Hakone Kowakien Ten-yu

Ten-yu was amazing. Service was superb and also the facilites, like the shuttle-bus and the restaurants. I only stayed for one night and I wish I stayed longer, even though pricy. Very kind staff everywhere. Buffet was good. Also really simple to get to from Tokyo as a tourist. With the Shinkansen it was a two hour ish trip, depending on if you take the public bus from the train station, or the shuttle bus to/from Gora station. Although there were a lot of children, especially at mid-day in the lobby area, it was fine for me and not too bothersome. Check-in went really smooth even though I arrived half an hour before the check-in time at 3 PM. The more pricy restaurant with beef and lobster was definitely worth a visit as well. Very personalized experience from both the servers (mostly the manager in my case), and the chef. Even though closeby and probably a five-minute walk, the shuttle bus took me there in no-time and you're shown on the bus, and taken when you arrive at the restaurant. I can definitely recommend, and will come back to a place like this, if not this place, again when I visit Japan.

Our stay in Hakone Kowakien Tenyu was more than perfect. Service is of the very high standard and staff is so friendly. Relaxing in the hotel’s onsen facilities was my the best spa experience of my life. Both dinner and breakfast were amazing and absolutely delicious. Moreover we tried barbecue from the hotel’s restaurant, which is connected to the hotel and the beef was outstanding. Thank you very much for hosting us. Although our stay was short, it was incredible. P.S. thank you for your help and shipping my sunglasses. I appreciate it a lot.

I booked a three-night stay but ended up staying only one night because the cleanliness and room conditions were far below acceptable standards for a hotel at this price point. Right after check-in, I found a urine stain on the toilet seat, followed by long hair and pubic hair on the tatami floor. Later at night, when I got into bed, I found more hair on the blanket. At that point, I completely lost trust in the hygiene of the room. Around 2 AM, I requested to change rooms: • Room #2: Hair on the blanket again as soon as I opened it. • Room #3: Finally clean enough to stay in. The staff were polite and did try to assist, but finding cleanliness issues in multiple rooms shows a deeper quality-control problem. I was also told that housekeeping is outsourced, which seems consistent with the experience. On top of the cleanliness issues, the room has no blackout blinds, and in the morning sunlight beams directly onto the face, making it difficult to rest. The private hot tub also looked old and not well maintained, which made me uncomfortable using it. Because of all these issues, I canceled the remaining two nights. After moving rooms twice at 2 AM and repeatedly encountering hygiene problems, I no longer felt safe or comfortable staying here. Extremely disappointing for a hotel at this price level. I hope management addresses the housekeeping and maintenance problems so future guests don’t have the same experience.

I’ve stayed at a handful of five-star hotels, and this experience confirmed that price alone means absolutely nothing. I visited the onsen alone, expecting a peaceful, respectful environment. Instead, I was publicly scolded and humiliated over signage that was objectively unclear. A sign indicated that bath towels should be kept in the bathroom and face towels elsewhere. I followed exactly what the sign stated—using the bath towel in the locker room—yet was aggressively confronted by a staff member who barked at me in Japanese, repeating the same confusing sign as if that somehow clarified anything. Another guest who spoke English even confirmed that the sign made no sense and that my interpretation was reasonable. At no point did staff attempt to calmly explain the issue or handle the situation with the basic courtesy you’d expect from a five-star establishment. Instead, I was left embarrassed, stressed, and frankly shaken—over a towel. Luxury is not marble floors or high nightly rates. Luxury is clear communication, cultural sensitivity, and respectful treatment of guests. This hotel failed on all three. I left the onsen feeling uncomfortable rather than relaxed, which defeats the entire purpose. For the price charged, this experience was unacceptable. I would not return, and I would not recommend this hotel to international travelers.

