A new retreat, Aso Retreat HONO by Onko Chishin, is slated to open in November 2026 in Minami Aso Village, Kumamoto Prefecture. Situated within the world-class caldera of Aso and overlooking the five peaks of Aso-Gogaku, the property will offer 17 rooms, each with a private open-air hot spring bath.
The concept behind the hotel centers on encouraging guests to go beyond simply "enjoying nature" and instead engage with its elemental rhythms — walking the grasslands, gathering wild plants, kindling fire, and immersing in hot spring waters. The core experiential theme is "ASO FORAGING EXPERIENCE," inviting guests to reconnect with the fundamental relationship between people and the land.
About Aso Retreat HONO by Onko Chishin
The property is being developed with the concept "A dialogue between fire and earth — a promise between land and people." Located inside the Aso caldera with panoramic views of the five peaks (Takadake, Nakadake, Nekodake, Eboshidake, and Kishimadake), the hotel aims to offer a stay that reconnects guests with the instincts that humans once held as a matter of course.
The name "HONO" derives from the Japanese word "hon" (仄), which refers to the faint glow or warmth of fire as it has existed in human daily life throughout history. The name evokes both the warmth and the awe that Aso's volcanic landscape has accumulated over millennia.
The logo symbol abstractly depicts a figure cradling a mountain with care, as though embraced by it in return — inspired by the seamless coexistence of people and nature that is unique to Aso.
ASO Foraging Experience
The signature program of Aso Retreat HONO, called ASO FORAGING EXPERIENCE, frames foraging not as a simple activity but as the very essence of the stay itself. Guests are invited to sink deep into the land's rhythms through gathering, using foraging as a way to open their own senses.
The experience extends from an "edible garden" within the property grounds to the surrounding mountains and streams of Aso, shifting with each season to offer guests a direct, hands-on connection with the local landscape.
INSIDE RETREAT: Connecting with Nature on the Grounds
Experiences that take the hotel as a starting point for exploring Aso's nature:
Edible Garden
A garden of more than 30 varieties of wild mountain herbs and native Aso plant species, planned in collaboration with the Japan Grass and Tree Research Institute. The garden serves as a living stage woven throughout the course dining experience.
Grazing Animals as Scenery
The pastoral landscape symbolic of Aso's natural character is visible from guest rooms and the restaurant, framing the mountain scenery with grazing animals.
In-Room Spa
An in-room spa treatment incorporating botanicals. Guests can experience the sensation of foraging through the scents of herbs gathered from the garden and Japan's native plant species applied directly to the skin.
Chestnut Grove and Log Shiitake Mushrooms on the Property
Guests can harvest seasonal ingredients from the grounds with their own hands.
OUTSIDE RETREAT: Seasonal Exploration of Aso's Mountains and Streams
Experiences departing from the hotel into the seasonal faces of Aso:
- Spring: Gathering mountain vegetables and wild herbs, drawing snowmelt water from streams
- Summer and Autumn: Stream fishing, mushroom foraging
- Winter: Hunting, and attending the noyaki (controlled burning of the grasslands) that has sustained Aso's thousand-year-old grassland ecology — witnessing firsthand the cycle of renewal
Time spent face-to-face with the plants and terrain unique to that moment and place becomes an opportunity to see oneself as part of nature's cycle. Plants gathered along the way continue directly to that day's dinner table, awakening the sense that one's own hands have connected the earth to the meal.
Partners
Japan Grass and Tree Research Institute (日本草木研究所)
Onko Chishin has partnered with the Japan Grass and Tree Research Institute to uncover the latent value within Aso. The institute is involved across all plant and nature knowledge domains — from planning the planting composition of the edible garden and systematizing the act of foraging, to developing seasonal experiences. Established in 2021 as a research organization dedicated to exploring the potential of native wild plants as food sources, the institute has received recognition across Forbes Next 100, Forbes Culturepreneurs 30, and the ICC Food & Drink Award Grand Prix. In December 2025, it established the "Foraging Tourism Association" to redefine foraging as an experience that restores the sensibility of living alongside nature.
