Marukoma Hot Spring Hotel — Hotel in Chitose

The stay in Marukoma Onsen Ryokan is overall satisfying and we truly enjoyed the onsen facilities.

The room that we booked was a traditional Japanese room (tatami room). The room is spacious and the bed is comfortable. The room comes with a lake view and we can bump into wild deer as we explored the exterior of the hotel.

The room package that we took is inclusive of both dinner and breakfast. The meals are delicious and it is highly recommended for travellers to book them. One main reason is that there is no other food option around the hotel. We were a little disappointed with the snack options offered in the shop located in the hotel. We wished that there were instant noodles available. However, the dinner was very filling hence you do not really need the instant noodle.

The hotel comes with a great onsen facility where both private and public baths are available. My husband and I truly appreciate the availability of a private bath. However, do note that you will need to pay extra to utilize the private bath. We spent an additional ¥2,750 for an hour of usage of the private bath. The hotel also has a photography session in the morning (9.10 am to 9.30 am) so that we can take photos and videos of the bath facilities and environment.

The ryokan is located near Lake Shikotsu We need to take a bus to the bus station and the hotel will pick us up from the bus station. It is relatively far and inconvenient especially since we are travelling with big luggage. It is extremely inconvenient to travel with big luggage in Japan by bus. There is a limited schedule of what time the pick-up is, please double-check with the hotel to ensure that you do not miss the schedule. Similarly, there is a fixed schedule of what time you can leave the hotel, please check and discuss with the reception during the check-in.

It is extremely challenging to travel with big luggage on a bus in Noboribetsu. The bus is packed with people and their luggage and the door only opened from the front near the driver. My recommendation is to stand or sit nearer to the front side of the bus so that it is easier to get out of the bus.

There was an ongoing ice festival near Lake Shikotsu and the hotel did arrange for a shuttle to go to the site. However, we were given only less than an hour to explore the festival and it was too short, especially since we have paid ¥500/ pax to enter the site. There were quite a lot of people on the site hence we need to take time to queue up to enter...

We thouroughly enjoyed our stay in this ryokan situated at the Shikotsu lake side. The service was friendly and welcoming and the location is really something else. The hotel is situated in the forest next to the lake. No other building in the neighbourhood. Which makes staying here quite a special experience. The hotel was founded in 1915 and they our proud of their history.

The building could use some touching up here and there. But the harsh weather conditions must erode this building faster than normal. I really enjoyed the breakfast view on the lake. We got separate chairs and a small table juist big enough for our breakfast platter.

The breakfast buffet is very good, but the dinner makes this stay unforgettable. We loved the traditional ryokan style dinner. Every evening was a feast for the senses. Loved the fact that they served their own saké.

The hotel has its own shop and lots of vending machines, you can also heat up you own food. Lots of amenities are provided. Our room did not get cleaned during our stay, but fresh towels and home wear were available at the reception desk.

The room was a classic style room with tatami mats. We slept on thick mattrasses on the tatami mats, which were very comfortable. Be warned though: the rooms are not equipped with a shower. You should use the communal onsen or book a private onsen.

The onsen was the highlight of our stay here. It was a pleasure to enjoy the different baths, especially the outside bath with lake view. The original onsen at lake level are also still in use. The water is naturally filtered through the rock bottom. Those onsen are pretty, but the water is less warm than the more modern onsen.

Loved the fact that the hotel made it possible to take pictures of the empty onsen every day between 9.10u en 9.30u. A unique opportunity to take the memories of our stay...

We thouroughly enjoyed our stay in this ryokan situated at the Shikotsu lake side. The service was friendly and welcoming and the location is really something else. The hotel is situated in the forest next to the lake. No other building in the neighbourhood. Which makes staying here quite a special experience. The hotel was founded in 1915 and they our proud of their history.||The building could use some touching up here and there. But the harsh weather conditions must erode this building faster than normal. I really enjoyed the breakfast view on the lake. We got separate chairs and a small table juist big enough for our breakfast platter.||The breakfast buffet is very good, but the dinner makes this stay unforgettable. We loved the traditional ryokan style dinner. Every evening was a feast for the senses. Loved the fact that they served their own saké.||The hotel has its own shop and lots of vending machines, you can also heat up you own food. Lots of amenities are provided. Our room did not get cleaned during our stay, but fresh towels and home wear were available at the reception desk.||The room was a classic style room with tatami mats. We slept on thick mattrasses on the tatami mats, which were very comfortable. Be warned though: the rooms are not equipped with a shower. You should use the communal onsen or book a private onsen.||The onsen was the highlight of our stay here. It was a pleasure to enjoy the different baths, especially the outside bath with lake view. The original onsen at lake level are also still in use. The water is naturally filtered through the rock bottom. Those onsen are pretty, but the water is less warm than the more modern onsen.||Loved the fact that the hotel made it possible to take pictures of the empty onsen every day between 9.10u en 9.30u. A unique opportunity to take the memories of our stay...