Ajisai Onsen Ryokan - Award Winning Private Open Air Onsen

The property was beautiful, relaxing and peaceful. We thoroughly enjoyed this property and will most certainly return. The staff was incredibly nice and helpful.

We stayed one night but would have stayed longer. Hotel: Overall it is a serene space and lovely experience. The staff are very kind, friendly and accommodating. They ensured our family had delicious food as vegetarians and that we had an opportunity to use the onsen twice during our short stay. The room as well cared for and spacious as were the rest of the facility. A fun touch was the games to borrow, our family ended up playing and old Brazilian version of Monopoly which was a blast. Onsen: The 2 different onsen rooms we utilized were both well maintained, clean, private, and lovely. Each had plenty of space with showers and one had both an indoor and outdoor onsen. 2 of our family are heavily tattooed and it was no problem for us to soak, which was not the case at the other onsen hotel we visited. Customer service: Our youngest left behind a small sentimental souvenir and the hotel worked with us to get to get it mailed internationally. The staff was very communicative leading up to our stay as well. Thank you very much.

Nothing

We stayed here as a family of four and had an absolutely wonderful experience that exceeded all our expectations. We chose this traditional ryokan mainly because of its highly praised onsen facilities and the excellent breakfast and dinner options, and we were not disappointed. Our spacious Japanese-style room with tatami flooring was beautifully maintained and provided an authentic and relaxing atmosphere throughout our stay. One of the highlights was undoubtedly the onsen experience. We had the privilege of booking two private onsen sessions per day, which allowed us to fully enjoy the tranquility and relaxation of a traditional Japanese hot spring in complete privacy. This made our stay truly special and memorable. The service was exceptional from beginning to end. Every member of the staff was incredibly friendly, attentive, and genuinely committed to making our stay as comfortable as possible. Their hospitality perfectly reflects what makes a stay at a traditional ryokan so unique. We also loved wearing the complimentary yukata during our stay, which added to the authentic Japanese experience and made our time at the ryokan even more memorable. We highly recommend including the meals. The breakfast options, both Japanese and Western style, were excellent and definitely worth booking. The highlight, however, was the outstanding Kaiseki dinner, which was beautifully presented and offered a fantastic variety of delicious dishes. It was truly the perfect finishing touch to our stay. Gora is also an excellent base for exploring the Hakone area, with easy access to many attractions, hiking routes, and sightseeing opportunities. Overall, this ryokan delivered everything we had hoped for and more. We left with wonderful memories and would happily return on a future visit to Japan. Highly recommended for anyone looking for an authentic ryokan experience with exceptional hospitality and outstanding food.

We liked everything. What you should consider is taking a taxi from Gora station. We climbed up with our luggage and would not do it again. On the way back we opted for a very reasonable Uber. The way up is a steep 20 minute walk, mainly on the road.

The staff were friendly and the surrounding is peaceful

I don't think the value for money was great. Kaiseki was a disappointing for the amount paid.