Fuji Grand Villa - Toki — Local services in Fujiyoshida

CONSTRUCTION & MIXED FEELINGS AT FUJI GRANVILLE TOKI

We booked the ‘Rooftop Villa’ (as opposed to the ‘Balcony Villa’) via fujigran.com and stayed at R-35 which is at the front of the estate and probably had the best unobstructed views.

THE GOOD:

The rooftop terrace is a gem and the prime reason you’d probably book here rather than somewhere else. The area is large, comfy furniture, excellent views of Fuji, and the LED lights strung around the rooftop wall looks just stunning in the evening.

It’s good value taking into the consideration the Fuji views and modern accommodation.

THE NOT SO GOOD:

The large vacant area next to our villa was being cleared for construction (see pic). It was noisy, so beware, because I suspect that construction will be occurring there for the next couple of years.

While the villa is modern, it does have flaws in terms of catering as tourist accommodation, due to it’s design as two separate accommodation areas duplicated (even had two doorbell cameras for each floor) on the ground and first level, sharing the rooftop (I suspect that the estate was developed to sell or rent each villa to two different parties, but there was no demand, and it’s ended up as tourist rental accommodation). But what does this mean for you as a tourist? We found it had very little useable space because each floor has a small footprint and overall it’s been wasted with the duplication of two kitchens. The stairwell is cramped. I could put one suitcase standing up in a cupboard, but there is no where to put all of travel stuff, so I basically left the suitcase open on the floor next to the dining table downstairs, and in the ‘living area’ upstairs. In the latter case, the area is just vacant except for some ikea single seats. Not a couch, or a TV (which is downstairs next to the dining table).

The carparks are located in corner sections between the villas and parking is tricky and will require multiple forward and reversing to get in to.

The oven exhaust fan is set down way to low and I hit my head on it several times (see pic).

There is no washing machine even though there is a space and taps for it in the bathroom.

I couldn’t plug in anything on the rooftop like a mobile phone charger because the two outlets where being used for LED lights and a security camera looking out onto the estate.

I booked the breakfast (which was great) and dinner package for the duration of our stay, and on the last day, paid extra and upgraded the meal. The dinner is tasty, but I found it the same-same. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Even when I go to the website now, I can’t find a description of what the meals are going to be. Anyways, I asked it for the upgrade to be cancelled. I got no meal on the last day and when we checked out and noticed the charge, an dwas told that it was prepaid and not refundable. This is just plain stealing from me. If you won’t refund me, then give me what I paid for. My recommendation is to just visit the Watahan Super Centre (i.e. supermarket and much more all in one store) close by and use the double kitchens available. Or order delivery from restaurants so you have variety without being locked in to an initial...

We booked the ‘Rooftop Villa’ (as opposed to the ‘Balcony Villa’) via fujigran.com and stayed at R-35 which is at the front of the estate and probably had the best unobstructed views.||THE GOOD:||The rooftop terrace is a gem and the prime reason you’d probably book here rather than somewhere else. The area is large, comfy furniture, excellent views of Fuji, and the LED lights strung around the rooftop wall looks just stunning in the evening.||It’s good value taking into the consideration the Fuji views and modern accommodation.||THE NOT SO GOOD:||The large vacant area next to our villa was being cleared for construction (see pic). It was noisy, so beware, because I suspect that construction will be occurring there for the next couple of years.||While the villa is modern, it does have flaws in terms of catering as tourist accommodation, due to it’s design as two separate accommodation areas duplicated (even had two doorbell cameras for each floor) on the ground and first level, sharing the rooftop (I suspect that the estate was developed to sell or rent each villa to two different parties, but there was no demand, and it’s ended up as tourist rental accommodation). But what does this mean for you as a tourist? We found it had very little useable space because each floor has a small footprint and overall it’s been wasted with the duplication of two kitchens. The stairwell is cramped. I could put one suitcase standing up in a cupboard, but there is no where to put all of travel stuff, so I basically left the suitcase open on the floor next to the dining table downstairs, and in the ‘living area’ upstairs. In the latter case, the area is just vacant except for some Ikea type single seats. Not a couch, or a TV (which is downstairs next to the dining table). ||The carparks are located in corner sections between the villas and parking is tricky and will require multiple forward and reversing to get in to.||The oven exhaust fan is set down way to low and I hit my head on it several times (see pic).||There is no washing machine even though there is a space and taps for it in the bathroom.||I couldn’t plug in anything on the rooftop like a mobile phone charger because the two outlets where being used for LED lights and a security camera looking out onto the estate.||I booked the breakfast (which was great) and dinner package for the duration of our stay, and on the last day, paid extra and upgraded the meal. The dinner is tasty, but I found it the same-same. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Even when I go to the website now, I can’t find a description of what the meals are going to be. Anyways, I asked it for the upgrade to be cancelled. I got no meal on the last day and when we checked out and noticed the charge, and was told that it was prepaid and not refundable. This is just plain stealing from me. If you won’t refund me, then give me the meal that I paid for! |My recommendation is to just visit the Watahan Super Centre (i.e. supermarket and much more all in one store) close by and use the double kitchens available. Or order delivery from restaurants so you have variety without being locked in to an initial...

When we lived in Japan, we frequently visited Fuji Five Lakes area at weekends and holidays, staying in cabins rented to foreign residents. We particularly enjoyed Lake Kawaguchi so were determined to include this in our re-visit, travelling by train from Shinjuku in Tokyo via Otsuki (about an hour). Fuji Gran Villa is an impressive complex of self-contained houses/villas and they are in the process of adding 70 more units. Ours consisted of a downstairs, fully equipped apartment, kitchen, sitting area/table and bedroom and bathroom, an almost identical space on second floor and access to a third floor spacious terrace with wonderful 360 degree views.|Had we known how much the area has changed we would have most likely avoided the extreme crowds at Kawaguchi-ko Station and opted for Fuji-san Station, much closer to Fuji Gran Villa. As it happened, we were able to avoid the 30 person queue for taxis as the helpful lady in the tourist office called the hotel who sent the handy shuttle. This operated regularly to and from Kawaguchi-ko Station and we are grateful to the gentleman who helped us throughout whose name we think was Mr. Toku. He had lived in USA and Singapore as a senior business manager and was filling out his retirement tears in assisting the resort.|Once we had the lie of the land we were able to re-orient ourselves to the attractions of the area and took the tourist bus to explore the other side of the lake and the township of Oishi where we'd often stayed in the past. We also made an excursion to the larger town of Fujiyoshida and enjoyed the serene shrine of Fuji Sengen (The so-called Fire Shrine of Mt Fuji from where original ascents of the mountain traditionally started.) By chance we passed by the Tourist Information Office and were greeted in a most welcoming fashion by the young lady there.|As the complex is somewhat off the beaten track, it would be a good idea if they provided a more comprehensive breakfast facility. The nearest convenience store is about 10 minutes walk away but also close to a couple of restaurants. We had a wonderful yakitori in one and a Chinese meal delivered by robotic cart at another. Great fun. We had intended to dine at the nearby Hotel Mystay but they claimed to be fully booked and were quite rude (and also quite expensive) so we were glad we didn't. I would certainly recommend this facility to anyone spending a few days or more in this area. Civilised, spacious, comfortable and good value. First class. Perfect for families. Our reward after 3 days of rain and all-encompassing cloud was to awake on Day 4 to brilliantly clear skies and sunshine and absolutely stunning views of the ever-majestic Mt Fuji, views which followed us down the valley as we left by train.|Well worth booking a hire car in advance. Queue at local Toyota facility had upwards of 20 people...