Hakone Kowakien Mikawaya Ryokan
箱根小涌園 三河屋旅館 · Hakone Onsen
Can you bathe here with a tattoo?
This is the question we built the site around, so we answer it per situation.
Staying overnight
Tattoos are not allowed in the shared baths, but you can bathe in a private or in-room bath.
Source: official website · checked 2026-08-28
How it scores
Every onsen on this site is scored on the same five things.
The baths
Indoor bath
Main bathhouse with indoor baths, free-flowing from the ryokan's own source behind the property. Men's bath has 6 wash stations, women's 7. Hours 5:00-10:00 and 15:00-24:00.
Open-air bath
Open-air bath attached to the main bathhouse, free-flowing (kakenagashi) from the ryokan's own source. Same 5:00-10:00 and 15:00-24:00 hours.
Private (kashikiri) bath
One semi-open-air private bath. FREE and NO reservation system: it is left unlocked, so guests simply latch the door from inside when it is vacant, roughly 60 minutes per use with unlimited repeat use at no charge. Bring a towel from your room. Hours 5:00-10:00 and 15:00-24:00.
In-room bath
SOME rooms only: rooms with a private open-air bath (露天風呂付客室) are offered across the main building, annex and detached cottages, with 24-hour free-flowing hot spring in the room bath.
A private bath means nobody else is in the water with you — often the practical answer if the shared baths are closed to tattooed guests.
Practical details
- Day visits
- Not confirmed.
- Day visit price
- Not confirmed
- Staying overnight
- Yes
- Getting there
- About 90 minutes from Shinjuku to Hakone-Yumoto Station by Odakyu Romancecar, then about 20 minutes by Hakone Tozan or Izuhakone bus to the 'Horaien' stop, a few steps from the ryokan. A free circulating shuttle also runs from Gora Station (about 10 minutes). A car is not needed.
- Official website
- www.hakonekowakien-mikawaya.jp
Book it
The links below are affiliate links — we may earn a commission if you book through them, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we list or how we score it.
Why Agoda for Japan: it lists a lot of ryokan and small inns that the Western booking sites never picked up, and it usually prices Japanese properties in yen, so you are not paying a conversion spread on top of the room rate. Worth comparing before you book — the difference on a ryokan is often larger than you would expect.
Getting in from the airport
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Why not the train: the last leg to an onsen is usually a local bus with nowhere to put a suitcase. A fixed-price car is booked in English and quoted before you travel, tolls and fuel included.
What we have not confirmed
We would rather show a gap than guess.
- We have not confirmed whether it takes day visitors.
More onsen in and around Hakone
Checked the same way: tattoo policy, private baths and day visits.
