Meitoya So — Attraction in Yamagata

My stay at Meitoya So was profoundly disappointing, overshadowing what should have been a relaxing visit to Zao Onsen. From noisy guests to poorly maintained facilities and unhelpful service, the experience fell far below expectations.

Noise and Inconsiderate Guests: While most guests were polite and quiet, a few were disruptive, making it nearly impossible to get a good night’s sleep. Additionally, some guests demonstrated a surprising lack of courtesy—my family’s designated slippers were taken, an act that felt both inconsiderate and uncharacteristic of the typically respectful onsen experience.

Subpar Room Conditions: The room itself was unclean and poorly maintained. However, the most distressing issue was the malfunctioning door lock. My family and I were locked out of our room for almost three hours (9 PM to midnight), with all of our essential belongings—phones, clothes, and medicine—inside. The manager attempted to fix the lock repeatedly, despite knowing it was jammed, and even suggested we wait until the next day to regain access. This solution was unacceptable and showed a disregard for basic guest needs. Ultimately, they had to break the door open, a solution that should have been implemented far sooner.

Service and Expectations: The service throughout this ordeal was disappointing. Given that Meitoya So is a Japanese hotel in a popular onsen town, I expected a much higher standard of care and professionalism. This incident may have been isolated, but the lack of responsiveness and foresight from the staff left a lasting...

The location is good. Room is decent equipped with heater that I think is time to replace seems not working very well. The breakfast and dinner especially is very worth n nice. First night we had pork shabu shabu n second night lamb BBQ. The staffs in restaurants r friendly n good, especially the old uncle n Philippo lady . Can see all the local staffs sort of rely or keep letting the lady work only as she speak english. In other words, a bit taking advantage of her. onsen is also nice especially the outdoor with trees n snow feel. The front desk staffs r very bad. There is one young guy that just stand there and when I carry my little girl with one hand while another hand pushing luggage where I need to push the entrance door. During check in, even the philipino girl helped to push the luggage inside while the same guy just stand there n look. Another more serious attitude guy was the older shorter guy with mole on his face, I parked my car in front as there was no parking didn't know is the hotel's van lot, the guy spoke with to remove the car like scolding n yelling at me. Super bad attitude. Lastly the air filter in the room, the cleaning standard operating procedure should include cleaning the water tank n it's surrounding. Looks very dirty with mold. Overall is worth your money n experience just some negative experiences by some bad staffs. Not missing another issue is the smoking room, is the exactly at the entrance n next to the welcome drinks sofa (though with ventilation n dedicated room but still can...

The location is good. Room is decent equipped with heater that I think is time to replace seems not working very well. The breakfast and dinner especially is very worth n nice. First night we had pork shabu shabu n second night lamb BBQ. The staffs in restaurants r friendly n good, especially the old uncle n Philippo lady . Can see all the local staffs sort of rely or keep letting the lady work only as she speak english. In other words, a bit taking advantage of her. onsen is also nice especially the outdoor with trees n snow feel. The front desk staffs r very bad. There is one young guy that just stand there and when I carry my little girl with one hand while another hand pushing luggage where I need to push the entrance door. During check in, even the philipino girl helped to push the luggage inside while the same guy just stand there n look. Another more serious attitude guy was the older shorter guy with mole on his face, I parked my car in front as there was no parking didn't know is the hotel's van lot, the guy spoke with to remove the car like scolding n yelling at me. Super bad attitude. Lastly the air filter in the room, the cleaning standard operating procedure should include cleaning the water tank n it's surrounding. Looks very dirty with mold. Overall is worth your money n experience just some negative experiences by some bad staffs. Not missing another issue is the smoking room, is the exactly at the entrance n next to the welcome drinks sofa (though with ventilation n dedicated room but still can...