Forest otonashi Ryokufuen — Hotel in Ito

I will start off by saying there is very sweet hospitality here- the front desk staff is extremely kind and helpful. Thank you for all the assistance with our luggage, and for advising us to try out the ongoing Ramen Festa in town! They also provided very tasty sweets in the room when we arrived, which was such a kind gesture. Yukata and haori are provided in rooms. Guests make their own beds- mats, futons, sheets, pillows are kept in room closets. I appreciate their remodeled tatami floors, although other aspects of the inn could also do with remodeling- the bathrooms are a bit outdated, furniture is plush but appears a bit worn, and futons felt too thin (more on this later).

There are lovely traditional baths which I enjoyed immensely- the outdoor rock-paved bath is spacious and kept toasty-hot. They also have a comfortable atmosphere in their homey public relaxation room (plenty of manga, tea and water put out for guests, TV, and massage chair).

Unfortunately, our spacious private rooms were very cigarette-smoky upon arrival, and continued to smell periodically even after hours of airing out and using up a whole can of freshening scent. It might have been spreading from other rooms nearby. We ended up sleeping with the windows open, but the netting is old and invited bugs in, though we still preferred this to outright secondhand smoking with no outlet. (Nonetheless, there was a strong smell of cigarettes even by the next morning!) Wind rattled the shutters all night, which made for a rather haunted feeling. The futons felt quite thin, and I rolled around in discomfort against the hard surface, even after eventually adding another layer of futon underneath. Thankfully, the blankets kept me warm enough once I added 2 layers of those. Additionally, Internet connectivity was very intermittent and kept going out for us throughout our stay, which was very inconvenient for us while planning activities.

The breakfast, which many other reviews also detail, is comprised of delicious mackerel which you take and grill at your own table, which was definitely the star of the show. There's also a buffet of simple, traditional Japanese sides. You can make your own tamagokakegohan, there is miso soup, and several options of pickles or other small vegetable sides.

Although not really close enough to Ito's main station to allow walking with luggage (it would take about 25min), it's a quick 5min from the local bus stops, which bring you around town or to Jogasaki coast, or to Mt. Omuroyama easily enough. It doesn't come very frequently, though, so you might be...

We stayed for three nights in October 2013. Ryokofuen is about a 25 minute stroll from Ito Train Station, or 10 minutes by bus for 140 yen.||||We found the facilities a little dated and worn, but in a way, this added to the appeal, especially as there are hot baths. I particularly enjoyed my hot public bath (men separate from women) as this has a long tradition in Japan. Beware if you're not used to public nudity. You can pay 1,890 yen extra for a separate bath on another level, but I preferred the traditional hot bath - wash/shower beforehand mandatory. The outdoor hot baths (men and women) are screened by plenty of foliage from trees, which provided privacy and added to the atmosphere. The hot baths were included in our room rate. My partner found the women's outside bath too hot for her - and it does take a while to cool down. In a separate room beside the baths you can enjoy a massage chair - foot massage machine as well, for 100 or 200 yen coin-operated. ||||Our room was spacious, with included ofuro and bathroom and separate ensuite toilet with heated seat and bidet function. Futon bedding is rolled out at night on the tatami floor. Our room on the fifth floor took in a bit of a view of Ito Bay. There's a TV and free wireless internet, which was a bit flaky on our floor. Our complaint about the smell from the bathroom (we thought was stale water in the trap) was dealt with quickly. There's not much English spoken at this ryokan. Clean sheets and bath towels are provided each day, and the room can be cleaned each day - we preferred just replacement bath towels and thermos. A large thermos pot with hot water is provided each day - great for making the occasional coffee/tea and for two-minute noodles we had each night for dinner. There are plenty of restaurants in Ito, but my Japanese is not adequate and I'm a vegetarian, so we preferred to eat in.||||Breakfast is a Japanese buffet, with fish you can barbeque on a small grill at the table. Rice, pickles, some vegetables, miso soup, soft drinks, orange juice, green tea and eggs you can microwave comprise breakfast. Like other patrons, we brought extra ingredients purchased at a nearby convenience store, such as instant coffee and cereal. We even saw people cooking bacon and sausages.||||The hotel provides free microbus rides to Ito Train Station; one at 9.30am and another at 10.30am.||||It was a pleasant experience for a ryokan, much different from a very basic one we first experienced in Kyoto many...

