Kawamotoya — Hotel in Nozawaonsen

The style of the hotel intrigues me. It appears to be recently renovated and, to my inexpert eye, seems to be a blend of traditional Japanese Ryokan and standard, Western style hotel. The floors were covered with tatami matting interspersed with high quality wood, and everyone was expected to remove their shoes in the entrance area before entering the lobby. However, my bed was a mattress, not a futon. I liked it.||My room had another pleasing feature that I did not expect. It was a big room which contained two big beds, two big windows, and a lot of floor space, and – here’s the surprising part - a small kitchen with sink, hob, oven, fridge/freezer, and a big range of crockery, utensils, and cooking equipment. It also had a small dining table. As much an apartment as a hotel room. I didn’t use the kitchen facilities much because Nozawa Onsen has a diverse range of great dining opportunities within easy walking distance of the hotel (I recommend you discover Food Village Kongou, or eat burritos at Juntos or Sol Green). ||The hotel staff were great. Relaxed, informal style, but relaxed did not mean unprofessional or lax. They provided me with everything I needed when I needed it, including morning shuttle to the ski lift station, and help filling in the waybills to send my skis and ski boots to Tokyo Airport via the Takuhaibin courier service.||Compared to most of my experience of hotel breakfasts, breakfast here was unusual. Instead of an all-you-can-eat highly varied breakfast buffet, I had to get my breakfast from a small snack bar / coffee shop in the lobby. I could order one item, large or small, from the menu as part of my B&B deal; if I ordered a second item, of whatever size, I had to pay extra for it. A waitress took my order and brought to me. Is this good or bad? I guess it depends on your preference. I like big and varied breakfasts and I don’t mind the breakfast buffet scrum, but if you only eat small breakfasts and like table service, you might actually prefer the Kawamotoya...

One of the nicest hotels I've ever been to. Definitely a must stay if you're visiting Nozawaonsen.

We booked a two bedroom apartment and we're greeted by very welcoming receptionists who gave us recommendations for things to do and eat around the area. Had to take your shoes out at the lobby so the floors were really clean.

We were amazed when entering our room. It was well decorated, modern and stocked with everything you needed. The kitchen was extremely well equipped with modern appliances, a coffee machine, and even a waffle maker and a sandwich press. The rooms were really nice and spacious, and the master bathroom was huge with a nice tub in it. Each bed came with a yukata set, towels, onsen bag, face mask and an eye mask which came in really handy as the blinds were not blackout (which is probably the only thing I didn't like) TVs were large with netflix on it.

The lobby has a large theater room with board games. There's a well equipped gym, washer and dryer and two private onsen baths that guests are able to use. Breakfast was amazing. I tried the eggs benedict as well as the sautéed mushroom and spinach on toast and they were both so tasty. Really great start to our mornings. Two days passed really quickly and we were quite sad about leaving this amazing hotel. Really grateful to all the staff as well as the cafe owner who were really warm and friendly!

We paid around 94000 JPY for two nights and at this price I think it's a no brainer to choose this hotel. Not too expensive with really beautifully decorated rooms and...

On the upside, Our bedroom was large and spacious and the facilities were good ( coffee machine, kettle, microwave, etc). There was a washer and dryer on the lower floor which we could use. The staff were really helpful in getting restaurants booked for us. |There was a shuttle service that took us part way up the hill (steep hill!) so we could walk last little bit before getting on the very long travelator. This then got you on the mountain by the lifts. Total time is about 30mins from hotel to getting your boots on and getting to the lifts. Walking home down hill was a lot easier! ||Downside: |Breakfast service was really slow. One morning we waited 50 minutes. The food was delicious but it took ages to arrive. |The restaurant area ( seats about 20 people) was cold. Everytime the reception doors opened, a freezing cold draught blew three the dining area. |Room 102 - There are no curtains on the bedroom windows, only paper blinds, and as we had a double aspect room, the light really shone through and woke us up early. |The wardrobe was up on a platform ( about 2 feet off the floor) and when you climbed up on the platform, you had to crouch down so you didn’t bump your head. |The TV was a right angle to the bed so not comfortable viewing position. I think if we had been there for more than a few nights, we would have asked to change rooms but overall, it was good for a few nights. |Great little onsen (which was a lovely welcome treat at the end of...