Hakone Onsen Yuyado Yamanoshou — Hotel in Hakone

Staying here for 2 nights was a lovely relaxing break during a fortnight trip to Japan. The room was lovely, the food was excellent, the onsen was great and all the staff were helpful. On arrival we were booked into our dinner (17:30pm), breakfast (07:30/08:45) and onsen slots. ||There are 2 private onsens each available between 3pm-10pm which means there are enough slots each day for each room to have a 50|Minute session - which is enough given the 43 degree heat. The onsen area was spotlessly clean and a lovely experience. ||The food was great. Beautiful presentation and we really enjoyed trying various traditional dishes. They also catered for one of us being vegetarian. The timing of our dinner slot was perhaps a little earlier than we’d have liked (17:30-18:30) and due to there being such a generous amount of food, I felt a little rushed at 18:20 when advised there was 10 minutes left until the next dinner guests were arriving. However, I must have sped up on the second night as I didn’t notice it then. ||Sleeping on the futon wasn’t that comfortable but it’s all part of the experience! There was a cute seating area in the room also which we used to play cards and have a beer (from the vending|Machine) in the evening as there isn’t a communal space. It was exactly what we needed after visiting busy busy Kyoto and Tokyo. ||There are plentiful public transport options to explore the Hakone area and the nearest bus stops are only around a 5-10 minute walk from the property. You can get down to lake Ashi in 20 minutes. The Lalique museum is also close by (7-8 mins walk) and has a lovely cafe for lunch and the option to have tea in an orient express carriage - this was a good rainy day option when fog and high winds meant being outdoors...

This is the intimate hotel you dream of in an absolutely unreal location. Check in staff are lovely! In short, you feel like a very welcomed guests in someone’s home.|The rooms are wonderful, and clean and the futons are comfortable. The area is incredibly quiet and the onsen hot and very well maintained. Get excited for this part and be prompt for your scheduled times. |Breakfast and dinner were included in our rate. We stayed 2 nights. We did not eat lunch for 3 days. I don’t know who eats this much food but it is ample and delicious. Loving staff make it in the restaurant. Everything pictured is “round 1” of each meal. There is always a round 2 plus dessert. I honestly feel like the hotel could cut back on food service - it is INCREDIBLY generous.|There are plenty of things to do and see within 10-15 minutes of travel included in your Hakone express pass. Get the express pass at Odawara!|Getting to Hakone can be tough especially with little ones. I recommend shipping your luggage - yep, it’ll get there! - and instead of taking the 55 minutes of winding road bus ride from Odawara, walk a little and take the combo of train, cable car and two bus stops down the mountain. Same money albeit slower, much more...

This ryokan stay was a wonderful part of our Japan trip. It felt quite authentic from the moment we arrived. I was worried that the added dinner and breakfast wouldn't be enough food for our American appetites, but I was totally wrong! The dishes kept coming at dinner and we left very full. Plus, the food was beautifully presented and allowed us to try some Japanese dishes we otherwise wouldn't have ordered. The onsen was a very unique experience and I was grateful to have an option to enjoy it privately. I was also pleased that we were allowed to leave our luggage after checkout while we explored for the day.

In general, we found Hakone a little more difficult to navigate than larger cities because everything is so spread out. The bus routes are numbered - get a map from the tourist office before you leave Odawara Station! Google Maps did not identify stops by the number and without knowing Japanese we would have been lost if it had not been for this map - see photo! The inn is not far from stop 248 along the blue T Togendai line from Odawara Station. It took about 45 minutes on that bus plus 5 minutes walking to...