Hotel berhampiran Welcia Nikko Inter Shop, Nikko

I stayed here with my partner and two friends (in two rooms) for two nights while exploring the Nikko area. The rooms were a bit smaller than some other ryokans I have been to but perfectly comfortable and clean. There were also two outdoor baths and two indoor baths (male and female) which would switch at particular times to allow guests to enjoy all the baths available during their stay. The outdoor baths in particular allowed you to enjoy views of the river and hills while bathing during daylight hours.

I made the trek here from Tokyo on a Saturday for the Yunishikawa-onsen KAMAKURA Snow House Festival which is only held from Late January to Late Feb on Fri/Sat and Sundays. Tips for making the trek - pre book the Fast Tobu train! I neglected to do this and with the help of a lovely man at the train station I ended up taking 5 x local trains and an hour bus making the trip 5.5 hours long instead of 3. Now to the hotel. It’s in a great location, right next to the festival hub but a short walk to the main centre of town ( which is very tiny). I didn’t pre book dinner or breakfast but took some snacks with me, however on arrival they advised they offer guests free ramen from 9-10.30pm which was delicious! The onsen was a new experience for me and one that I enjoyed. They offer very very comfortable pyjamas for your use while there as well. I asked on check out if they sell these pyjamas but they don’t :( I would have bought them if they did as they were perfect! The rooms are a little dated but comfortable and clean. The lounge area is lovely, wooden fire, free coffee, tea and juices and a wine dispenser with a good range of wines which you can easily charge back to your room. It was so relaxing just sitting by the fire and enjoying the views. One night was plenty for me but if you are a hiker then maybe a longer stay would be preferred. Making the trek back was easy. The bus that leaves from outside the hotel is timed to arrive at the Yunishigawa Onsen station with 10 minutes spare before the train arrives. Then a quick 2.5hours on the direct train back to Tokyo. If you are looking for a little escape from the noise of Tokyo then this is a lovely location in winter epically when the festival is on.

We were hosted by an elderly couple, and his family members. They were super cute, friendly and polite. It's like their small family business, ground floor was a western restaurant, second floor onwards were all the guest rooms. They know a bit of English, so the communication wise no issue at all. What we love about this stay is that other than the room with gorgeous lake view, the host was super helpful to allow us to store our luggage with them even way before our check-in timing. Furthermore he even offer to send us to the laundry shop, when we just casually ask him about the laundry. What actually surprised me the most, was that he even FETCH us from the laundry shop after we were done. Will definitely come back to this place again if I'm in Nikko! Thumbs up! Super host!! 😁

Style. Simple clean modern design Setting. Japan countryside, off the beaten path near highway, good for short overnight stay if on a longer drive Explore. Farm park. Outdoor hot springs across street @ the hotel. Convenience store style snacks available in the lobby. There are no restaurants in the hotel. Basic amenities so no hair conditioner, no bathtub. Nice common area/lobby. Helpful English speaking staff (Ayumi Osawa) that was super responsive via email. Rooms. I had a small clean room facing the trees on the 3rd floor, was here after a red-eye flight so checked in at 11 am and checked out 3 hours later, was happy with the experience Food & drinks. Looked like there were some restaurants nearby. Best to have car to get around Prices. Good /great value at US$115 Rating. 4/5

* 5 star service from Hitomi and make sure to upgrade to all you can eat dinner/breakfast dining option. Booked this hotel for a stay in Mid November and after getting off of train we caught the bus here a little after sundown. The autumn leaves are really outstanding-almost every picture is a gorgeous post card. Bus driver asked where we are headed to and told him ”Kinugawa Onsen Hotel” . Took around 10 min to arrive and we were dropped off in front of hotel parking lot. Waited in a short line to check in and front desk service referred us to ”HITOMI” her name on tag in hiragana characters. She whipped up 2 page map with room information, pertaining elevator diagram and hotel keys. Make sure to pay careful instructions about onsen and buffet times- free soft serve ice cream and snacks until 6pm in lobby/ free drinks, coffee, tea until 10pm. FYI- best soft serve in Japan Hokkaido milk...yummy!!! 5 golden stars to HITOMI- top notch and friendly service. She urged us to be aware of emergency exits on our floor. While you are dining they will bring out futons so when you return- soft futons are waiting for you! The room is a traditional tatami mat with table and cushions. It is welcoming with snacks, complementary bottled water and a hot tea station. Room safe in closet also included were yukata robes for him and her. Ugh, wonderful amenities, tooth brush, a few toiletries -worry free stay. After visiting the onsen - kind of stressful for a foreigner like me. Not used to being naked with other ladies but in reality I was invisible- no shame at all. We headed down to the all you can eat dinner. We had 90 min-more than enough time to eat from 7:30 to 9pm. The spread was adequate with dishes from Japan and a few we recognized. Tempura made to order, musubi bar, gelato station, bakery section, fruit bar, local dishes and drink machine both hot or cold more-more- more- too much to mention. Looked at all the diners like ravenous sharks. Lots of help staff taking away empty plates, chefs assistants re-filling the empty vessels with more foods. Orderly chaos in front of me and loving every succulent moment. I felt like Templeton in the Charlot's Web movie. Burp* UGH, rubbing my full belly and going for seconds and thirds. Repeating ” ah, ill have a year to diet” until we come back again. Super glad we upgraded to the all you can at buffet. Coming again in the morning-they open at 7am for breakfast. It ended up being a repeat but with Japanese breakfast foods too. We did an early checkout at 8am and paid our $2 onsen tax. They were nice enough to let us stay in the room until 10am if we promised to bring back both keys at that time- no issues there. First bus back to the train station arrives a little after 10 am and Hitomi came out to ask us to wait in lobby. Lobby had comfy seats and was warmer than outside. Hitomi soooo kind of her she told us the bus was here- wished her every success in life! Please -if you get a chance to

