Wanosato

Wanosato is located next to a picturesque rock strewn river surrounded by old pine trees. The setting is quiet and relaxing with just the sound of flowing water. If you’re planning to explore Takayama you will need transportation for the short drive there. The well established ryokan has several baths available and they are all enjoyable. Our room was spacious and clean with good AC and a small refrigerator. There is a charge for non alcoholic drinks from the refrigerator which is different from other ryokans on our trip. Meals were excellent without fail and the service level is very good. Staff are friendly and accommodating. Shuttle service to and from the train station. Very pleasant stay.

We felt cheated. This was our second visit to Wanosato and we stayed at the same suite (Tenryu), but the experience was completely different. The room smelled strongly musty (our clothes in the suitcase still smelled the same mustiness for days after leaving Wanosato). There were cobwebs and balls of dust in the room. As a result, our dust allergy was so severe that my wife had to keep a face mask on in order to sleep. It was clear that Wanosato was short of staff. Rarely anyone at the counter; even the dinners were toned down/reduced from our last stay 4 years ago. It was not the staff's issue. They worked hard and had a good attitude. It was the issue with the management/owner. Faced with staffing shortage, the management apparently chose to maximize profit by making available more rooms than the staff could handle, and in the process the service standard deteriorated significantly. To be charged 250,000 yen per night for the suite, we expected better (at least a clean suite). The steadfast commitment to quality by luxury ryokans and hotels in Japan is the reason we keep coming back. Such trust is lost with Wanosato. We will not revisit in the future.

Despite some flaws, we really enjoyed our stay at Wanosato. The meal service was the highlight of the trip - the chef was excellent as was the server (same every night). The room was a bit dated but the was overcome by the amazing setting right on the river and traditional rooms. The flaws were the shuttle bus was very rigid (except when they decided we had to wait for other passengers) and we had to take multiple taxis to the train station because it wasn’t running. They had no idea how we would do a hike in the area so we ended up on a road walk. They also have no lunch so we had to go to town for lunch which ended up being a 3 hour excursion because of the shuttle.

Unbelievable property. The views and sounds of the river in every room are intoxicating. It’s down a super quiet street so you won’t hear any traffic. The meals were outstanding. The onsens were both unique and beautiful. The fixtures are dated but it makes the esthetic that much more authentic. I can’t recommend enough as a launching point to explore Takayama. I hope to be back!

Top tier service and very memorable experience. Quite relaxing stay.

Stunning location and views from the shared spaces. Kaiseki style food had so much effort put in to it too, with some delicious dishes. Disappointing that my wife couldnt use the cave onsen because of all male bathing, which really was the highlight. Frustrating too that they didnt have any slots for private couple onsens on the second day.