Shimabara Onsen Hotel Nanpuro — Hotel in Shimabara

As someone who has previously lived in Japan for several years, and now constantly returns for quick pleasure trips, I really enjoy indulging my ‘onsen addiction’. The end results are that I’ve definitely stayed in more onsen hotels in Japan than every Japanese person that I know, by far. With such an elaborate onsen background, on top of being the quintessential jaded New Yorker, (and you know we don’t impress very easily), I was unsure how things would go at this hotel. BUT, I can honestly say that I had an absolute blast at Nanpurou! It’s a fabulous place, and we really had a lot of fun during our few days there. ||||Onsen hotels can be quite large, but Nampurou is huge! You actually have to take time to explore the hotel, as there are so many places and things throughout the property to see. There is one important caveat, however, that goes along with its size. Make no mistake that this is a real family orientated place. There are tons of things throughout the property geared towards children. There are kids water areas, numerous play areas, and even a petting zoo which houses the resident goat along with his rabbit pals, who roam the grounds freely. It’s also a magnet for tour groups. We saw one large senior citizens group arrive, and between the family and kids that were already milling around, and the bus loads of seniors shuffling about, the large lobby was just a madhouse. So…can a young couple without kids (such as my wife and I) enjoy this place? Can you have a romantic getaway here? Can you have peace and quiet without screaming kids in the background? YES, YES, and YES! If you are traveling with your kids, however, I can almost guarantee they will enjoy themselves. You, as a family, will enjoy a memorable time at this onsen hotel. If you’re a Western family and you’d like for your kid to play and interact with some Japanese kids, then this definitely is an excellent opportunity. But…but, if you want a more relaxed, intimate stay you can also have that. How? Aside from the main hotel there is a completely separate area called Grand Ocean’s. It has its own separate check-in area, own elevator, and is comprised of only a few rooms in a completely isolated environment. Let me say from the onset, that the rooms at the Grand Ocean’s are ultra modern, sleek, and luxurious. Minus the onsen, it’s like a NYC studio apartment, it’s that cool. In our room we had our own outdoor onsen, which was just spectacular. Your balcony is secluded enough, whereas you can enjoy everything in your ‘natural state’ without being seen (trust me on this one, as most of my time out there was in my ‘natural state’) . I really loved the Grand Ocean’s, as it was like being in a completely different world away from the crowds at the regular hotel. While the hotel does have numerous pools and onsens scattered throughout, we did not use those other facilities, as we had our own private one. From what I saw however, they seemed to be quite nice. ||||The staff is quite nice and accommodating. Even though I spoke only my bad Japanese while there, some of the staff appeared to have modest English skills. I do not think you will have any problems if you do not speak Japanese. I saw one other Westerner during our stay there. In addition to being quite large, the main lobby features free coffee, tea, and even ice cream during selected parts of the day, which was quite nice. They also stage different cultural shows in the evenings, which is also a plus. ||||One comes to an onsen hotel to enjoy in the reputed benefits of a mineral bath, but one also comes for the food. I can say that the food was fantastic. As can be expected, it’s impossible to get into specifics about the food. There are just too many fantastic dishes to recall. I can only say that wifey and I are hardcore foodies, and we were both really happy and impressed with everything we ate during our stay. If you’re new to Japan, then you really have to try as many dishes as you can. It’s one of the best parts of traveling to distant lands, trying the local food. You may not like everything you try, but it’s a lot of fun giving it a go. You’ve traveled way too far to be hanging out at MacDonald’s or TGIF, right?!||||In closing, I can really recommend this place. It’s quite rare in Japan that a place can satisfy two completely different crowds. If I had kids I would definitely come here during my visit to Japan, AND, it’s a fantastic place to also have a romantic getaway. If you’re in the Nagasaki area, then this is a really nice get away, but even coming from Hanshu, it’s well worth it. We genuinely enjoyed our time there. When we wanted to be around people we’d walk about the grounds a bit, and when we wanted our quiet time together in a beautiful, modern and upscale environment, we headed back to our area. There’s nothing else I can really say, but just go, if you have the chance.||||Hope this...

