Hotel Hakuba Hifumi — Hotel in Hakuba

Some background on this stay, we tried to book this ryokan 2 years in a row and when we finally got a booking, the pandemic hit. So we finally only made it 3 years after the first attempt to book.||||Due to this, sadly the anticipation to stay at this inn was a big let down. Some of the deluxe rooms with outdoor bath were advertised as being renewed and this led to an impression that all deluxe rooms with baths would be of similar standard.||||It was also my fault that I didn’t pay closer attention to the room we were assigned to and therefore when I saw the bath in the room we got, which was a round metallic tub with some questionable surfaces on the bottom I felt really let down, instead of a nice wooden bath that I was expecting.||||The main reason for staying in a ryokan is usually a Japanese style tatami room, Onsen facilities and amazing food. ||The tatami part of our room was small and the main part was western style with a very off-putting cloth covered sofa which I would not like to see what is actually beneath it. The rug was also old and not too clean. Honestly it was quite shocking that this room costs us over ¥50,000 per night for 2 adults and one child. ||Ryokans always charge by the number of people and in return breakfasts and dinners are provided. ||There was only breakfast and dinner was additionally charged which is the first time ever in 20 years of traveling in Japan. ||There was no reason to charge by per person for the room then. Staying 6 nights is the equivalent of an engineer’s monthly salary in Japan and this is simply exorbitant for the standard of the room with only breakfast included.||||One more thing is that the only shower in the room is also outside and there are open gaps in the window so it’s always freezing in the bath area and water in the tub gets cold in 10 mins. Not very relaxing either, this is simply a bad design. ||||Onsen facilities are small with no outdoor space and the smell was overpowering due to lack of ventilation.||||The staff was friendly but service is a bit lacking, we didn’t even get offered any tea at all upon checking in. ||Foreigners may not always be welcomed in Japan but in a international tourist place like Hakuba I really wish that the Japanese would keep their famous hospitality standards or just not accept foreign guests if they do not wish to do so. It should not be different standards for Japanese and foreign guests.||||For future visitors who would like to have a deluxe room with a bath, I would recommend to avoid’Hina’ room unless you want to have a...

Superb little hotel with fantastic staff and great food.||||We stayed 3 nights and would have liked to stay more :)||||Before we had even arrived, we had asked a few questions by email and the staff were exceptionally helpful. So we were pretty confident we would be looked after when we actually landed in hakuba.||||We arrived into Happo bus terminal and were picked up in a private transfer (Although the hotel is approx 3 min walk from the bus terminal!). But it removed the stress and got things off to a great start. We arrived around lunch and wanted to ski that afternoon, so the hotel gave us a ski pass at a great rate and contacted the ski gear rental company to come collect us. ||||The room was perfect. We stayed in a basic room as there were no other rooms available. So meant we didn’t have an in room onsen. But honestly, we didn’t miss it. ||||The onsen you can book for an hour is lovely. It wasn’t ever really booked up. It was really clean and an incredible way to end the day. ||||We had a bit of a mix up and someone else staying at the hotel “accidentally” took our onsen booking. Quite a surprise when we turned up and there were people in there 😂. The hotel staff were great though, they closed one of the other two public onsens for an hour for us. They are normally reserved for just male/female only. This was a great touch and rescued what was going to be a bit of a lost evening given we had come back especially for our onsen booking. ||||Breakfast the following day was awesome. We had the Japanese breakfast which came with lots of little dishes, all of which were delicious. Maybe the best miso soup we’ve had! ||||Worth mentioning that I am a vegetarian, and they accommodated this with zero fuss! Switched up a few dishes for veggie ones. Which was really appreciated. I was all set to just eat cereal for 3 days!||||We also ate dinner at the hotel which was fabulous. Lots of little dishes all of which looked and tasted great. Again, I had a whole different vegetarian menu, with some really unusual, innovative dishes that were delicious. Didn’t think I’d have one of the nicest quiches I’ve ever had in a Japanese ski resort! Price was reasonable as well for what was a really nice dinner. ||||All in all, highly recommend. Thanks to...

Hakuba Hifumi is an amazing experience beyond the hotel. Modernized for the 1998 games, the ryokan has been family owned/run since 1912, and it shows at every turn. Tomo San and his team do everything possible to make you feel welcome and comfortable. We are already looking forward to our return.

Long before we arrived, Hifumi patiently replied to emails about luggage delivery, the area, and Japan at large.

Check-in / reception was friendly and unhurried, and included a tour of the hotel on the way to our room. We enjoyed the Kaiseki meal in the dining room on our first night, which was a delicious introduction to the hotel and team.

We took a traditional Japanese room (futons on tatami) without our own onsen, but were able to book the private baths without any issue. Frankly, I was only ever alone in the public baths too. We used these far more than our own bathroom.

Daily breakfast is thoughtfully served and filling for your day on the hill.

Located on a quiet side street, we were able to walk to/from the Happo-One lifts daily, from the bus station (if roads are clear), and around the area as far as the train station (without luggage). If you’ve got gear or it’s snowy, the staff will happily...