Shuzenji Onsen Katsuragawa

There were very few reviews for this onsen hotel when I searched before my stay, but I can responsibly say it was a great experience. There is Chinese-speaking staff, which makes communication very easy. We stayed in a Japanese-style room, which was spacious and quite clean. Both meals included at the hotel are buffets with a wide variety of dishes. Although it gets crowded, the management is excellent. Dinner is divided into two time slots (5:30 PM and 7:30 PM), drinks are charged separately, and the service is very good. There are 7 private onsen (family baths), making it ideal for travelers who prefer privacy. A taxi from Shuzenji Station to the hotel costs 1,400 yen, and it's a 30-minute walk. All the attractions in the hot spring town are within walking distance. Free ice cream is available starting in the afternoon, which the kids loved.

It's not far from Shuzenji Station, and a taxi ride is quite inexpensive. The hotel doesn't offer a shuttle service. The private hot spring baths are fantastic—it gets a bit crowded in the evening so you might have to wait in line, but it's very quiet and empty in the morning. Taking a stroll around the town is very pleasant, and the breakfast, dinner, and late-night snacks provided by the hotel were all delicious.

The overall environment is quite good, and the facilities offered are surprisingly great, making it worth experiencing for a night. It's also convenient to get there from Shuzenji Station, either by car (about 8 minutes) or on foot (about 20 minutes). Unfortunately, just as I was about to sleep, a bug (centipede?) crawled onto the bed from who knows where. After reporting it to the front desk, I never heard back (though they did ask if I wanted to change rooms, but I declined since it was getting late). I'm not sure if it's because the hotel is old or if there's a dampness issue that hasn't been properly addressed. Just a heads-up to other travelers to be a bit careful!

I compared many hotels before my trip and spent a long time deliberating. Since I didn't stay at any other hotels, I can't compare, but Guichuan (Hotel) is generally quite good and offers great value for money. The only downside is the lack of a shuttle service to the station. There were a few minor unpleasant incidents during my stay, but they were resolved smoothly. They offer a welcome drink, Yakult and popsicles in the morning, and late-night ramen. Both breakfast and dinner were decent. The hot springs also have free private baths.

This was the worst room of our trip. I specifically booked a 28-square-meter room, but when I opened the door, I was shocked. There was absolutely no space for our two suitcases. I ended up having to put one on the table and move the air purifier to make space for the other by the door, but it still blocked it. It was so frustrating! I know rooms in Japan are small, which is why I specifically checked the size when booking, so they clearly gave me the wrong room. It looked like a business twin room. While the price might have seemed like a good deal, my main priority was getting a spacious room, so I ended up contacting Trip.com customer service. Plus, there was a constant strange noise in the room, and I couldn't tell if it was the sound of water flowing outside or something else.

I booked a Western-style twin room, but upon check-in, I was given a business twin room instead. Not only was it smaller, but the facilities were completely different from the photos, resembling a budget hotel. There were even two long hairs left in the toilet, which felt really unsettling. The bathroom was a modular unit, and it was covered in mold, making it seem like no one had stayed in that room for a while. Looking at the floor plan, it was the smallest room in the entire hotel. Although Ctrip helped us switch rooms, it wasted nearly two and a half hours, disrupting our plan to visit the hot springs before dinner. Even after we switched, the hotel gave us a room directly facing the church, and later I noticed ours was the only room on that entire side that was occupied. The English-speaking male staff at the front desk, from storing our luggage to checking us in and then supervising our packing and room change, exuded an air of contempt towards Chinese people. This gave me the same feeling I had two years ago at La Vista at Mount Daisetsu. Upon checking, I found out both are under the same Dormy group. It's common for hot spring hotels to require guests to remove their shoes, but this is the first time I've encountered one that doesn't even provide slippers, expecting every guest to walk around the entire hotel in just socks. The problem is, the floors weren't clean, and our socks got very dirty. When I went for a bath at 8:30 PM, none of the three pools in the women's public onsen were continuously refilled with fresh water. The two outdoor pools were noticeably not hot enough; even Japanese guests would get in and immediately get out. The seven private baths didn't require reservations but were all quite small. Since there were many Western foreign guests, I decided not to use them, as I found them unhygienic. The buffet was mediocre; neither the quality nor the variety was good. The sashimi was not high-quality. The overall feel of this hotel was a world apart from the Shuhokaku Kogetsu in Lake Kawaguchiko where we stayed a few days prior, and the Nishi-Izu Zekkei ni Ukanabu Onsen Ryokan, Tenyu, where we stayed the next day. I've visited Japan over twenty times and stayed in more than thirty different hot spring hotels, but this is the first time I've encountered such a terrible room and service.