insidey （宿）"guest house" — Hotel in Shimoda

For the price - 5 stars. Overall more like 4-4.5 stars. Great location near the beach (we managed to surf two days without a car, with just a slight struggle), well equipped kitchen, good air conditioning, and great memories.

The free surfboard rental and e-bikes were what really made this place worth it, which I think lots of people aren't taking advantage of. They rent them out to others not in the guesthouse for 3000 yen (surfboard) + 2000 yen (wetsuit) so having. We managed to take the bikes to the town as well, but it is fairly hilly or busy on the highway.

There are a few things that are a little strange for this place that could be improved upon though.

There is only 1 indoor shower, and it seems to run out of hot water quickly. For the number of rooms this is definitely not enough. There is a tap outside but obviously you can't get fully clean with your bathing suit on.

The bedsheets they provided were essentially really large towels. We were very confused at first and they weren't particularly cozy, so we ended up turning the AC on very high and sleeping with the blankets from the closet instead. There also isn't a lot of soundproofing so you could hear other guests fairly easily...

We enjoyed our time here. The free bikes and surf gear essentially make the stay worth the money alone if you plan to do those things. There were only 4 bikes that were often in use, but there was a surplus of surf gear - it would never be a problem borrowing any. The kitchen was also great and allowed us to not eat out the whole time we were in Shimoda.

The only cons were that there is only a single shower for 7 rooms (many of which have 3 beds in each - unless some rooms have a private bathroom I don’t know about) and on occasion there was no hot water left, the bedsheet was a large towel which was pretty uncomfortable, and the soundproofing is weak and you hear everything...

We had a great stay here. Beautiful home, very spacious and comfortable, and sparkling clean! Back yard BBQ area is very nice too. 10min walking distance to the Tatado beach, great for surfing. 5min walk to near by bus stop which will take you to the Izukyu Shimoda train station. The owner and staff here is very friendly, easy going, and professional.

Also highly recommend the surf lessons provided by the owner who used to be a pro surfer. He will take professional photos of you surfing which is very cool and unique! They also have boards and suits available...