Zaborin

Love this wonderful ryokan. Exceptionally beautiful ryokan. The room was very nice and very spacious. Beautiful view. The staff told us that if we were lucky we might see animals walking pass by while we were using outdoor onsen. It is a nice break for 1 or 2 nights.

Located not far away from Kutchan JR station, Zaborin is nested in a lovely countryside. The rental Toyota car GPS can not locate the exact location of the hotel, I have to resort to the Google map on my cell phone to take me to the hotel. This was not the first time that the Toyota rental car GPS failed. The hotel is a modern design building. Staff at the entrance would take care of the luggage and led us to the reception. Reception is located on the second floor by lift. The first impression of hotel interior design is minimalist, there is no extravagant or classical Edo decoration. We did the check in at the lounge and finished the hotel introduction inside our room. Most of the rooms have a similar interior design. Ours has a fantastic view of the country and a side view of Yotei Mountain. The room has a separate living room and bedroom, a nice restroom, a large bathroom with inside hot bath and outside onsen. The hotel reminded us before arrival that the hotel room has no air conditioning, but only electric fan. We had a drink to ourselves at the outside patio area with fantastic view and nice weather. The weather is still nice and not too much flying insects around you. We walked around the hotel and found that we are by ourselves most of the time and did not meet any other guests during the walk. I guess the guests are enjoying the nice quality of the room. We had a drink at the lounge before dinner and we were the only guests while there. Our dinner was served at the lover level of the hotel restaurant. Each pair of guests were seated in partitioned rooms. Food is served with ingredients explained. Food quality is high. After we checked out at the reception and took the lift to downstairs, we found our car was ready at the entrance, with our luggage loaded tot he trunk. You do not need to carry your luggage to the parking lot to get your car.

Absolutely amazing place. The staff are amazing and so detail oriented. The place comes with a cigar room, library, wine bar, and massage room. The breakfast and dinner are great too with different menus each day hand written by the chef. The rooms are very spacious with many amenities as well. The only complaint is that during the night, the rooms aren’t that well lit. The two onsens in each room are also a great plus for this place.

What a beautiful gem of a hotel in the heart of the forest in Niseko area! Combining traditional and modern elements, Zaborin elevates the ryokan experience with understated elegance and luxury. The facilities are beautiful and the environment is tranquil and serene. The food is amazing! Local, seasonal and high quality ingredients, delicate and complex flavor profiles, exquisite presentation. We were treated with such warm hospitality by everyone here, and hope to get to return in the future.

It's a quietly nestled ryokan amid nature. The scenery is, of course, splendid, but the cuisine and service are also excellent, making it a ryokan you'd want to visit over and over again. You can enjoy beautiful snowscapes here. Even without snow, you can still feel the changing seasons, though the most popular time for reservations seems to be the current season. There are open-air baths where you can indulge while surrounded by the grandeur of nature.

Overall, it was a fantastic Ryokan (Japanese style hotel) with authentic private Japanese onsen. Few things I really enjoyed and not enjoyed. Pros: 1. Fantastic private onsen. I've been to many onsen in Japan so I know the good quality onsen and almost plain water onse, this place had amazing quality onsen in each room with inside and outside options. I loved taking outside onsen with serenity view so I ended up taking 3 bath a day. 2: Nice interior design through out that gives you a tranquil feeling. 3. For those Japanese Kaisen food ( traditional Japanese course menu) lovers, it is a fantastic place to enjoy the top notch Kaisen dinner as the hotel plan includes dinner and breakfast, though for those who are not good at the food, it may be difficult to enjoy. 4: Friendly and attentive staff Cons: 1. It was a huge regret for us that we couldn't get a room with beds but instead we were assigned to a bed with Futon. Futon was so thin so I asked them to provide me a couple more futon mattresses but even with those, I could hardly sleep. 2. The room was very basic, unlike the lobby area and other public area.