Hotele z: Gym w Gifu Prefecture, Japan

The hotel room is pretty big by Japan standards, and the feeling of the hotel is really grand! Lots of locals were staying there, but the rooms are a little bit dated. The toilet lights were quite dim and the bathrooms could use an update. However, everything worked perfectly and the stay was still extremely enjoyable! The hotel is situated right next to a bus stop so that makes things super convenient! There’s also a family mart behind the hotel (shortcut! go out of the main door, turn right, walk down the ramp, immediately turn right and right again into the small path, go up the stairs past the hotel park, then turn left and cross the small roads, and you’ll find the konbini) The hotel also rents out bicycles to hotel guests FOC, so you can take the bike literally anywhere! We rode to the supermarket (~10 mins away) and also down by the river (10/10 recommended!) and just explored lots around! Gifu is a lovely quiet town and we would definitely recommend it to anyone looking to experience a side of Japan that isn’t just Tokyo or Osaka.

To be honest considering this has a 4 star rating I'm a bit disappointed. Generally speaking it is a nice place but there are small things that are lacking compared to other similar Onsen Hotels at the same price. For example they don't provide a basket to go to the onsen but only a cheap plastic bag. The Hotel itself is very old but well maintained and at least the general spaces use nice materials and decoration. Once you reach the room it becomes worse. The materials used in the room are very cheap (Vinyl Floor, Cheap Wallpaper that was put on very poorly). Some aspects of the room have been refurnished, like the sink but most of it seems to be original from the 60s-80s. The bathtub and Toilet are retro models. The Onsen baths are a mixed bag - the one on the third floor with Wood ceiling seems to be the newest and is the best of the three. The other two (panorama and first floor) are in dire need of refurbishing. They seem in very bad condition and extremly old. The worst part (for me) was the Breakfast. 90% of the selection was japanese Style (and even that seemed poor). Western Options were only Pancakes, French Toast (which was good at least) and a few sad pieces of low quality bread with condiments. They didn't even have a coffee machine!!! Only pre-brewed coffee that tasted like water.

Free parking — the car park is right in front of the hotel’s main entrance, very convenient for drivers. The room was clean. The three‑bed room was enough for our family (2 adults, a 12‑year‑old, a 9‑year‑old, and a 5‑year‑old). Breakfast was good. The onsen was also nice and clean. They even provide complimentary popsicles after the onsen — my kids loved them. The staff were very polite and helpful. Overall, good value for money.

Everything was wonderful! The room had its own private plunge pool, and there were two outdoor hot springs that you could reserve for your group to enjoy without anyone else around. Dinner and breakfast were served in a traditional Japanese style, which felt very authentic. What really sets this ryokan apart is that the main dish for dinner is Hida beef from the region. The service was top-notch; everyone was so welcoming and kind. After checking in, you change into traditional attire, and the hotel provides everything else, right down to facial cream. Thank you for such an amazing experience!

This was my son's first experience in a Japanese traditional ryokan. According to him, the experience of just one night there was wonderful. As for me, I would like to be provided more service such as yukata for free, however, I was surprised that I had to pay an additional 700 yen for the yukata despite of the ryokan's high score. The hotel itself is quite large, there are an old main building and a new one connected to each other. There are two onsens in there. I particularly enjoyed the one named ”Fuga” (Tenryo no yu) located on the lowest floor. Everything was quite accurate, elegant and perfectly clean there. For dinner, we had a barbecue with local Hida beef. I tasted 3 kinds of local sake, premium quality, that was very nice. But most of all we enjoyed Hida beef sushi there. My son was very impressed by its softness, that quite literally melted on the tongue.

Great stay overall, one of their baths was under renovation when I visited, which is a bummer. This is one of the places where the facilities age like fine wine. You can feel that it's dated but extremely well maintained, which I appreciate a lot. Breakfast was also amazing, there were a ton of options. The place is great for families and couples wanting to relax for a night or two.