3-Star hotele w: Gunma Prefecture, Japan

Stayed for 2 nights in early Dec 2024. Booked the mountain view twin room with cypress bath which comes with both dinner and breakfast. The ryokan styled hotel is located diagonally opposite from the shibukawa bus stop and about 5 mins walk (turn right from the hotel) to the Ikaho stone steps around the mid section of the steps. The hotel is old ryokan style but well maintained and does not see much wear and tear. The lobby which is on the 3rd floor (ground level) is big. No shoes allowed in the hotel, guests have to deposit their shoes at the entrance. Staff were all friendly and polite though not all can speak well in English. They do go much more to make you feel at home. Yutaka is provided at the lobby. My room which is located on the 4th floor corner is considered big. Old styled ryokan kind of design but with western bed. Though the room is laid with tatami on the floor but can still hear people walking if they area heavy or run. Corridor noise does filter in as well but muffled. Unblocked view of the mountain as the hotel sits on an elevated hill. I would recommend to stay with mountain view. The cypress bath can fit 2 person but takes a while to fill, I rather go to the public onsen. Besides the usual amenities, they even provide face wash, face moisturiser, etc in the room. Safe box is provided in the room as well. Wifi seems weak. No place in the bathroom however to hang your clothes or towel. There is an indoor onsen on the first floor and an outdoor one on the 8th floor. The onsen are gender separated. They rotate the male and female onsen on the first floor though both has the same look and facilities. The onsen on the 8th floor has a nice view of the city but no shower facilities. There is a massage chair on the first floor as well. Breakfast and dinner are served on the 2nd floor. I would not say that this is the best, but definitely delicious and sufficient. Check in at 3 pm and check out at 10am which I find a bit too early. Hope they can consider to extend. Overall I would recommend this place to stay if you are coming to ikaho.

Love this ryokan! Such a gem in winter time with steaming onsen and dramatic snow falling on the river. If you need mental reset, you must come. Great food, super clean place and hospitable people. Highly recommend to bring snacks and your own beverages as there is no cafes nearby. Overall experience is memorable.

Great place. Spacious room. Comfortable futons with a view of the hill. You can hear the mountain river, which is a plus for me. The public onsen is a leisurely 10-minute walk away, making it very convenient to get to anywhere: from the bus station, the ski resort, and Yubataki. There's an art gallery across the street; be sure to check it out. The onsen in the guesthouse is also very nice and clean. The hostess is very sweet and welcoming, ready to help with advice and understand your situation.

First off, the room was really spacious, and the hot spring was excellent. The breakfast had a great variety, and the service was warm and attentive. The hotel's location is fantastic, just a few steps from Yubatake, and there are many restaurants downstairs. The hotel facilities are comprehensive, and transportation is convenient.

We had an amazing and relaxing stay! We truly loved it and had a wonderful night surrounded by serene nature. The view was absolutely beautiful — the lake is just right in front of the hotel! The place is spotless and very well maintained. But what truly made our stay special was the incredible staff. A big shoutout to Mr. Ozu, the General Manager, for going the extra mile with his thoughtfulness! When he learned that we were heading to the ropeway the next day (and that there were no bus trips on weekdays), he kindly offered us a ride. He was also genuinely concerned about our hike and overall safety — so heartwarming! Since we didn’t get the dinner package and there was only one restaurant nearby that closed at 4 p.m., we decided to get a takeout for dinner. My friend also asked if there was a nearby café to buy a cake for my birthday, but there wasn’t any. Later that evening, after we came back from the onsen, someone knocked on our door and surprised us with a complimentary cake! They said it was because we didn’t have dinner and they wanted to celebrate my birthday. Awwww! Such a thoughtful and sweet gesture! 🎂💖 In the morning, Mr. Ozu even gave us taxi numbers and the bus schedule for Yumoto Onsen, making sure our travel plans went smoothly. Truly amazing hospitality — we felt so cared for and appreciated throughout our stay! 🌿✨

Excellent service. I will give 10 out of 5 if I could. There was a staff who rushed out to us and asked if we were going to stay at the Ryokan. Very helpful for lost travelers overwhelmed by the cold weather. Greeted us warmly when we arrived. Explained the important information to us as best as they could in English, which is perfectly fine. Room was big. Decorated meticulously in the traditional Japanese style. Yukata and Obi provided added on to the immersive experience. Dinner was exquisite. Dishes gave us a taste of what traditional Japanese cuisine was like. The food was sincere (didn’t feel like frozen / canned / ready made food), served and plated meticulously. There were 2 onsens, indoor and outdoor. They were clean and spacious enough. Water (I believe) is from the hot spring nearby and was immensely therapeutic. Ryokan was near the heart of the town and everything was within walking distance. Kindly shuttled us to the bus terminal when we checked out (we didn’t have to wait for fixed timings) and carried our (heavy) luggage. All in all, we enjoyed the one night stay very much and they set a high bar for Japanese hospitality.

Upon our arrival, we're greeted with great staff members, who take our shoes and away and provide us slippers to wear during our entire stay. The dinner was exquisitely served as a big course composed of various several side dishes and main items. We were just blown away. So we came back to the room after dinner to find out that the futon beds, Japanese style mattress & beds, were set up for us to relax and sleep. The breakfast is just a bit less sophisticated but still much more than we could eat, yet impressive for us in terms of the effort required to make them. Same with upon our departure, our shoes are placed back at the lobby orientated readily for us to wear. It just shows Japanese highly attentive level of detail in terms of hospitality. Although the location is its downside, even if you don't have a rental car, I still highly recommend it if you can find a way there.

The facilities were very clean as they had just been renovated. The buffet had a great variety, and both dinner and breakfast were delicious! The heating in the room was apparently faulty, but I suspect the entire facility might have had issues, as even with the provided heater, some areas were very cold. At dinner, we were seated near the entrance, and it was so incredibly cold that many of the dishes were already cool, which was a real shame. When I went to the onsen in the morning, the changing room was so cold it felt like being outside. I warmed up in the hot spring, but then got cold again in the changing room. Also, there was a lot of hair on the floor near the dryers in the changing room, which was quite unpleasant. I used the onsen three times but never saw any staff cleaning it. There were hair straighteners in addition to dryers, but there were no outlets to plug in my own, which was also disappointing. I hope these issues can be improved.

The surroundings are exceptionally quiet, making it ideal for relaxation or even a bit of meditation. It may not be the best choice for families with children, as there are very limited amenities catered for them. Service, however, was outstanding. The staff went above and beyond — when my rental car had a brake light issue, they noticed it before I did, stepped in to assist, contacted the rental company, and ensured it was resolved the very next morning. That level of attentiveness is rare. Location-wise, it is quite remote. There’s little within walking distance, so getting around or finding food requires some planning. But if you’re here for peace and an onsen experience, that quiet isolation becomes part of the appeal. A memorable stay overall, especially for those seeking calm, comfort, and genuine hospitality.

Our overnight stay at this hotel in Kusatsu was simply the best we've experienced in Japan. We arrived a bit early and we were allowed to check in before 3 as there was a room available. The service was excellent, and the room was spacious, complete with all the amenities we needed. Although the shower was located downstairs in the private onsen, it was never crowded, and I had the onsen all to myself. The hotel also provided us with yukatas, adding a lovely traditional touch to our stay. Breakfast was served in our room in the morning, and the staff graciously accommodated our request to change the breakfast time, as we wanted to visit an onsen that opened at 9 AM. The hotel was impeccably clean, and we slept like babies that night. I would love to stay here again on our next visit to Kusatsu. とても良い所でした、有難う 😊❤️