Hidatei Hanaougi — Local services in Takayama

A beautiful ryokan located about 20-30 mins walk (5-10 min taxi ride but see note below) from the centre of Takayama, where most restaurants are located. The ryokans rooms are traditional in style, comfortable and spacious but with modern amenities. Some like ours had a private garden and onsen. There is also a separate public onsen for guests of the hotel only - one for men and one for women - these were wonderful to use and very relaxing. The hotel has a lovely shop offering traditional Japanese sweets, food and clothing. Staff are very friendly, welcoming and friendly. English is spoken by some but not all. When you are arrive you are assigned a host who checks you in and also is your main point of contact for breakfast and dinner. Our host was a trainee, Honoka, who did an excellent job, however, it was difficult communicating with her at times due to the language barrier. Our check in was very slow - taking over 40 minutes, which was rather frustrating. Meals are served in private dining rooms and so there is very little interaction with other guests. There are set times for the means and you agree these a day or so ahead. As vegetarians the meal options were very limited and if you stay two or more nights it gets very repetitive. Food was generally good. The western breakfast is even more limited in choice and you have to cook your own eggs, nice first time but really when on holiday you wanted it done for you. Whilst the hotel was very flexible trying to accommodate our needs there needs to be better accommodation and choice for vegetarians, particularly as it is a reasonable distance from the centre of town. Whilst there is a shuttle service there are very few taxis in town, meaning you are restricted unless you stay in a hotel in the...

My wife and I stayed here for 2 nights on our 2 week tour of Japan following 3 nights in bustling Tokyo |The difference was night and day from being picked up at the train station on arrival shoes discarded at the entrance door and a complimentary welcome drink in the lounge/reception area|Yuki was our hostess and attendant during our stay and showed us to our traditional Japanese style room with a futon on the floor for sleeping|We dressed for dinner both nights in Kimonos supplied by the Hotel and were served by Yuki in our own private dining room where we also had breakfast. I counted 19 dishes on our first night and around 12 on the 2nd all Japanese food mostly raw and others you cooked on hot plates- my wife loved it all but as I am a bit of a fussy eater had to pass on the raw fish … the whole experience however was amazing |On both days we had our first experience of an Onsen and also a foot spa with the Onsen a must when staying in the Hotel|I would have added pictures but they are basically the same as everyone else has attached |We had a private guided tour for our full day in Takayama and saw the old town again using the courtesy bus and visited a UNESCO World Heritage Site by bus 50 minutes up in the hills|Sadly our stay ended and Yuki who was excellent during our visit and several staff waved us off on the bus to the train station for onward journey to Kyoto|A must stay when...

It’s a beautiful hotel, but definitely some disappointment with pointing out.

We were looking for a luxurious hotel with views in the room, and after searching for a long time, landed here.

First to point out, the hotel had beautiful landscapes, but it’s not natural. It’s all constructed. In a way the hotel isn’t built on any natural scenery so views from the room is just ok

The hotel located quite far from the old town in the middle of nowhere. There wasn’t anything to do or see around, no shops, no cafes, no restaurants and not even convenience stores. It is not in walking distance from the old town, so in a way you would be stranded.

Hotel offers shuttles to the old town and stations but it’s very infrequent (every 30mins) and only in certain part of the day. For example, there’s no shuttles from the hotel to the old down after 11:00

Service was top notch. Every room has a designated servant, and food is premium. Foot bath and hot spring we’re comfortable but facilities were relatively basic. Indoor and outdoor bath with a gift shop.

Overall it’s a good experience but think it’s definitely only a 4 star for its...