Very cozy guesthouse just a few steps from Noboribetsu Station. The pods are super comfy, great bathrooms, great kitchen. Extremely clean and organized. It think this was the first guesthouse/hostel I stayed without cluttering - everything is spotless. Every single member of the staff is friendly and helpful. They’re very welcoming and warm :) It’s nice that they offer breakfast - it’s rare to find this kind of accommodations offering morning meals nowadays. Very happy with AKA & AO! ;)

If I was to say something here, it would be that the dorm is a bit cold. It would be great if it was a little warmer. Sometimes people can be loud (not the guesthouse’s fault). Maybe, if upon check-in the staff explain to guests that talking, setting loud alarms, and handling luggage inside the room is not allowed, it would minimize the noise.

My husband and I stayed in the mixed dorm for 2 nights at Noboribetsu Guest House AKA & Ao in December 2024, over the New Year Holiday. It is a very comfortable and convenient hostel. The staff are so friendly and helpful, they made me feel at home. Check-in is from 15:00, but you can leave your luggage with them for free before check-in and after check-out. I found the beds very comfortable, warm, and spacious. There is not a lot of space between the beds, so please don’t block the path with huge suitcases. I loved having a clothesline in the bed for my towels and swimsuit to dry. There is a coin laundry machine/dryer. There are small lockers available for valuables but you must bring your own lock or buy one for 100円. There is a shower/toilet room for men and one for women, with hand soap, hairdryers, shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. Towels are not provided but you can rent one for 200円. Other amenities like toothbrushes or body sponges can be purchased for 100円. The hostel has free phone chargers and e-bikes for guests to use. The price includes free breakfast (7:45AM-9:45AM) which offers toast with butter/jam/peanut cream, cornflakes/muesli with local Noboribetsu milk, and coffee. There is a nearby grocery store, COOP, where you can buy other food if desired. There’s a kettle, toaster, rice cooker, microwave, gas stove with pots and pans, a colander, knives, plates, bowls, glasses, mugs, cutlery. There is an assortment of free condiments and ingredients in the fridge and pantry. The hostel is just a 3-minute walk from Noboribetsu Station where you can catch a bus or train. On our last day, we had to leave before the free breakfast, so the staff kindly let us take some toast and muesli the night before to eat the next morning. I loved staying here and I hope to return one day. Thank you very much!

If you travel during New Year’s, please be aware that most restaurants are closed. When we came, only the nearby yakitori and sushi restaurants were open. So, we bought food at COOP (closed at 18:00 on NYE) and cooked it in the Guest House’s well-equipped kitchen. Guests who can't read Japanese we're having difficulty with the kettle: 1) press ロック to remove the lock then 2) press 給湯 to dispense the hot water. On our last night, I thought the nearby train station was very noisy and had trouble sleeping. Then we realized it was another guest playing a train-themed smartphone game on full volume in the next bed at 10PM at night. I don't think most people need to told this, but: be quiet when others are trying to sleep...please?

Free breakfast was a nice plus. Staff is a nice squad, quite personable and ready to help. Dormitory cabins are spacious and comfortable, with sufficient privacy. The whole house has a lot of character, very internationally oriented. Feels like a saloon in an Old West town, a rest stop for transients more than a hotel to stay in. Some of the staff speak a little English which is very good by Japanese standards. The lounge is very nice. Normally there's also a café and ice cream shop run in the house but it was closed due to technical difficulties during our stay. There's great information provided about the town and lots of other places in Hokkaido, makes planning the rest of your trip a breeze when you have open spots in your plans or you're out of ideas. Free earplugs provided for the dormitory. Sells very good local beer. Great central location between station, restaurants, supermarkets, post office, etc. Basically the heart of town. I had an excellent time here, but that's not to say you will. My friend didn't find it nearly as positive.

Its shared dormitory only, so you have to be able to handle a lot of other people (houses 30+ at peak) shuffling around. Depending on the guests that come your experience may be very different from ours. The lounge plays music non-stop, and at night some of it is so awful its hard to sit there anymore. It has one combination washer/dryer, but it doesn't dry very well. I enjoyed the breakfast a lot, but my friend found it completely unremarkable. It's basic cereal and bread with milk and coffee, nothing special but fitting for the theme of the house. There's no AC, bed can get quite sweaty in summer. Lights don't go out at night in the dormitory, bring a mask with you. Free wifi is unreliable. Good most of the time, but drops out every now and then.

This property is literally a 4 minute walk from the station. I was really impressed by it! Not only was it clean and the staff friendly, but the common area was spacious and relaxing. The location also served food, which was good to have as a backup in case one got hungry. They had about three bikes at a time one could rent for free! I really enjoyed this since I live in Tokyo and have not had the ability to freely cycle along rural backroads like I used to. The beds were clean, so were the showers, and bathrooms. The town itself is quiet and unassuming, but there's some great ocean views to be had and of course, Jigokudani Park.

I wished the cafe was open longer for guests. After exploring I'd arrive back late around 6-8pm, but the cafe closed around 5pm. I think if it was open longer, this hostel could have more business regarding food sales.

The staff went above and beyond to accommodate and help me. They helped me locate a lost luggage, and helped bridge the language barrier for that. You are about 200M from Noboribetsu station. Very convenient. Friendly staff, great manners and helpful.

Bed was a bit hard, but also not the fault of the property but there is a lot of people in one dorm, and I did find an odor and other guests were a bit unpleasant. Talking on the phone on speaker while others were trying to sleep.

It was comfortable, the people working there where nice and there is a lot of equipment available to use. Even if it was a dormitory with a lot of people, there were no sounds that woke me up that night and it was a good price, so I recommend for those who want an affordable place to stay! It is also near enough of the station to go to the onsen for those who are interested to go there!

My friend bring his luggage, but there wasnt any big locker to keep it safe, so we had to trust that no one would have tried to steal it. Japan is generally safe, so we were not really worried. I bring my backpack for the travel and put it on hook hanger in the bed, so it was fine for me.

The location was pretty good, a stones throw from Noboribetsu station. The bus to Noboribetsu Onsen also stops close by, so travelling around is really easy. Staff is friendly, and they have several facilities like electric bikes and washer/dryer machine.

In the dorm it was considerably hotter than in the hallways, even though the weather was quite cool. I luckily had a fan to put next to me but without it, it would get too hot to sleep almost.

Great location super close to main station, nice spacious bunk beds, friendly staff, possibility to store luggage. They let us check in early because our beds were cleaned early. Spacious common area.

Super cold water in bathroom sink and kitchen sink, don’t know about the shower though. Breakfast was scarce, only sweet cereal and bread with jam, but a nice gesture for such inexpensive stay.

Great location, situated in between the train station and express buses stop to other cities. The staff were really friendly and helpful.

The shower water doesn't stay warm and kept switching between scalding hot water or turning cold, which is rather inconvenient in winter season. Also, just a heads up that the city itself is very quiet during the winter season and since a lot of trails around Hell's Valley are closed for safety reasons, there might not be much to do.

The location is perfect if you don't have a car but want to go on small day trips around the area using public transportation: close to Noboribetsu JR station, just 12mins by bus to get to Nonoribetsu Onsen (Hell Valley), you can also take a shuttle bus for Chitose Airport nearby. Delicious breakfast included, one of the best coffe we had in Japan! I highly suggest buying their soft ice-cream, it's superb.

There's no air conditioning so especially in the dorm it could get really warm at night, but they have fans if needed.