As someone who has previously lived in Japan for several years, and now constantly returns for quick pleasure trips, I really enjoy indulging my ‘onsen addiction’. The end results are that I’ve definitely stayed in more onsen hotels in Japan than every Japanese person that I know, by far. With such an elaborate onsen background, on top of being the quintessential jaded New Yorker, (and you know we don’t impress very easily), I was unsure how things would go at this hotel. BUT, I can honestly say that I had an absolute blast at Nanpurou! It’s a fabulous place, and we really had a lot of fun during our few days there. ||||Onsen hotels can be quite large, but Nampurou is huge! You actually have to take time to explore the hotel, as there are so many places and things throughout the property to see. There is one important caveat, however, that goes along with its size. Make no mistake that this is a real family orientated place. There are tons of things throughout the property geared towards children. There are kids water areas, numerous play areas, and even a petting zoo which houses the resident goat along with his rabbit pals, who roam the grounds freely. It’s also a magnet for tour groups. We saw one large senior citizens group arrive, and between the family and kids that were already milling around, and the bus loads of seniors shuffling about, the large lobby was just a madhouse. So…can a young couple without kids (such as my wife and I) enjoy this place? Can you have a romantic getaway here? Can you have peace and quiet without screaming kids in the background? YES, YES, and YES! If you are traveling with your kids, however, I can almost guarantee they will enjoy themselves. You, as a family, will enjoy a memorable time at this onsen hotel. If you’re a Western family and you’d like for your kid to play and interact with some Japanese kids, then this definitely is an excellent opportunity. But…but, if you want a more relaxed, intimate stay you can also have that. How? Aside from the main hotel there is a completely separate area called Grand Ocean’s. It has its own separate check-in area, own elevator, and is comprised of only a few rooms in a completely isolated environment. Let me say from the onset, that the rooms at the Grand Ocean’s are ultra modern, sleek, and luxurious. Minus the onsen, it’s like a NYC studio apartment, it’s that cool. In our room we had our own outdoor onsen, which was just spectacular. Your balcony is secluded enough, whereas you can enjoy everything in your ‘natural state’ without being seen (trust me on this one, as most of my time out there was in my ‘natural state’) . I really loved the Grand Ocean’s, as it was like being in a completely different world away from the crowds at the regular hotel. While the hotel does have numerous pools and onsens scattered throughout, we did not use those other facilities, as we had our own private one. From what I saw however, they seemed to be quite nice. ||||The staff is quite nice and accommodating. Even though I spoke only my bad Japanese while there, some of the staff appeared to have modest English skills. I do not think you will have any problems if you do not speak Japanese. I saw one other Westerner during our stay there. In addition to being quite large, the main lobby features free coffee, tea, and even ice cream during selected parts of the day, which was quite nice. They also stage different cultural shows in the evenings, which is also a plus. ||||One comes to an onsen hotel to enjoy in the reputed benefits of a mineral bath, but one also comes for the food. I can say that the food was fantastic. As can be expected, it’s impossible to get into specifics about the food. There are just too many fantastic dishes to recall. I can only say that wifey and I are hardcore foodies, and we were both really happy and impressed with everything we ate during our stay. If you’re new to Japan, then you really have to try as many dishes as you can. It’s one of the best parts of traveling to distant lands, trying the local food. You may not like everything you try, but it’s a lot of fun giving it a go. You’ve traveled way too far to be hanging out at MacDonald’s or TGIF, right?!||||In closing, I can really recommend this place. It’s quite rare in Japan that a place can satisfy two completely different crowds. If I had kids I would definitely come here during my visit to Japan, AND, it’s a fantastic place to also have a romantic getaway. If you’re in the Nagasaki area, then this is a really nice get away, but even coming from Hanshu, it’s well worth it. We genuinely enjoyed our time there. When we wanted to be around people we’d walk about the grounds a bit, and when we wanted our quiet time together in a beautiful, modern and upscale environment, we headed back to our area. There’s nothing else I can really say, but just go, if you have the chance.||||Hope this...

One night stay as the last-minute booking, we won’t stop at Shimabara if we make the trip again. Shimabara is a very small town. We walked all the way from the ferry terminal (about 1.7 Km) to the Hotel Nampuro because there was no bus or taxi waiting. Street was very quiet at 5PM. The hotel didn’t really look like pictures shown online. It’s a very old and tired property. Lobby is at the main building and two separate buildings with most hotel rooms. Quite strong cigarette smell. Our room was at the end of one separate building. No view. Dark and noisy. Because it’s Japanese mixed with Western style, not much sitting space left (the room has two beds squeezed together then the rest is tatami with a couple of bean strange shaped bags.) We couldn’t book a table for dinner not sure it was full or just can’t be bothered with foreigners. Breakfast was OK. We didn’t use the onsen but the hot spring tax still been charged. Didn’t see any ocean view. Service wasn’t as friendly or efficient as other Japanese hotels we stayed. Overall, the hotel feels is only for Japanese family holidays. Not good value for our...