Our journey to lovely inns with warm service continues, starting with a spa inn in Niigata Prefecture. Take the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Echigoyuzawa Station in Niigata. After the 80-minute ride in the air-conditioned train, your feet are bound to feel chilled. To soothe your feet, try the free ashiyu (foot bath), located in front of the station. You can also grab a bite at a restaurant, whose name means “village’s delicacies” in Uonuma’s (a city in Niigata) dialect. It serves the city’s delicious local produce. Opened three years ago, one of its specialities is a seafood set including fresh salmon roe and salmon from Niigata. Another speciality is stewed mochibuta (pork) of Echigo.

Before you make your way to the inn, you may want to take a ropeway from Echigoyuzawa to one of the many resorts in the area. The view from the ropeway lets you enjoy the beautiful flowers of the highland. One resort, for example, has flower farms which stretch over the top of a mountain. You can visit an alpine botanical garden, where thousands of flowers can be seen in four seasons. Take a leisurely walk and see flowers such as Japanese spiraea, great burnet and achillea ptarmica. You can also try your hand at making candles at a workshop in the area.

Head back to Echigoyuzawa and travel to your destination - the Osawayama onsen, Osawakan inn- by the Joetsu Line. Stop at an unmanned station, where you will see a sign which says “Osawayama onsen”. It is a five-minute drive to the inn. At a cost of 17850 yen (S$275.6), you can stay overnight and enjoy two meals. The inn boasts spas and local cuisines, and is also well-known for its good service. The inn pampers its guests with lots of free treats such as delicious freshly-baked yam at the entrance, vegetables and fruits at the door front, snacks such as gelidium jelly at the indoor bath, and even dokudami tea. You can request for a room which offers a great view of the mountains through its big windows. The inn also features decorative transom, which has been designed by the host, and made by skilful shrine building carpenters in Echigo. Yukata, socks and loofah sponges are provided for the open-air bath. There are also pumice stones which you can take home. Relax in a big bathtub and enjoy the garden view. After the open-air bath, free soda-flavoured ice lolly is served to cool down your body. A kiln is heated up to prepare for dinner. Koshihikari (a kind of rice) from Uonuma is cooked in the kiln. Other dishes include local hen of the woods, roasted eggplant, sashimi – it is very fresh as Niigata faces the sea of Japan – and pink shrimp. After dinner, head for a room with a hearth and enjoy some charcoal-grilled rice balls seasoned with handmade miso. The food at this inn is simple, yet delicious. The breakfast menu is also simple, which suits the Japanese palate. At the end of your stay, take a scenic walk back to the station.

Next, we journey to an inn located in Nishi-izu. Start your trip at Numazu, Shizuoka, one of 53 shukubas along Tokaido. The fishing town offers lots of fresh seafood. Within the market, there is a restaurant where you can have lunch. Its parent company sells fish, and it uses fish supplied from the market directly to make creative cuisines. Try the seafood don, miso soup and pickled vegetables. Or you can choose to have kamaage sakura shrimp and young sardine don for 1300 yen (S$20). After lunch, take a 50-minute speed boat ride to Toi Port. Once you arrive at the famous spa town in Nishi-izu, take a 15-minute walk to the Bokusuiso Toikan inn. If you are travelling with your parents, opt for the Oyakoko (dutiful) Plan. Toikan is an archaic inn with a history of over 100 years. A general guest room costs 11700 yen (S$180), and includes two meals. The plan includes a flower basket, and half a bottle of wine for free. You can request for a room which comes with an open-air bath. This special room is very spacious, with a great view. For dinner, tuck into a meal of vinegared seafood, sesame chakin, sashimi, local abalone, flatfish and golden eye bream, hon-wasabi (raw) from Izu, lobster and Izu-gyu (Izu beef). The next day, wake up early to enjoy the big open-air bath. The relaxing and refreshing bath improves your blood circulation and appetite. The inn’s breakfast also includes lots of local seafood specialities, such as lobster miso soup and dried horse mackerel. On your second day, take a bus to go to the tip of the peninsula. It goes south along the shoreline, and you can enjoy the beautiful sea view. Head for Koganezaki, which is 20 minutes away by bus. Make a trip to the Koganezaki Crystal Park. Nishi-izu is famous for producing raw materials of glass, and the park features many such products. You can also try your hand at making glass with beautiful patterns on it. After this, you can go to a panoramic spot at the western tip. The area has been called Koganezaki as the cliff shines like gold under the rays of sunset.

The next place in the suburbs of Tokyo is perfect for newly weds, featuring panoramic views and a sightseeing flight at night! The trip is set in Urayasu, Chiba, where Tokyo Disneyland is located. Urayasu faces the Tokyo Bay and used to be a fishing port. There is still a fish market in front of its train station now. Besides professional fishermen, it also welcomes the general public, with its variety of cheap and fresh fish, and even short-neck clams. There is a shop which serves grilled clam – an Urayasu specialty. This Echigoya has been founded since the Showa period. Skilful workers use charcoal fire to roast clams from 6am everyday. Savour the chewy and traditional taste of the grilled clam, which costs 110 yen ($1.69) per stick. There is also an archaic tempura shop in the area, where you can have seafood tempura for your lunch. Try the kakiage with dried scallops of surf clam, or eel and shrimp tempura served with rice. Alternatively, you can order a big joten don with kakiage for 1700 yen (S$26.2). After your meal, find out more about the history of Urayasu’s fishing industry at Kyu Otsuka-ke Jutaku, which used to be a fishermen house.

Continue your journey to the Urayasu Brighton Hotel. The hotel has special rooms for adults on the 21st floor, with a panoramic view of Tokyo Bay. The rooms are chic with automatic curtains, a massage machine, a portable television, and even a reclining bed. In addition, women can indulge in a rose bath! Do sign up for the hotel’s unique night heli-cruising trip over Tokyo Bay. The hotel arranges a private car to take you to the heliport, which is 10 minutes away. Enjoy the romantic night flight which gives you a dazzling night view of Tokyo. You will see the Odaiba Ferris Wheel, Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo Dome, Tokyo Tower and the night lights of Shinjuku. It is truly a breathtaking and romantic experience.

After checking out from the hotel later, take a five-minute train ride to Kasai Rinkai Park. End your trip on a high note by taking the ferris wheel, which is 117m high, and get an amazing view of Tokyo.