Yaeikan — Hotel in Hakone

My boyfriend and I had our first ryokan experience here and loved a few aspects of it, disliked a few others. Overall, I think I wouldn't come back here as I am able to find modern options in the same price range, though I don't regret staying here.

At first, I was absolutely wow'd by our room. We had a private onsen, a living area, second bedroom, etc. We splurged for the nicer room because I have tattoos and didn't want a bad experience. The room could have easily fit four people. Then, after settling, I realized a lot of issues. First, our room wasn't that clean and the toilet room had a urine smell the entire time we stayed. We didn't use the bidet and the flushing mechanism didn't work very well. Then, the private onsen we had in our room was dirty, I found floating bugs, sticks, etc in the water and also there was mildew all in the room, gross algae in some areas too. The entire building was old, thin wall, and I could hear people walking up and down the stairs everyday.

I didn't like the leather slippers they asked us to use as they didn't fit either of our feet well and slipped out often. It felt like a hazard to wear them.

I did appreciate that they had a lot of bathroom amenities for us, changed the towels and clothing for us often, refilled our waters, etc. There was free hot and cold water, as well as a mini fridge where they charged (IMO) reasonable prices for the drinks. For example, a coke was 200 yen when I was there two weeks ago. The staff members were nice but none of them spoke English. To add onto their traditional, albeit outdated vibes, they do everything by paper and DO NOT take card to pay. This was an annoying fact to find out as we were checking out, thank god I was able to withdraw what we needed.

The food was an overall miss for the two of us, and I'm someone who loves traditional Asian foods and can handle a lot of fish elements. Our first dinner was an 8/10 for me, a 5/10 for my boyfriend. I think we would have appreciated more carbs, more flavoring (salt), and less fish in general. Our second dinner was an absolute nope for both of us, most things were off in texture, came cold, or just generally not tasty. They do give you a lot of food during dinner, so if you do like most of it, you certainly won't go to bed hungry. Our breakfasts were simple, one course, and always came cold! Both breakfasts were very similar as well, not as much of a change as our two dinners were. I liked that we got to try things out of our comfort zone, but if you don't like fish or have an adventurous appetite, this may not be a good fit for you.

The best part was the location. I was near beautiful mountains, waters, a shrine, etc. Hakune was a short walk down where there were plenty of shops and restaurants to entertain you. We went to Mount Fuji as a day trip as well, the bus and train stops are very close by. Most of the restaurants closed earlier than advertised (7-8pm), some never opened during the two days we were there, but we still had plenty to see and eat...

I was a bit worried after seeing some bad reviews about this place, but my partner and I had a lovely time here. It is an old building, but that's part of the aesthetic and ambience. ||We were looking for a traditional Japanese ryokan experience, an onsen bath inside the room, and the experience of having the food served inside the room, all of which we got here. The suite was very spacious which was a nice change after staying in a much smaller place in Tokyo. The yukatas were super comfy and fun to experience. The bath inside the room was the highlight, as well as the aromatherapy massages that we got which were done inside the room as well. We were able to get the massages side by side at the same time, and they brought a little speaker to play ambient music, which all made for a magical experience in the traditional tatami room with the sound of the onsen running in the background. The futons were really comfortable. The next day we left feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. ||All the staff we encountered were very kind and accommodating, and they do have some English speaking staff. We were able to leave our luggage there while we explored when we arrived early and the next morning after we checked out before we had to catch our train. ||The cons: ||The onsen bath in our room was SUPER hot. This isn't really a con except for that the weather was exceptionally warm this October and we could only soak for a few minutes at a time before needing to cool off. I would recommend coming when the weather is cooler. ||Despite specifying that I was pescatatian, they still served me beef. I also asked about vegetarian options for the meals and they didn't have any. My partner enjoyed the meals but I struggled with some of the dishes. It was beautifully presented but I wouldn't recommend it if you're not used to traditional Japanese food or a picky eater/not adventurous with meals/have dietary restrictions.||There were several little things that could use attention. None of these were a big deal but if they were able to get them spruced up I think it would go a long way to making the place feel less worn out. Examples include the privacy screen for our bath which had rips in it, little nooks and crannys that were dusty and could use a deep clean, the fact that the main dining table was quite worn, etc. ||This being said, we had a wonderful time experiencing this ryokan and big kudos to the staff for great service and being so welcoming. The place really does have a special nostolgic...

I was a bit worried after seeing some bad reviews about this place, but my partner and I had a lovely time here. It is an old building, but that's part of the aesthetic and ambience. ||We were looking for a traditional Japanese ryokan experience, an onsen bath inside the room, and the experience of having the food served inside the room, all of which we got here. The suite was very spacious which was a nice change after staying in a much smaller place in Tokyo. The yukatas were super comfy and fun to experience. The bath inside the room was the highlight, as well as the aromatherapy massages that we got which were done inside the room as well. We were able to get the massages side by side at the same time, and they brought a little speaker to play ambient music, which all made for a magical experience in the traditional tatami room with the sound of the onsen running in the background. The futons were really comfortable. The next day we left feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. ||All the staff we encountered were very kind and accommodating, and they do have some English speaking staff. We were able to leave our luggage there while we explored when we arrived early and the next morning after we checked out before we had to catch our train. ||The cons: ||The onsen bath in our room was SUPER hot. This isn't really a con except for that the weather was exceptionally warm this October and we could only soak for a few minutes at a time before needing to cool off. I would recommend coming when the weather is cooler. ||Despite specifying that I was pescatatian, they still served me beef. I also asked about vegetarian options for the meals and they didn't have any. My partner enjoyed the meals but I struggled with some of the dishes. It was beautifully presented but I wouldn't recommend it if you're not used to traditional Japanese food or a picky eater/not adventurous with meals/have dietary restrictions.||There were several little things that could use attention. None of these were a big deal but if they were able to get them spruced up I think it would go a long way to making the place feel less worn out. Examples include the privacy screen for our bath which had rips in it, little nooks and crannys that were dusty and could use a deep clean, the fact that the main dining table was quite worn, etc. ||This being said, we had a wonderful time experiencing this ryokan and big kudos to the staff for great service and being so welcoming. The place really does have a special nostolgic...