Fujiya — Hotel in Obanazawa

We stayed at Fujiya in Ginzan for two nights and the following are my comments:||||The okami (Manager) of this ryokan was a US lady from California, but when we arrived the staff stated she was on travel to California, but after talking to many people we have discovered she as left Japan and will not return to Fujiya, not sure if she divorced her husband (Owner of Ryokan). We were greeted by the owner’s sister (Kyoko) which is not a very sweet lady. I heard her speak English to some other customers, but never said anything to us (I am US citizen and my wife is Japanese), not a big problem, but when I tried to connect to the Internet via my laptop, she tried to explain to my wife how to connect, but she did not know the correct information (SSID & Passphrase), she insisted that the information was correct. After several hours, I still could not connect to the internet. I would assume that they could have this on a piece of paper and hand to customers when they check-in. I finally gave up on tried to connect to the Internet, even thought it was important to my work. Another time, when we returned from form a hike and wanted to use the onsen and Kyoko stated they are not available, because they were being cleaned and she would call us when they are available. After waiting one hour for the phone call, I decided I would go down stair and check on the status, and the other staff stated the onsens were available. We also had problems making the reservation via the internet, which should not be the case for a place that charges such a high price.||||The architecture of the ryokan was beautiful, really the main reason we decided to stay at this place. We stayed in room 300, which was spacious and gorgeous. The water pressure in the room was very low, my wife wanted to take a bath (Did not want to go to the onsens on the first floor) and it took about 25 minutes to fill the tube. With this architecture there is a very high maintenance to keep the original look, and I noticed several places where things were breaking/wearing.||||The food was good, no problems with the breakfast or dinners. This was the first time in Japan I seen Avocado used in a salad, and there was some other dish that I noticed the western influence, probably from the previous Okami (Jennie).||||We spent two nights at Fujiya, but after seeing the town of Ginzan and taking the hiking trails to the waterfall & the old silver mine, which took a total of about two hours, I would recommend only one night stay.||||The price of Fujiya is very expensive, and for the service we received I would not recommend this place. It is worth a look inside if you are...

Chanced upon this inn while friends were looking for accommodation; our main intention was to catch the wonderful winter views with the ryokan against the frosty backdrop (both day and when the lights lit up at night) - we were not disappointed. Views were spectacular and even more so from Fujiya Inn where the rooms were so beautiful. Since we travelled as 4 we had meals in both the Japanese and Western styled rooms. Both were unique but equally well thought out.

Rooms: beautiful, spacious and thoughtfully designed. Warm during winter and a space with a viewing platform for couples or friends to have meals together while admiring the scenery outside.

Service: Where to start? Great pick up service from the station, accoms staff were attentive to details from remembering your suitcase model, your shoe type (since you'll be wearing the ryokan's footwear for most of your time). Our room attendant (who served us our meals) was discreet, polite, friendly yet informative when it came to scheduling our ride back and helping us understand the components of our meal. Can't begin to rave enough about him (we didn't get his name) but this photo of us with him will have to do!!! We loved his presence.

Accommodation provides snowboots for those who might not have one.

Amenities: Private onsen was spacious and nice for a group of 4; maybe it was just us but the temperature was pretty hot (we're probably just not used to it because we don't have it back at home)

Food: Had both dinner and breakfast at Fujiya and well worth it!!! Food was so well thought out and just brought out the immense pride of Yamagata's best offerings - you can sense the pride as the staff describe the food and it's the most wonderful thing. Words don't do the food and experience enough justice but we were so spoilt by the selection from the freshness of the sashimi to the lightness of the soybean based meal. Our friend who couldn't take raw fish had cooked fish instead and it was also executed well.

Overall, just an amazing experience and while priced higher than other Ryokans around the area, if you're looking for an experience to remember and want an unbeatable introduction to Ginzan's onsens... look no further.

Would come here in a heartbeat, heck a...

Fujiya is a place almost unique in Japan. I read about his ryokan in an architecture journal and from this moment it was my wish to spend a night there someday. Due to the remoteness of the Place and the price it took quite a while but finally I was able to go there. Ginzan Onsen itself is a small village in a steep valley, consisting almost entirely of ryokans and Onsen with a small river flowing through. ||There are also some nice hiking trails around and along the river. ||The Ryokan itself was completely refurbished by famous architect Kengo Kuma: The old building was demolished in parts, only the wooden main structure was preserved. The entire inner part was rebuilt in a very nice straight, clean and modern style yet with some references to the traditional architecture by using a lot of washi, bamboo, wood and stone. There are very few places where Tradition and modern architecture are so well blended like here.||Oh yes, the service is very good, too. I was picked up by the owner himself together with his two nice kids at Oishida Station and taken the entire way to Ginzan. My stay at the ryokan was made as comfortable as possible and since I was the only guest that day I could choose from all onsen (altogether there are five of them and each with its own character). Dinner was a feast for all senses and I had a wonderful sleep with the soft sound of the river flowing by. The breakfast next morning was wonderful too. But the best part came after that as the owner drove me to my next destination (Yamadera) in his car, which took about two hours! And it was for free! Just awesome!||All in all it was one of the best ryokan experiences I ever had. A+ and recommendation especially for the architecture-interested traveller! The only thing which can be mentioned as drawback are the high prices for the rooms. But still it...