酷暑の中の避暑で訪れました。大自然の中にある温泉ホテル。以前の建物を生かして運営をされています。日光から奥日光まではかなりの距離はありますが、なんといっても白濁の硫黄泉という素晴らしい温泉があるのでやはり価値がありますね。 確かに、温泉への動線がフロント前を通るので多少はばかられますがお互い様ということで。 またレストランはブッフェスタイルです。テーブルはお隣さんと近い感じはありました。ただ大人数やお子様連れには仕切られたお部屋もあったようでがちゃがちゃして落ち着かない。ということはなかったと感じました。 品数も飲み物も豊富にあり工夫を感じました。 朝食も十分でした。 湯ノ湖が眼前でハイキングには最高。自然が豊かで空気も美味しく、涼しい。やはり何度も訪れたくなります。

8月上旬に訪れました。 ・コロナ対策 かなり入念なコロナ対策をしていました。安心できました。まず、フロントで体温チェック。玄関、廊下、脱衣場などに消毒液が置いてあります。従業員は全て常時マスク着用で、食事の配膳の際には手袋をしていました（朝食もバイキング形式ではありません）。フロントは、ビニールシートで囲われていました。至るところの窓やドアは開け放たれていて換気に気を遣っていることが分かりました。 部屋には感染防止のため従業員が入室しないことになっていて、お茶のペットボトルと茶うけ（お煎餅）が部屋に置かれていました。 私が泊った時は、5室しか埋まっていませんでした。コロナ対策で３密を避けるため、故意に満室にしていなかったのかもしれません。 ・立地 中禅寺湖湖畔、それも水辺のほとりに佇んでいて、湖を手に取るように見えるのは素晴らしいの一言。他のホテルでは味わえない気分です。 華厳の滝まで歩いて10分弱。遊覧船乗り場はすぐ横。 最近できた中禅寺湖地区の唯一のコンビニは、遊覧船乗り場横のビルの2階。但し、コロナの影響で夕方4:30には閉まってしまうので注意を。 ・建屋 元外国大使別荘跡とありますが、建屋はその当時のものではなく昭和40年代に建てられたものだそうです。現在およそ築50年なので、確かに古く床が軋んだりしていますが、レトロを感じる風情がいいです。近代的なホテルを期待する人には不向きでしょう。また、エレベーターはなく2階に行くには階段を使いますから、足腰の弱い方は1階にしてもらうとよいでしょう。 ・部屋 ２階洋室でしたが、少々狭く、畳の上にツインベッドが置いてあります。この部屋に限らず、このホテルの客室にはエアコンはないですが、扇風機が置いてあります。中禅寺湖の夜は涼しいので、扇風機があれば何とかしのげます。 空の冷蔵庫が置いてあります。 バス・トイレは、ビジネスホテル並みの狭いバスユニットです。 コンセントは壁にいくつかありますが、ベッド脇にはないので備え付けの延長コードを使いました。 ・食事 夕食の時間は6:00, 6:30, 7:00から選べます。夕食は抜群のメニューと味です。なかでも鱒の２度揚げ（オレンジソース仕立て）はとびきり上等。その他のメニューもオリジナルな料理で、日光の老舗有名ホテルなどよりよっぽど美味しいです。ボリュームもたっぷり。 朝食時間は7:30, 8:00, 8:30から選べます。朝食も品が良くてとても美味しかったです。和食か洋食を選べます。ドリンクは牛乳、オレンジジュース、コーヒー、紅茶などから選べ、おかわり自由。ご飯も汁もおかわり自由。ボリュームたっぷりで、お昼時になってもお腹は減りませんでした。 ・お風呂、温泉 清掃の時間帯（AM10～PM2)を除けばいつでも入れます。硫黄臭の温泉です。 脱衣場は４人分のスペースの広さです。扇風機がなかったのがちょっと残念。内風呂の円形浴槽は小さく、３人でいっぱい（カランは４人分あり）。露天風呂は２人が限界（約1m x 70cm四方の広さ）です。目の前が湖で、ボートが行き交うのを眺められます。硫黄の黄色い堆積物が至る所に付着しており、野性味たっぷりです。源泉が熱いためパイプからほんの少量の湯を浴槽に入れています。時には、冷水で薄めないと熱くて入浴できないこともありました。 これとは別に、小さい円形の（深さのある）貸し切り風呂があります。２人が限界です。無料です。 ドアに掛かった白板に入浴開始時間をマジックで記入し、ドアの鍵を内側から掛けて入ります。１時間が一応目安になっています。 ホテルの部屋数が10室しかないので、混むことはありません。自分一人だけの時も結構ありました。 足腰の弱い方には、内湯、露天風呂、貸し切り風呂とも皆段差が大きいので危険です。一緒に入ってあげた方がいいでしょう。 ・接客 ベタベタしないが、ほどよい距離感の温かい対応で本当に心地よかったです。特に食事の時はそう感じました。マニュアルにはない対応とはこういうことを言うのでしょう。老舗有名ホテルより上です。 ・全体的 こじんまりした佇まい、昭和のレトロと抜群に美味しい料理、温かい接客、それに(小さいが)硫黄臭の温泉。この組み合わせに共感しました。 料理のおいしさと従業員の温かさが勝り、建屋の古さなどは気になりませんでした。

