Hotele z: breakfast w Akita Prefecture, Japan

During winter, the road for the last 800 meters before reaching the hotel is closed, and you must walk in. Guests need to park at Okama Onsen first. Before arrival, you are required to inform the hotel of your check-in time so that a staff member can guide you on foot to the property. The staff will help carry your luggage, but if you have many bags, it’s best to inform them in advance. The highlight of this stay is definitely the walk to the hotel. You walk deep into the forest along towering walls of snow on both sides, and eventually discover the onsen hidden in the woods. It feels truly special and secluded. The lobby area is not very large, and the number of staff is quite limited, but overall the service was very good. Dinner was served at a counter bar, and the chef was extremely friendly and spoke good English. The receptionist at the lobby, who is from Taiwan, speaks English, Chinese, and Japanese fluently. She explained everything clearly, helped carry our luggage on the way out, and even assisted with clearing snow off our car. Personally, I found the public onsen area to be a bit disappointing. The floor was icy and slippery, which felt somewhat unsafe. However, the private onsen in the room was excellent — very private, spacious for an in-room bath, with a beautiful view and wonderfully fragrant mineral water. The room itself was spacious, quiet, and peaceful. Mobile signal does not work inside the hotel, but the hotel provides Wi-Fi, which was stable and fast. Both breakfast and dinner were very good, and the hotel responded to emails and accommodated our special dietary requests, which we really appreciated. The only regret was that the snow was extremely deep during our visit, making it hard to fully see and imagine the surrounding scenery.

It was very beautiful and the room was large and very comfortable. There is no pass shower in the room, but there is a large communal bath and I was able to enjoy the feeling of a hot spring. The staff was kind and polite. I would like to stay with breakfast next time.

Although the hotel's decor is dated, the facilities are well-maintained and have everything a traditional onsen ryokan (hot spring inn) should have, and the equipment isn't outdated. The onsen has both indoor and outdoor sections, but in winter the outdoor temperature isn't high enough, so only the indoor onsen is available. The onsen has white floating debris and smells of sulfur, just like the Kaniba Onsen (crab farm) 😂. The hotel is family-run, but the owners haven't neglected service despite its age; on the contrary, you can feel their efforts to provide guests with the best and most up-to-date amenities in many details. I've been to many onsen ryokans in Japan, and while the facilities aren't as modern as some, they're comparable to established ones. Most importantly, I felt a strong sense of hospitality, which was very touching. I would definitely come back if I have the chance.

Service: The service was impeccable. We booked a one-night stay with two meals, and the hotel staff were already waiting for us at the station to pick us up. Because we arrived late, they even held our dinner reservation for us! Our train was cancelled the next day, and the hotel staff patiently explained how to take the bus and provided a timetable. They even drove us to the bus station – the service was excellent, and all of this was free! Cleanliness: Very clean. Environment: The hotel is next to a beautiful, pristine forest! The hot spring environment and water quality are top-notch, perfect for honeymooning couples! The tap water is drinkable and tastes incredibly sweet! Service: The service was the best I've ever experienced at a hotel.

The hotel service was good. Booking the timed shuttle bus service was very convenient! Our room was in the East Wing, which required carrying luggage up a few steps before being able to take the elevator to the room. This aspect needs improvement. The room itself was very spacious and comfortable. Both breakfast and dinner were buffet style, offering a wide variety of dishes, including local specialties. After 9 PM, dandan noodles were available as a late-night snack. The public hot spring bath was also quite nice!

The must-visit cherry blossom and maple viewing place in Akita must be [Kakunodate]. It is also the hometown of samurai with a long history in Japan and is known as ”Olu's Little Kyoto”. But accommodation here is very expensive, especially during the cherry blossom and maple leaf seasons. It is even harder to find a room. During the maple leaf season, I booked a low-cost accommodation four months in advance (Kakunodate B&B Fengya) for ¥996/2 nights including breakfast. So this is one of the few B&Bs. The Japanese female boss speaks English very well and is very enthusiastic. She personally prepares breakfast with local ingredients. She also serves lunch and afternoon tea, and also sells handmade food. The B&B has free bicycle rentals, so you can easily visit all the samurai houses in Kakunokan. Most of the Japanese locals and foreigners who stay here, as well as *********, can speak English. Old people like us from the mainland who cannot speak Japanese or English are purely isolated cases. The landlady was afraid that we might have some problems, so she specially invited Mr. Ren, a retired (Chinese) teacher from Kakunodate University to come and ask us if we had any problems! The boss lady learned that we had to book a taxi to take us to Kakunodate JR Station at 6:30 tomorrow, but the taxi service at Kakunodate starts at 8 o'clock. The boss lady personally took us to the train station despite her busy schedule. I was really touched! However, the B&B does not have a pick-up station service. When we arrived, we took a taxi to the B&B for 800 yen.

Great hotel, very conveniently located next to the JR station. Amenities are complete, plenty of places to grab somwthing to eat as well. Wish I had more time to sightsee around the city, but I left early to go to Kakunodate. Maybe next time. The room got too hot, but I only found out im the morning there's a panel where you can adjust the temperature. The north wing room is nice, but you have to walk to the main building for breakfast and the train station. Breakfast was good, plenty of local selecrion, but many of the dishes had pork and I couldn't eat. They had plenty of salad and sweets available. Their scrambled egg is also nice.

I stayed here on a solo trip. It's a bit of a distance from the station. The late-night ramen (presumably offered to all guests), the clean room, and the generously sized public bath allowed me to relax and unwind, making for a comfortable trip the next day.

First of all, I booked this hot spring hotel on Saturday and it cost me 33,600 yuan. I thought I could live in a big room, but everything became a mess after two sleeping mats were laid out at dinner time. We couldn't open our luggage because there was no place, and we had to jump to go to the bathroom because there was no way to go. I was really angry. I booked this hotel because it is a LA VISTA group, but the food, both the ingredients and the taste are worth the price. There are also many snacks, water, Yakult, and fresh milk in the lounge after the hot spring, but there is no juice. This is what I find strange. In addition, we often pass by the counter, and the waiters treat you as air. Anyway, the way of this hotel is to come and go. Just now we checked out and put on our shoes, and they turned around when we said byebye, and didn't even come to the door. Am I really expecting too much?

The hotel is beautiful, luxurious, and very upscale. I can honestly say it's excellent value for money. Around the hotel, there are also beautiful museums and lovely parks perfect for leisurely walks and taking photos. 📸🌿 The rooms are beautiful, clean, spacious, and very comfortable – incredibly relaxing. The breakfast is delicious and constantly replenished; you'll definitely be full.