日本のモナコと称されるほどに豪勢な熱海、そこから道一本で続く由緒正しき温泉地ながら、もはや公式に鄙びていることを売りにしている伊東。

あの一世を風靡したハトヤですら今は昔、ここ緑風園もそんな鄙びた伊東の鄙びた宿のひとつ。高度成長期からバブル期の一億総中流社会にかけては随分と賑わったことだろう。世界で最も成功した共産主義と揶揄された時代の「平均的な」一般家庭がたまの贅沢に背伸びして利用したであろう空気感が微かに残る。

細い入口を曲がり曲がって敷居を跨ぐとすぐにフロント、ロビーのない狭いエントランス、かつてどの町にも数多く存在しながら今では絶滅危惧種となった個人経営のビジネスホテルのようだ。そんなハンデだらけの前時代的建築物に和傘や照明をところどころ配置して上手く観光気分を演出している。部屋は和室、どこか懐かしい昭和の温泉旅館だ。最上階5階ながら眺望に特筆すべきは皆無、その代わりにベランダ部分は植栽と石灯籠で庭を演出する努力は決して悪くはない。 特に印象的だったのは部屋風呂、掘り炬燵式と言うか、洗い場より低い位置に浴槽があるのは珍しい。戯れに入ってみると、少しカビ臭い。興味本位の対象にこそなれど、実際にお湯を張る客は極稀なのだろう。

大浴場は深夜に利用した。脱衣所の微妙に薄暗い昼光色がニスの剥がれた木材を照らし、より一層鄙びた雰囲気を演出する。どこか山奥の秘湯にでも迷い込んだような気分だ。 風呂も屋内部分は床と壁の下方部分に浴槽は大谷石ながら壁の花柄のようなタイルはやはり昭和、そして何よりここでも昼白色の照明がやはり昭和である。露天部分は電球色の照明が点在しながらも圧倒的に暗い。そこに昼白色の蛍光灯が目に付くのは「鄙びた伊東」の雰囲気をより一層強く印象付ける。夜も遅くなると強くなる海風、暗い露天風呂では畏怖すべき何かがある。

翌朝起きて再び風呂に向かうと、夜半の鬱蒼としたあの暗さは欠片もない。露天を覆う枝葉の天井をすり抜ける木洩れ日、葉緑体のフィルターを透かして照らす光が実に心地良い。湯船に浸かりながら辺りを見渡すと、想定外の大木が配置されていたことがわかる。

訪れたのはコロナ明けの2023年も4月の末、歴史を感じる大木を始め、庭園の如く植栽に囲まれた露天風呂には枯れた落ち葉や枝が多く沈んでいる。湯船に浸かって脱色したのかも知らぬけれど、季節からしても昨日今日落ちた葉ばかりではないのだろう。しかし時代を考えれば人手不足であろうことも十二分には理解できる。。幸いにも温泉だけは本当に良いお湯だ。入浴後もしばらくは体が熱い。

朝食はブュッフェ…そう、間違ってはいない。鯵の干物を自分で焼く、その通りだ。しかし鯵の干物がある、それ以外は東横インにも劣るレベル、ルートインより断然劣る。近所の店が作った鯵の干物を自分で焼く、それだけで以て価値を担保していると断言して良い。しかしそれでも、例えば職人などが出張に際して利用するのであれば、僅かながらでも地の物を頂けるこの朝食は非常に有り難いことだろう。

所々目に付く壁紙や土壁の損傷、木材のコーティング劣化、令和の時代には素人でもYouTubeを参考にいくらでも補修できる。露天風呂の照明だって金をかけずにいくらでも改善できるはずだ。しかしながら深刻な人手不足の時代に於いてやはり我々は「鄙びた伊東」の風情として愉しむのが...