Paying over $700 a night and wow this is far from a 5-star hotel. I feel like I am at a Disney spa if there is such a thing. Kids running all over the place, buffet food was mediocre at best had to beg for more than 3 slices of steak that clearly were not high quality. Hotel tries to blind you by giving you free ice cream but have to ask for a token which if you ask me defeats the concept of free if you have to ask for a coin to redeem it. You would think at $700/night it would include daily housekeeping, nope might be lucky to get fresh towels. Tv also doesn’t even turn on and the room might be 85deg cause the thermostat has no instructions or translation to any language other than Japanese which is fine but atleast include a sheet with various languages. I shouldn’t have to use a translate app to turn the heat to cooling mode. Most are also expected to dawn traditional clothing provide which I embraced but the biggest sandal size they had was a 7 which was not going to work for my size 11 feet. The onsen/bath was nice and bailed them out from me giving the hotel 1 star. Optimistic Amex travel will give me a refund! Don’t be fooled that this is the only place to eat either. It feels isolated but via car/taxi you can easily find amazing local restaurants and can even walk around the area as there are sidewalks pretty much all over town to allow people to walk from hotel to town etc. We won’t be back

Hotel has a nice atmosphere and the rooms are decently nice with the exception of the shower which is absolutely tiny. The in room baths are a nice touch but are pretty small overall. Service is immaculate which is to be expected for the rather high price point. The kaiseki course was good but I've had better in both Kinosaki and Arima. The location is pretty terrible as you have to rely on buses to get anywhere and they run late. Additionally the shuttle starts at 9 am so good luck if you want to get an early start.

After an intense day at Disney sea, going to Hakone Tenyu as the most relaxing and favorite activity on my trip. We had to take the romance car from Shinjuku, follow with a train to Gora station. We were immediately able to jump on the free Shuttle bus and arrived here! They were busy for our check in time but it was a very pleasant experience. We had a walk through of our hotel room by one of the staff. We had our kaiseki dinner which was part of our package- amazing service and we got some alcohol drinks and it was so affordable! It was my friends second time at this onsen so we were able to pick a room with a massage chair! The onsen was amazing and we also had our own personal onsen which was lovely. The amenities, the space and service was exceptional! I also really enjoy the breakfast buffet and the unlimited ice cream. I will def come back again in the future!

Hakone Kowakien Ten-yu was an excellent choice for my holiday. The hotel is beautifully surrounded by the nature of Hakone, creating a relaxing and peaceful atmosphere. Our room was located on the top floor with stunning views of the greenery. It was spotlessly clean, tidy, and well maintained. The hotel provided Yukata and Kimono for guests to wear during their stay, which added a special cultural touch. We really enjoyed the onsen and sauna facilities, both the rooftop onsen and the one on the fifth floor. The premium dinner offered a wide variety of dishes, and it was fascinating to watch the chef skillfully cut a fresh tuna. The Japanese breakfast was also excellent, served in a calm and tranquil setting. In the evening, a live music performance created a warm and romantic atmosphere. We also enjoyed the outdoor foot bath while listening to the soothing sound of rustling leaves. The hotel’s garden features a small onsen shrine and a waterfall, which were lovely to walk around both in the morning and at night. I especially liked the self-serve ice cream machine and treated myself to one after visiting the onsen. Overall, my best friend and I were very satisfied with the high quality of service, the beautiful scenery, delicious food, and the excellent facilities. I would highly recommend this hotel to anyone visiting Hakone.

This place was amazing. It comes with a public onsen separated by sex. Breakfast is also included and consists of a wide variety of options. The service was excellent too. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly. They even drove us to the bus stop when we were behind schedule! Everything was very comfortable. I would definitely stay here again.

