Miyama Onsen; Aitokuso

Insider tip — Aitokuso at Miyama Onsen serves the deep cedar valley of Hidakagawa-cho where the Hidaka River narrows into gorge country above the charcoal-producing lowlands. The Kii Peninsula cedar forests of Hidakagawa are among the oldest plantation forests in Japan, established by ancient Kumano wood-cutters whose timber-rafting traditions sent enormous cedar logs downstream to coastal sawmills serving the imperial capital — a living-forest economy that has shaped this mountain community for over a thousand years.