Tenzen Springs & Cabins — Hotel in Hood River

I booked our stay at Tenzen Springs after throughly reading as many reviews as possible. I always like to know what I can expect and prepare myself for the cons. Prior to booking I knew there were 3 “issues”. The first one being the nearby train tracks. Second, the sulfur smell from the tub. Last being the comfortability of the beds. My review is based on cabin 4, which is the ADA cabin and is a slightly larger layout. |Upon arrival, the instructions were extremely simple. The cabin was immaculate and we were both pleasantly surprised by all of the amenities and smart design choices that made a seemingly small space feel larger. We had opted to eat most meals at the cabin and packed a cooler with our refrigerated items. The kitchen was adequately stocked for 2 people. Absolutely no issues there. Tenzen Springs provides assorted Starbucks coffee K-cups, teas and sweeteners. The Keurig coffee maker is simple to use. They even provided a small container of milk, which I hadn’t thought to bring and was extremely thankful for it.|The instructional videos that Tenzen Springs provides made it very simple to figure out how to work the air conditioner, steam shower, tub, stovetop, etc. |Okay, first con is the noise from the train. I was prepared for it and you should be, too. I knew that it would be barreling past us in the middle of the night and I am an extremely light sleeper. The first night, I used white noise on my iPad. That did not drown it out enough so on our second night I used the ear plugs. That did a better job but I still heard the train. It seems like it is every 3 hours or so. Did I let it ruin my time? Nope. |The second con is the sulfur smell. After reading one review, I was seriously prepared for the worst. So I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it’s really not that bad and you only smell it when you’re in the tub area.|The third con is the bed. Being a mattress snob, I can see why folks complain. The mattress is not the best, but it is far from the worst. And we did not book the cabin based on how comfortable the bed is. The bedding, however, is perfect and quite cozy. We slept fine both nights and woke up with the intent of soaking in the tub as soon as possible. |I must say, the pros outweigh the cons at Tenzen Springs. We soaked our cares away and felt like we were completely secluded. We walked the grounds at sunset and saw a breathtaking beauty that we don’t get day to day. It was awe inspiring and made us extremely thankful for the experience, even if it was just for the weekend. Tenzen Springs has put obvious thought into the perfect placement of the cabins to make you feel secluded as well as mowing walking paths out to benches overlooking the gorge and hammocks placed perfectly in the shade. We used our time to reflect and reset and came out of it completely recharged. We cannot wait to go back. Thank you Tenzen Springs for an...

I booked our stay at Tenzen Springs after throughly reading as many reviews as possible. I always like to know what I can expect and prepare myself for the cons. Prior to booking I knew there were 3 “issues”. The first one being the nearby train tracks. Second, the sulfur smell from the tub. Last being the comfortability of the beds. My review is based on cabin 4, which is the ADA cabin and is a slightly larger layout. Upon arrival, the instructions were extremely simple. The cabin was immaculate and we were both pleasantly surprised by all of the amenities and smart design choices that made a seemingly small space feel larger. We had opted to eat most meals at the cabin and packed a cooler with our refrigerated items. The kitchen was adequately stocked for 2 people. Absolutely no issues there. Tenzen Springs provides assorted Starbucks coffee K-cups, teas and sweeteners. The Keurig coffee maker is simple to use. They even provided a small container of milk, which I hadn’t thought to bring and was extremely thankful for it. The instructional videos that Tenzen Springs provides made it very simple to figure out how to work the air conditioner, steam shower, tub, stovetop, etc. Okay, first con is the noise from the train. I was prepared for it and you should be, too. I knew that it would be barreling past us in the middle of the night and I am an extremely light sleeper. The first night, I used white noise on my iPad. That did not drown it out enough so on our second night I used the ear plugs. That did a better job but I still heard the train. It seems like it is every 3 hours or so. Did I let it ruin my time? Nope. The second con is the sulfur smell. After reading one review, I was seriously prepared for the worst. So I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it’s really not that bad and you only smell it when you’re in the tub area. The third con is the bed. Being a mattress snob, I can see why folks complain. The mattress is not the best, but it is far from the worst. And we did not book the cabin based on how comfortable the bed is. The bedding, however, is perfect and quite cozy. We slept fine both nights and woke up with the intent of soaking in the tub as soon as possible. I must say, the pros outweigh the cons at Tenzen Springs. We soaked our cares away and felt like we were completely secluded. We walked the grounds at sunset and saw a breathtaking beauty that we don’t get day to day. It was awe inspiring and made us extremely thankful for the experience, even if it was just for the weekend. Tenzen Springs has put obvious thought into the perfect placement of the cabins to make you feel secluded as well as mowing walking paths out to benches overlooking the gorge and hammocks placed perfectly in the shade. We used our time to reflect and reset and came out of it completely recharged. We cannot wait to go back. Thank you Tenzen Springs for an...

I love the Columbia Gorge for its majestic qualities. Coming here is a special and spiritual place for my soul. As soon as you leave the metro area on I-84 heading east, you enter into a space of geological wonder. Waterfalls, mosses, woodland forests, it is one of the most beautiful places on the planet.

My parents used to live in Hood River, so I am a regular to this region. When they purchased their farm 20 years ago, it was from an older Japanese family, and the history of the Issei was new to me.

I learned through the farm, how the Japanese infused this region with their culture. Its easy to see how the area reminded them of their homeland in Japan. When you are looking at Mt Hood or Adams, envisioning Fuji.

These farmers rotated crops of asparagus and strawberries between the pear trees. Those crops continued to populate on my parents farm. We had many blessing of how their way of farming was culturally different than the surrounding farms. So much appreciation for them.

This leads me to another special love of mine, which is hot springs and bathing rituals. I seek out stays in our PNW region, and travel to BC as well, to different resorts.

Tenzen is like a full and complete wishlist of everything I could have wanted out of all of the properties I have visited over the years. I can only say that if you have no frame of reference for this, you might not know how much thought and care this place took to get here. Its obvious in amenities, but the actual process.....? I gotta talk to the owners one of these days and hear their story.

Their combination of Scandinavian design, and the traditional Japanese onsen has my whole heart racing for more. I love this. It resonates on a cellular level for me. All I could think of when we stayed is: Can we buy this place? I always want to be here.

The reality is, I am not going to own a property like this. The amount of work that it takes to maintain this space, and keep these cabins and hot springs in this condition - its a lot of work and time and money. I respect this team so much for all of their thoughtful details. I am very happy to pretend like simply the discovery of this place gives me some kind of investment opportunity in owning my moments here. I plan to have many many more.

Thank you for giving us this space and making your dream our reality. I have zero suggestions for improvement. It was 100 percent every single thing I could want. The only thing missing for me was more time.

In fact, I loved the showers so much I designed my bathroom remodel around them using the same fixtures. Absolutely obsessed with your details. I can not replicate your onsen, as there is magic in your waters - returning is mandatory for us.

Looking forward to much future with you in all seasons. Please adopt me? I want to be your...