I am trying to be objective here but didn't have the best experience. Maybe I need to adjust my expectations but was looking forward to a relaxing and restful stay. However, was greeted by many other visitors probably seeking the same experience. Staff were friendly and courteous and the room was very pleasant. Kimonos were provided and link to instructions on how to dress were totally fine. I struggled a bit with the dining format. The food selection itself was very substantial and the presentation spectacular. However the sheer number of people made navigating the dining area a challenge. That, plus being vegetarian, I had a hard time figuring out what I could eat. I did find a friendly staff member who kindly guided me around to show me what options were available and in short I did not go hungry that night. Looking forward to a restful night's sleep I was discouraged to wake up a really stuffy and hot room. I had set the thermostat to 18 degrees Celsius which should have been fine but I was roasting. I dropped it to 15 and didn't feel a difference. I was about to give up and call the front desk when I realized I could turn the system off and open the balcony door to get comfortable but still it took a while to cool down. Ironically I noticed the lobby the next morning was also very warm. I will say that the private onsen was definitely a high point of the stay. I soaked twice and really felt great after getting out both times. It is set to autofill for 15 minutes and the first time I got in I just spilled water everywhere! Wasn't sure what the protocol for that was but the second time I let some water out as it filled to avoid overfilling. I don't think this would be my first choice to return to but hopefully it worked out well for others. The area was pretty and the staff were great, just didn't have the experience I was hoping to have.

This entire road is dotted with ryokans facing the gorgeous cliffs of Mt. Hakone, which was partially obscured from rain clouds most of the time we were here. Still, it made for a moody and scenic backdrop for my many dips in the private onsen in our room's balcony, which kind of alone made for an excellent experience at Ten Yu. But what really sealed it for me was the lush, outdoor oasis of the outdoor onsen that transported me into a fairytale forest that I meditated in for a long while. The breakfast and dinner buffet left a lot to be desired for what is considered a high end ryokan. The food had mostly been sitting out for quite a while, and they serve exactly the same options everyday. The seafood and meat is of low quality. It's totally serviceable and there's a lot of variety within each spread, but it's saying a lot if I turn down unlimited crab legs. After a third time having the same mediocre meal I was ready to eat somewhere offsite and was glad it was time to check out after day 3. I would have maybe rated this hotel lower were it not for this outdoor onsen. I was perfectly satisfied with the private bath we had on our balcony, which I enjoyed 4-5 times in our short 3 day stay, but the outdoor public one was something else. At first, entering the private onsen felt underwhelming, seeing just two large hot baths at the same temperate, one bubbling and one with still water. I liked going back and forth between cold plunge and hot bath to sauna. At 20 degrees celsius and in that hot room it can hardly be considered a cold plunge, I guess compared to the 40 degree hot bath it was. I happened to see someone disappear behind a door labeled outdoor bath, and I went to inspect, not expecting much. Instead I found a large, lush hot spring completely covered by backlit greenery. It's gender segregated and the 5th floor one faces their beautiful waterfall. At first my partner and I expected to get bored being separated and planned to meet up half an hour later but both ended up enjoying our separate garden oases for well over an hour. We both took it as an opportunity to meditate. Both spaces were largely empty, so it's quite conducive to a meditative experience. The staff was really warm and kind throughout, and I appreciate little touches they have, like unlimited coins for the ice cream machine, different iced teas on offer in the lobby, and little rubber bands to hold up the sleeves of the kimonos they provide guests to wear while wandering the space. The rooms and common areas were quite clean and the lobby is beautiful. This was an upgrade from the ryokan I stayed in in Kyoto during my last Japan trip, and I really could do worse than this luxury ryokan.

The hotel room was nice. My husband enjoyed the bathtub on the balcony. My kid enjoyed the free ice cream machine. I liked walking around the property. Hence all the pictures. Our first night there lots of people were in the downstairs restaurant. I wondered why. I found out pretty quickly that the meal that comes with the room is horrible. Worst meal ever. Everything served to us had been sitting out way too long. I definitely recommend skipping that meal and going downstairs for something freshly cooked. Or another restaurant offsite. The breakfast buffet was good. The onsens were meh but we aren't into hot springs. Front desk staff was nice. Definitely use the machines to check out in the morning. The check out line was long.

Great hotel! Sadly the water park that hotel guess can use for free was closed for remodeling the entire time I was there. Hotel itself is great! Great staff and service, comfiest beds, and best of all the onsen and views. Immaculate views, hot water from natural hotsprings. What else can you ask for? Great place to relax after long walks around Tokyo.

A stuff was very kind and polite. Great view from the room, the food was good! Wish I could try big hot springs but if you have big tattoo you are not allowed there. Other than that, everything was amazing!

