This is all about location and Yuko, the owner. The hotel is worn around the edges (it feels like a visit to your favorite elderly relative that hasn't updated the decor), but it doesn't matter because it is clean and Yuko is an amazing host. Onsen #1 is right outside the front door, and the other 8 are just steps away.
Yuko provided us with amazing service, from picking us up at the train, tracking down a bottle of sake left on the train(!), returning to the station to retrieve the sake when it arrived on the next train, driving us to the monkey park after helping us first store our luggage at the station, and then returning a glove my son left at the hotel to the luggage storage before we even realized he had left it.
Then we get to the food... an amazing traditional Japanese feast for dinner. I sorely regretted eating a big lunch in Obuse before arrival. Breakfast was also delicious and multicourse, all cooked by Yuko's husband, Yuki.
I have such fond memories from our brief stay that I'll carry with me because it was such a unique and truly Japanese experience. My favorite part was heading out in the light snowfall at 6:30am in the provided yukata and geta to complete the nine-onsen circuit. I had the streets to myself as I clacked along in my wooden sandals as the dawn was just breaking. It was magical. And after I finished I discovered one of the best onsens in town was the private Onsen in the hotel for guests.