These are the larger outdoor areas with both gold and silver, larger baths. Did one of the indoor ones (sliver bath only) after dinner to see the city lights, which was nice too, but not nearly as amazing as #2 — and I bet #2 is amazing at night as well. (did #3 at night which was cool but much smaller baths and garden space. grab a beer from the vending machine and relax at the onsen at night — its lovely!
The food: Just wow… such a talented kitchen. I hadn’t expected the kobe beef to be a self-​cooking scenario, but it was quite fun. Our server *barely* spoke english and I had no idea we has foie gras on the plate (id never had) and thought it was some kind of butter spread. oops. But the multi-​course meal was nothing but top ingredients with a modern take on traditional cuisine. as a huge foodie: i give a resounding stamp of approval. we selected american breakfast (japanese breakfast just isnt my thing) and it was equally amazing and huge. come with huge appetites. They even had a welcome note on the outside of the door in english for us :)
every morning they have a mochi making ceremony that is a lot of fun. if you have kids, they get to join in the fun. for a one night stay, we got to experience 4 of the private onsens, which i think is pretty good. not many of the staff speak fluent english, some not at all, we were the ONLY westerners there during the stay… which all mades me feel like I selected a very authentic, non-​commercial «touristy» ryokan. Definitely a lovely, personalized experience.

A hot spring for day-​trip. The red water was beautiful and strong. The bathtub is a bit narrow and crowded on Sunday. But the price is lowest except for public hot spring (Gold or Silver hot spring). Also, you can park here.