石のや 伊豆長岡（TKP Hotels＆Resorts） — Hotel in Izunokuni

BAD REVIEW :) I’ll make it as short and informative for those who consider staying here. I left a room key at the onsen (public bath) and learned about it only the next morning at the check-out. I informed the front-desk manager about it asking him to locate it so it could be returned to the Hotel. And that’s when the circus began. The guy became very angry and muttered through clenched teeth that the staff had cleaned the onsen in the morning and had not find any key otherwise it'd been returned to the front desk and added that we'd lost it somewhere else outside the premises (I guess he used a crystal ball to make such assumption). He was basically accusing us of lying. At that point my husband and I tried to accommodate the hotel so I began unpacking all of our luggage to check if by accident the key ended up inside of one of our suitcases. Of course, it did not. Meanwhile the manager was getting more upset already screaming at us. At first he said that it cost $20,000 US to replace the key, then he changed it to 20,000 yen and was forcing us to pay this amount threatening to call the police if we'd not oblige. We refused to do that. His emotions were all over the place and it was getting clear to us that in his mind we were criminals while he was playing a role of a “policeman” with his only objective to prove that we were lying to him about the key. He indeed informed us he's going to call the police at that time. It all was absolutely surreal, like in a horror movie. We weren't prepared for that, after all it was supposed to be a "relaxing" place:). So I went to the onsen myself. Glad I did since the key was right there, laying on top of an open shelf and we have a witness to that. || After the manager realized the key was found on the premises right where we were saying it had been left, he hid behind the curtain in another room and would not come out. We assumed he got scared of the consequences of his extremely rude and obscene behavior. We finally got him out of his room, although he was still hiding behind a staff-lady's back. The guy began saying some apologies so we took out the phone and switched on the video mode since we wanted to record them. After we did that he stopped apologizing and said that he would not apologize and it was not his fault but of his staff which failed to locate the key. At that point it was very clear to us that talking to him was absolutely useless. We left the Hotel.|||| I am sure that everything was recorded on the video cameras in the reception area and TKP Corporation, as the Hotel’s owner, will have no problems to see the physical evidence to my words. Photo of the manage is enclosed below. || ||PS. I would highly recommend NOT to send your elderly parents to this place unless you want them in the early grave. It was difficult to withstand such hostility even for such strong-minded adults as us. Elderly people would not manage :(( ||||PPS. Unfortunately, we have not been contacted by the Hotel with explanations...

I booked this place per executive order from gf. Got the room with the walk-in hot spring, which is roughly $450 a night at the time.

Basis for review: I am not an onsen expert but I have been to many in Japan in recent years and I am comparing it to my other experiences in Japan.

Transport: website is not updated as you need to call ahead to book the shuttle. We ended up taking a taxi one way. Otherwise, shuttle service is good.

Room and service: the room definitely has the wow factor when you first got in. Service is also on point. Nothing but good things to say here.

Food: unlike other onsen’s at this price range, dining is not in room and you have to walk to a common area. The dinning room is essentially a big room separated into different boxes. No windows and you can’t see but can hear other rooms people like you are sitting next to them. Felt like a hamster. Food quality and variety is extremely mediocre and subpar as compared to other places. If you just flew into Japan and this is your first onsen, you might think the food is amazing. But trust me, it only gets better from here.

Noise: the ceilings and floors are paper thin, literally and figuratively. Had trouble sleeping at night as every time the upstairs walks, it feels like the building is coming down. My upstairs on the last night also had a baby.. I couldn’t wait to get out of there. When mentioned to front desk, I was greeted with a very nice “oh sorry” complemented with a stare.

Location: location is good with a cable car attraction to the top of the mountain with a stunning view of Fuji - see my other review. This is a must visit.

Final thoughts: book if you are on a budget and you want an onsen experience, pick the cheaper rooms at $150 a night. If you want in-room dining and in-room onsen, looks elsewhere because this is an extremely mediocre place for that...

I arrived way too early and the staff was accommodating and let me leave my bags. When I came back, my bags were in my room! That was super nice of them. The staff was super friendly and helped us out with massage reservations and train timetables. I think the massage was probably a local masseuse not employed directly by the hotel. Not sure. But it only cost ¥4000 for 40 minutes. Total bargain and they came to your room! They just massaged us in our beds which was strange but I don't know where else they could've it. ||The room was large enough for three adults. The blankets and so comfortable! I plopped into the bed and was just enveloped. I neglected to book us dinner...which if you want dinner, book in advance. You can't book when you arrive. We went to the 7-11 down the street and grabbed a bunch of ramen to try so no big deal. We were also there on a Wednesday and didn't see any restaurants open. They do offer room service if you prefer that option. They also offered free beer in the afternoon plus free tea, coffee and snacks. The garden is small but nice and there's a foot bath outside too. ||I went to the hot spring when everyone was having dinner so I had it all to myself. Very soothing. It was clean and had inside and outside baths. They switch the baths daily so you can see what one or the other looks like. It was raining when I came and they had umbrellas everywhere. That itself just really impressed me. ||It was not the easiest to get too but it also wasn't overly difficult. We took a bus that dropped us off about 300m to the hotel and walked it from there. The bus driver was a godsend and told us where to get off. We probably made him late. There are taxis, but I only saw two in the twenty or so minutes I stood there. ||Overall, great time. Would definitely order dinner if...