Our hotel was expensive but very nice. We love the attention the staff gives you, in certain hours they would have a number of staff just standing there lining up just to greet to the guests. Each night comes with kaiseki which to be honest wasn't something I looked forward to. Our palate was different so there will always be certain dishes we wouldn't enjoy. Its one thing to eat it once in a while but every night was a bit much. Our room came with a semi outdoor onsen which was nice but i truly enjoyed the two different outdoor onsen within the resort. One morning it was raining and it still was an enjoyable experience. They are also right nxt door which you can connect through indoor walkway to the onsen waterpark next door which also includes some small indoor games/shopping area with a conveniences store. the resort itself also have vending machines just like all the other places we visited, you can always just buy affordable alcohol there.

Amazing hot spring hotel in Hakone with your own private balcony onsen, overlooking the mountains of Hakone. Don't let the 3-star rating turn you away from this hotel because I stayed at a nearby 5-star hotel in Hakone one night and I definitely preferred this hotel much better and it had better amenities overall compared to the bigger brand. Let me first give you a tip that if you are deciding to book at this hotel, that you BOOK DIRECTLY ON THEIR WEBSITE. When you do, you have a kaiseki dinner meal & buffet breakbeat course included in your reservation. If you book via external sites, meals are not included, so it's a better deal to book directly via their website. Now for their room and hotel, it's truly spacious and clean for a Japanese hotel. The outdoor onsen is kind of small if you're tall so you'll have to squeeze your legs to fit. Also, the water is ridiculously HOT. Be sure to mix the hot spring water with the cold water because I couldn't handle it. I didn't go in the public onsen in the hotel since there was a private one in the balcony. The dinner portion of the food was quite unique and worth the experience subs they give you the option to wear yukata to dinner. For the price for the hotel, you can't go wrong with this hotel and the food. I wish I stayed here first instead of the other five star hotel because I didn't get any of the service or amenities from them like I did here.

This lovely Onsen hotel caters to the high end traveller. Rooms are spacious and the accommodations are moderately modern. The 5th floor public bath is rustic with a clear view of the hotel's waterfall. You can even here frogs croaking! The 6th floor public bath is an impressive infinity pool. Watching the sun rise will leave a lasting impression. The kaiseki dinner featured crab and beef. All were tasty but the sashimi was rather child-size. The buffet breakfast was way better. Unlimited crab legs, seafood bouillabaisse, kaisendon, etc. croissants were top notch. Only issue with the stay was that the room was overlooking a large scale construction that was very active. The crane reach up to the 8th floor! Also the location is rather remote with a limited shuttle to only the Gora station.

I prefer the smaller more intimate ryokan such as the ones in Gero where we were treated like kings. Hakone Kowakien Tenyu resort is part of a large hotel chain built to accomodate the masses, the experience was still fantastic. The infinity pool (6th fl rotenboro) was the main draw. Nothing like contemplating mid life crisis while soaking in mineral bath and staring into the distant mountains, all the while nebulizing cold fresh air. The infinity pool prob fits 50-70 peeps depending on how intimate you want to be. 5th flt rotenboro paled in comparison though still quite enjoyable. Male & female guests can enjoy these 2 onsens but on alternate days. Our standard room was spacious & palatial compared to anything in Tokyo. It feautured 2 double beds, spacious restroom area, a real closet..gulp. Private onsen came in the form of a metal tub on the balcony. The Amenities are of modern design and included a good size safe to keep valuables. keiseki dinners were artistic & exquisite, however it may not be for western palates. Make sure you notify them of food allergies at the start. For dinner we had to pay extra for drinks even for juices, odd. Breakfast buffet was fanatastic and included drinks. i usually drain a few glasses of champaigne first before browsing. The variety & array of items were impressive, there lays the advantage of a large hotel chain. I esp love the creamy corn potage soup & the ultra spongy french toast. On the flip side it can be crowded & bubbly during peak BF hour esp if guests over endulged on champaigne, wink. Lobby was huge & inviting with mix of couches, lounge chairs & even cute bean bag chairs. They serve cold juices for guests looking to rehydrate post onsen. The coffee machine is avail 24/7 for jetlaggers. On the outside balcony there are wicker chairs and more bean bag chairs facing the mountain. Staff were friendly & spoke adequate English. Hotel minivans provided rides to & from Gora station. From there you take the local train to Hakone main station. We took the H bus to Motohakone (lake ashi, tori gate, pirate ship), the bus stop is at the kowakien Yunessen resort below us. On the return trip however we were instructed to take bus #2. Overall very satisfied stay & worth the splurge esp with the weak JPY.