This is my third trip/adventure to Japan. I would say as a solo traveler this has to be one of the very best places I have ever stayed in when travelling around Japan. I came to Nikko np to explore the vast array of hiking trails, all of which I did, had breathtaking views and a poetic, truly majestic Japanese feel to them. I rented a car from Nasushiobara (Shinkansen) and drove across to Kinugawa. On arrival I was greeted by a host of the hotel staff, welcoming me and helping me with parking and my bags. I checked in with ease and with some broken English and Japanese on my part was led to a beautiful traditional Japanese style room overlooking the river. The service throughout was world class and made me feel both very comfortable, at home, but also special. I stayed 3 nights with half board (breakfast and dinner), both truly amazing and served with grace and politeness. On the first evening’s dinner one of the serving staff took the time to speak with me and allowed me to share some of my recent experiences/photos etc whilst preparing dinner - this was most welcome, especially as I had been travelling alone for over a week. The location of the onsen hotel is about 60 mins drive to some of the most sought after walks in the np. Very easy to access by car and excellent roads. The accommodation itself is a mix between very traditional Japanese resort and original/boutique Ryokan. The private and public onsen’s are fantastic and a well deserved rest-bite after a long days hiking! Having been to some of the most popular ryokan’s in Japan; Iwaso, Claska etc, this came as a very nice surprise and at an affordable rate without any compromise. If in the area, I would highly recommend staying…

コロナ禍、本当に久々の外出ということもあり、少し高めでもと露天風呂付きのお部屋を予約しました。 露天風呂→こちらの温泉が皆さん良いということでしたのでお部屋の露天風呂にも当然温泉と思いましたが普通の水道水でした。残念…。勿論、網戸などない場所なのでバスタブは虫だらけでした。 ベッド→という名で掲載されていますが、お部屋の角が少し高くなっているところにせんべい布団が引いてあるだけです。硬すぎて身体が痛くて良く眠れませんでした。 寝具？シーツ？もお洗濯の生乾き臭で残念です。 コロナ禍で仕方ないとは思いますが、連泊してもタオルの交換があるくらいで、ベッドメイキングのし直しはなかったです。 お部屋はすごく寒かったです。 料理→季節や地元のものを期待していたのに、カニとエビばかり。カニは冷凍してあったものと想像します、ですので、変な硬さがあり身もほぐせず半分も食べずに諦めました。アレルギーの確認がないので、甲殻類アレルギーの方はお料理絶対確認したほうが良いと思います…。 食品テーブル調理用の燃料が小さくて、しゃぶしゃぶ、豚肉が出てきたのですが途中で火が消えて諦めました。あと5分くらい調理出来るサイズだとよいのでは？ 朝食は和風です。コロナ禍ということもあり、バイキングは難しいと思いますがせめて和朝食か洋朝食くらいは選べると良いのにと思います。 そして、フロントの男性スタッフがフロントらしくない所作と思いました。わたしたちの名前を予約リストから見つけられず、本当にうちで予約していますか？と聞かれました。女性は丁寧でした。 いうことで、コロナ禍なのでサービスが制限されるのは仕方ないと思いますが値段とサービス内容が合っていないと思いました。

Over expectation. I stay in dormitories type , budget concern but facilities is very good. I like on sen bath and beverage bar in the evening , really enjoy. This is smart hotel , QR code to communicate anything , self service. Will not fit to Anyone need operation care