Official website: https://nihonkusakilab.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nihonkusaki_lab/
Green Elm (グリーンエルム)
Green Elm, led by forestry PhD. Fumitaka Nishino, has partnered with Onko Chishin on sustainable garden development, research, and seedling procurement tailored to Aso's distinct environment. Founded in 1989, Green Elm is a pioneering company that handles everything from seed collection to seedling production and landscape creation. Carrying forward the knowledge of the "eternal forest" cultivated in the Meiji Shrine's forest using modern techniques, the company operates under the philosophy that "creating forests is creating people," working toward a society in which humans can participate healthily as part of nature.
Official website: https://greenelm.co.jp/
Dining: Primitive Gastronomy
The dining experience at Aso Retreat HONO is described as "Primitive Gastronomy" — a concept that layers the cycle of nature and human primality onto the plate. Inspired by the journey of water springing from Aso and flowing down to the sea at Amakusa, the course menu traces the landscape from mountain to ocean through each dish.
Fire is kindled with firewood and miscanthus grass; wind and sunlight prepare the ingredients. The primal energies that humans have worked with since ancient times meet the bounty cultivated by Aso's land, drawing the region's power into each plate.
Head Chef: Yamato Imanishi
Born in 1988 in Kochi Prefecture, Chef Imanishi graduated top of his class from École Tsuji Osaka before traveling to France at age 20 to apprentice under Michel Bras, the "herb magician" of Laguiole. He went on to train at Paris institutions that would become global landmarks — including Septime and Le Chateaubriand — serving as a section chef at each. During his time at Le Chateaubriand, the restaurant ranked 9th in The World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2011. After gaining experience across five restaurants including three Michelin-starred establishments, he returned to Japan and served as head chef at multiple restaurants. In April 2025, he took up the role of head chef at LA VIGNE DINING FÛDO, the restaurant attached to Hotel La Vigne Hakuba by Onko Chishin.
Chef's Comment:
"In Aso, I find a Japan I have yet to know — as if the breath of people from ancient times can be heard. The region is rich in wonderful ingredients nurtured by nature, as well as ceramics made from the local clay and porcelain stone. Everything needed to complete a dish can be found here. No matter how advanced a cooking technique, it cannot surpass this sense of wholeness. I hope the hotel will become a place positioned in the space between cyclical nature and human existence — producing cuisine that could only be made in this place."
Rooms and Hot Springs
Guest Rooms
Guest rooms range from 54 to 150 square meters and all 17 rooms come with private open-air hot spring baths, with some rooms also featuring saunas. Situated inside the Aso caldera, each room offers views of the five-peak mountain range that shift with the season, time of day, and weather through large windows and terraces.
The interiors incorporate natural materials centered on miscanthus grass (kaya), which has long sustained Aso's grasslands, integrated into contemporary architecture. Furniture, art, and interior elements carry fragments of the memory of how people once fashioned their daily tools and dwellings from nearby materials through ingenuity and craft.
In-room spa services are also available, offering a quiet space for guests to turn inward, completely removed from the outside world.
Hot Springs
The heartbeat of the mountain rises up as heat. Surrendering to the warm water, freed from gravity, the body and mind gently unwind toward a sense of merging with the earth.
- Spring type: Simple thermal spring (hypotonic, mildly alkaline, low-temperature)
- Reputed benefits: Neuralgia, muscle pain, joint pain, chills, fatigue recovery, and more
Facility Overview
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Name | Aso Retreat HONO by Onko Chishin |
| Address | 5298-1 Kaon, Minami Aso Village, Aso District, Kumamoto Prefecture |
| Access | Approx. 25 minutes by car from Kumamoto Airport |
| Rooms | 17 rooms, all with private open-air hot spring baths (some with sauna) |
| Room Size | 54 to 150 sqm |
| Facilities | Restaurant, edible garden, in-room spa |
| Scheduled Opening | November 2026 (planned) |
| Teaser Site | https://aso.by-onko-chishin.com/ |
| https://www.instagram.com/okcs_hono_aso |
Reservations for Aso Retreat HONO by Onko Chishin are expected to open in summer 2026.
