THE GUIDE
Kanazawa and Kaga Onsen are different bases on the same Hokuriku trip: Kanazawa for art, markets and small food-led stays in the city, Kaga Onsen for ryokans with hot-spring baths. Beyond them, Awara Onsen in Fukui is the next Shinkansen stop south of Kaga-Onsen, Nanto in Toyama lies near the Gokayama villages, and Noto sits on Nanao Bay. This guide compares the rated stays district by district.
On this page
The short answer
Kaga Onsen: Beniya Mukayu is the only stay here with a MICHELIN Key, Relais & Châteaux and the Ryokan Collection together, and every room has an open-air bath. Araya Totoan has been an inn for more than 800 years. The Kayotei has ten rooms. Kanazawa city: Tsuruko and Maki no Oto Kanazawa, four rooms each. Awara Onsen: BENIYA, where every room has a semi-open-air bath of free-flowing hot-spring water. Nanto: Satoyama Auberge Maki no Oto, three rooms, with pick-up from JR Johana Station. Noto: Hitotsu Notojima, six rooms on Nanao Bay; check current access first.
The stays compared by district
| Stay | Base | Rooms | Bath | Award / price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beniya Mukayu | Kaga | 16 | Every room | One Key + R&C + Ryokan Collection / about US$367 |
| Araya Totoan | Kaga | 17 | Selected rooms | One Key / about US$292 |
| The Kayotei | Kaga | 10 | Selected rooms | Ryokan Collection / about US$420 |
| Hanamurasaki | Kaga | 25 | Selected rooms | Ryokan Collection / about US$270 |
| Maki no Oto Kanazawa | Kanazawa | 4 | Not recorded | Ryokan Collection / about US$307 |
| Hitotsu Notojima | Noto | 6 | Not recorded | One Key / about US$344 |
| Tsuruko | Kanazawa | 4 | Not recorded | One Key / not recorded |
| BENIYA | Awara (Fukui) | 17 | Every room | One Key / about US$320 |
| Satoyama Auberge Maki no Oto | Nanto (Toyama) | 3 | Not recorded | Ryokan Collection / about US$202 |
Kanazawa city or Kaga Onsen?
Stay in Kanazawa when museums, the market, restaurants and walking access lead the trip. Stay in Kaga Onsen when the ryokan itself, dinner and bathing are the point. On two nights, one in each avoids travelling back and forth. Awara Onsen is in Fukui, one Shinkansen stop south of Kaga-Onsen. Nanto suits a trip to the Gokayama villages: Ainokura is about 25 minutes by bus from JR Johana Station. Noto is a separate destination; since the earthquake of 1 January 2024, plan it around current transport.
Rated stays in Kanazawa, Kaga Onsen and Hokuriku
Kaga, Ishikawa
Beniya Mukayu
べにや無何有
≈US$367〜Per person · 2 meals
from US$733 for 2
Kanazawa, Ishikawa
Tsuruko
つる幸
No two-meal rate published · check live prices
Check rates — Tsuruko
Prices are in US dollars, converted from the yen the properties quote at the Oct 7, 2026 reference rate, and are indicative.
A price marked ≈ is itself an estimate: halved from a published two-person total, or rounded from an earlier figure. Totals for 2 assume two guests sharing one room.
Who this route suits
Choose this route if you want a city-and-ryokan pairing, regional food, contemporary art and travel by rail. Look elsewhere if the shortest possible transfer from Tokyo matters most. Compare Kyoto for city hotels, Izu for sea and onsen, and small rated ryokans for stays of under ten rooms.
One stay from this guide: Beniya Mukayu
Compare current rates for Beniya Mukayu
Listed alphabetically. Prices and cancellation terms differ between them, and this page does not see either — it is worth opening more than one.
These links pay us a commission, at no extra cost to you. They do not decide which properties are listed, or the order they are offered in.
This box covers one of the stays in this guide. Every card on this page opens that stay’s own page, with its own booking options.
Can I visit Kanazawa and Kaga Onsen in two nights?
Yes. One night in Kanazawa and one in Kaga Onsen avoids travelling back and forth.
Are the MICHELIN Key ryokans in Kanazawa city?
Mostly not: the catalogue’s Key stays here are in Kaga Onsen, Awara and Noto. The exception is Tsuruko, a four-room house in Kanazawa city that holds one Key; Maki no Oto Kanazawa is the other small rated stay in the city.