Fufu Kyukaruizawa — Hotel in Karuizawa

Coming from Fufu Nikko, we had high expectations and we couldn’t be more wrong. As with the streets and buildings in the area, this hotel has a much smaller footprint than the one at Nikko. Even though the hotel itself is nicely decorated, everything, i.e. the rooms, lounge and restaurant, face towards the same small inner courtyard, it feels pretty much like a zoo as you can see all the guests going into and coming out of their rooms when you are enjoying your drinks or your meal.||||However the real let down is the service. We felt that the staff here were mostly quite young and not really well trained, hence the service was at an extremely unacceptable level.||At arrival, not all of the staff would greet us. At check-in we were asked to sign an agreement about the T&Cs of staying at the hotel, which is the only hotel out of 4 Fufu hotels we stayed at that required it. The check-in staff for us, who had a Chinese surname, was a bit cold and incompetent. We requested a change of breakfast time and the lighting of the fireplace when he showed us the room, which out of 2 tasks he completed a grand total of zero. When we got to the lounge for the free flow drinks, the wines were quite undrinkable. Which is fine with us and we asked for the drinks menu, then the staff told us the drinks were offered for free and pointed us to the counter. We asked for the bar menu at 16:00, which they told us the bar is only open from 17:00 and couldn’t offer us drinks. After some back and forth we got the bar menu later but it was mostly whisky, so naturally we asked for the restaurant drink list. And of course we were told no again at first, then I had to explain we prefer wines/champagne/sake, then they had to check and after some more wait, they relented. Everything here just took a lot of effort, it’s the exact opposite of a luxury experience. We didn’t ask for stuff because we felt it would either get lost in translation or simply not worth the hassle and effort. When we left the hotel and came back the next morning after an excursion outside, the front entrance was unmanned, unlike Fufu Nikko. The reception lady indoor just looked at us and ignored us without any greeting.|Food and staff at the restaurant however were great. We enjoyed the meals and service there was great for both dinner and breakfast. However, since the hotel is smaller, the seats are less private and more closely placed together compared to Fufu Nikko. For beverages, they also only just offered Billecart but no Dom perignon for those who care, and the sake list wasn’t particularly interesting either. To their credit the NZ sauvignon blanc on the list was actually a decently easy drinking one at a very reasonable price.|I think if one must visit the Komuba pond, which is stunning during autumn foliage, then this hotel is in the perfect location. If you can accept the relatively negative aspects of the hotel, then it might be worth considering. But personally I think there are many more better locations and hotels to stay at in Japan.|Room: We stayed in a comfort suite 104, which was quite nicely decorated. But there is a house outside with a direct view into our room, so the rooms on this side don’t offer...

I wouldn’t say it’s a pleasant stay overall. The stay is for celebrating my friend’s birthday which I had left a remark on my reservation. But there is no special arrangement/ celebration during dinner. We are actually fine with just a “Happy birthday” wording on the dessert plate or at least just gave us a candle. I went to the reception and ask the lady politely but she didn’t even say sorry to me that the hotel missed the remark. She even confirmed with me if the day is the exact day of my friend’s birthday😂😂

Besides, the dinner is a bit rush. We have reserved the dinner for 19:30. The waitress collected our plates while we haven’t even finished the course. I understand that we ate quite slow and took a lot photos. I felt a bit pressurized finishing the last few courses and couldn’t enjoy them all.

Lastly, the staff who guided us to the room during check-in had helped us reserved to light the fireplace at room during our dinner. But once we finished our dinner, the fireplace wasn’t lighted and we have to call the reception again to do that for us.

I wouldn’t expect this is the service I would receive given that it claims itself as 5 star luxury resort. I would expect more with this price because a normal Japanese ryokan can do better than them. If you have no expectation, I think you might...

We stayed in the Suite for 2 nights. Expensive but well worth it. The suite was very spacious and had its own natural spring bath. Private Onsen in your own room. Great. Room, furniture n fixtures all new. Sure large comfy beds. This is a modern “ Ryokan” - we like it better. Have stayed in several traditional ones and some are honestly subpar comfort wise.

Service was superb - from front desk, restaurant staff to Teppanyaki chef! As most have mentioned, the food is very good. We had Kaiseki dinner 1 night and Teppanyaki the next. Kaiseki dinner had a French touch, attention to details and excellent taste. The teppanyaki dinner was more French influenced (with Foie gras, cream soup). The Wagyu beef is excellent, especially the sirloin (less so the tenderloin). And unlike most ryokan breakfasts which is fairly standard fare, at FuFu the chef put in a lot of effort to make it different- all well appreciated.

I spent my birthday at FuFu and they presented a desert dish with bday greetings and a printed photo of us. Later I found 2 cute little “bears” folded out of towels and a birthday greeting card in our suite....