The staff was helpful and pleasant. The food was great considering it is a traditional Japanese meal. We were a group of Asians and Caucasian Americans, with not everyone used to eating traditional Japanese food, but everyone enjoyed the meals. There was plenty to eat, and it was fun to discover what was next. I strongly recommended adding the meat option to round off your meal.

We tried the traditional room, sleeping on the mats. It was fine for me, but my husband would have preferred a regular bed, so if you have someone that has back issues or may need more comfort, you may want to consider the regular beds. However, they also provide extra blankets so you can layer them on the mats to have more cushion.

A wonderful stay. Chose this hotel due to having transportation between Yudanaka train station and the Snow Monkey Park. Very handy indeed! There are two public onsen within the facility (gender separated) and two private onsen (indoor, free and outdoor, 2000yen per 30 mins, or free with select rooms) in addition to the 9x onsen in town. In-room drinks provided (free) and replenished daily with local snacks provided in-room and changed daily also. A nice touch! Tip - choose a consecutive night stay (2 nights) and you’ll have the town onsen to yourself until 3pm when the guests start to check into their hotels. Most only stay 1 night so the town onsen can get quite busy from 3pm. We chose the “no meals” options in our booking and were spoiled for choice within Shibu Onsen (places open from 5.30-6pm), no reservations necessary which isn’t the case for most other towns in Japan!

The room was big and the view of the river and mountains were great. The garden overlooking the onsen looked magical in the snow. The staff was wonderful and very accommodating. They provided transport to and from Yudanaka station and Snow monkey park. Even did a small detour to a scenic spot for some photos. Totally enjoyed the highly traditional Japanese dinner and breakfast. The late night walk in the town after the onsen bath was magical.

Nothing

Everything, to begin with Yamada San our shuttle driver and tourist guide . Then to the amazing couple slightly elderly that ran the hotel to the young Nepalese staff that explained everything in English . The bedroom and private onsen were wonderful . But nothing prepares you for the utterly out of this world dinner that awaits you from the way you are served to the beautiful exquisite and so so delicious food . Breakfast was again exceptional. Shibu onsen town / village has such charm and the public onsens are perfectly quaint and boiling hot and scrupulously clean . Top top hotel from facility to staff to food

Nothing

This is a lovely hotel in a great location, but what really made our stay fabulous and memorable was the staff. The owner, Yamada Akiyoshi san was thoughtful and went out of his way to show us the mountains which we really appreciated - thank you. All the staff we met were good humoured, attentive and very patient with our poor attempts at Japanese. Nothing seemed too much trouble. This has been one of our favourite hotels in Japan! If you are new to staying in a traditional Japanese hotel, this would be an excellent place to start. The food is wonderful - we enjoyed a full Kaiseki dinner and breakfast which were very tasty. There are really clear explanations of everything- including how to wear the different items of clothing and how to use the 9 traditional bath houses in town. even if you only have one night, come and stay!

nothing, we couldn’t fault it at all.

Everything! The rooms were gorgeous and the private outdoor onsen was divine!

My only quibble - and it’s a small one - was that the gentleman ( I’m not sure what nationality he was, but he wasn’t Japanese) who checked us in and also assisted with the meals - was very hard to understand. Although he had an English vocabulary, his enunciation was poor. He would benefit from some English elocution classes. May I add, he was charming and gracious, and I hope he finds this feedback constructive.

It’s located in the heart of the Shibu Onsen village. The tons of good reviews made me worry a little bit. Ended up as a great choice. The room was super comfortable and extremely clean. Only a 15 min drive ( they offered to drive us for free!) to the monkey park and only a 30-35 min bus ride to the Shiga Kogen central station. Bus to the ski resort stops 50m from the hotel. Best part of are the owners. Super friendly and attentive ( they left us daily a few sweet treats by the bed) we felt literally like home. They speak good English compared to most Japanese so it was nice to ask a few questions about the area. I would go back for sure. Highly recommend.

It’s not a super polished and stylish resort like the ones you see on Instagram but it has a homey vibe with all the old era village memorabilia the owners collect and display.

very authentic Japanese. You are provided with authentic dress for dinner. Dinner is 100% the best part of the stay. A private onsen also available to book (2000 yen) so you can share with a partner. Very close to monkey park and you get a free shuttle to and from monkey parks and local train station. Couple of small free drinks in mini bar.

Although it’s a great experience I just don’t think is justifies the hefty price tag. Bathroom very dated and you need to stand in bath for shower which is oddly located outside the bath.

Staff are helpful. They pick us up at the Yudanaka station and free ride to snow mountain park in the morning and eventually send us back to station. We have taken a bit long time to look around the snow mountain park. So we are a bit tight to catch up the return Train but they are so helpful to drive a bit faster and help us to buy the train ticket, worrying us to miss the train. And eventually we catch up the train. The hotel is located in Shibu area so we can have free access to outside onsen which is a plus. The free drink in the refrigerator have many choices for us. Everything is fine.

There is a minor issue in wifi, I cannot find the wifi spot in my room area, but as I have my mobile network. So I don't bother to ask the staff for help.

This place is in the heart of the shibu onsen area and a fantastic place to stay if you want the ryokan experience but also some western style touches. Two things stuck out: an incredible, gorgeous outdoor private onsen you can book, and the fact that they will pick you up from the train, drive you to the monkey park, and drive you back to the train. Incredible hospitality. Highly recommend!