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Is Kinosaki Onsen Worth It? Japanese Viewers on the Onsen Town That Said No to Tour Buses and Yes to Tattoos
The most-liked comment under a Japanese TV report on Kinosaki Onsen — 1,154 likes — is a viewer itemizing what one small innkeeper did for guests who spoke no Japanese: handled English, walked them out for photos, found a restaurant when dinner was full, drove their bags to the station and had a crab bento made in the minutes before their train. Across 1,105 comments, Japanese viewers turn that into a verdict about the town itself: it works because it stayed small. They credit deliberate choices — one commenter's history (194 likes) says the town banned its red-light businesses to remake itself as a family destination, another calls not being able to host tour groups a smart advantage (374), and regulars point to every public bath going tattoo-friendly. They also argue about who can still afford a ryokan — and a couple of them tell you what kind of onsen town to book instead.
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