Oh my gosh! I love this hotel. I am probably a little biased because we got REALLY lucky and had a snow day, so it was exceptionally beautiful when we were there. Hakone is my go-to onsen town because of its easy access from Tokyo, especially when we are on a short trip! I have stayed at a couple different ryokans, but Ten-yu is my favorite so far. The facility was clean and the service was exceptional. We were even able to check in early which is very uncommon for ryokan. Beds were very comfortable and the private onsen was really nice. The food was good. Breakfast was more impressive than dinner imo but I am always partial to a good ryokan breakfast buffet. Everything was fresh and the selection was huge! The make your own chirashi bowl definitely puts it over the top. Will stay here again!

Stayed at the Hakone Kowakien TENYU hotel for the second time and it was just as specular as last time. The natural hot spring baths are amazing and beautiful. One is in a natural setting with lush foliage and waterfalls, and the other is modern and sleek with an infinity pool. The water is great if you have achy joints. The rooms are beautiful and have a bathtub with mi real water pumped in on the balcony. Traditional robes are provided that you wear throughout the hotel, even to dinner. The keiseki dinner is amazing. So unique, delicious and visually like a work of art. See pictures for proof! This is the best priced onsen Resort in the area. Highly recommend!

Based on a friend's recommendation, I stayed at this hotel in Hakone last month. There was free shuttle service from and to Gora station every half hour. Once the shuttle bus got to the hotel, the front desk quickly welcomed me and checked me in. One of the staff members accompanied me to my room and showed me around. The room was very spacious and had an outdoor balcony with a little hot tub to soak in. The room had two twin beds, a sofa bed, and bathroom amenities such as combs, cotton swabs, cloth bags to bring with you to the onsen, etc. The toilet, shower and sink were all in separate areas. The TV had mostly Japanese channels and BBC. The drawers underneath the TV also had yukata and jinbei of different sizes for you to wear to the onsen as well as to the restaurant. You can control the hot tub/onsen in the balcony of the room by pressing the button to fill the tub. It takes about 15 minutes to fill it up and I recommend you to wait a few more minutes before dipping in because it was scorching hot! The water is definitely from the hot springs because you can smell the sulfur from it. It was so relaxing dipping into the hot tub during the cool breeze at night. Awesome! In the lobby, they also are offer complimentary hot tea and coffee and iced herbal teas during the afternoon and evening. There's also a little gift shop next to the concierge and a library area across from it. The rotenboro was awesome, especially the infinity Ukigumo onsen on the 6th floor. It was breathtaking viewing the mountains and relaxing while soaking in the hot spring. Since they rotate the 5th and 6th floor onsen for men and women everyday, it's best to stay more than a night to fully enjoy both onsens. Both breakfast and dinner was included during my stay. Dinner was different both nights. The first night, the attractions were the wagyu beef and the sashimi in the mist. Both were superb. The second night, dinner was not as good as the first night but still of good quality. Breakfast was a buffet and had a lot of choices from Western options such as omelettes, sausage, bacon, waffles to Japanese options such as grilled hamachi/salmon, sashimi donburi, and curry. It was very delicious. Everyone in the hotel was really friendly and helpful. Although expensive, I had a wonderful stay. Highly recommended!

This hotel was a dream. The shared onsens are the best in the area and the whole experience was pure magic. Getting a private onsen on the deck of your room with a mountain view was the icing on the cake. The hospitality was also world class. They even upgraded us when they found out we got off on the wrong bus stop and had to walk. Me and my wife can't wait to come back!

My husband and I recently spent two weeks in Japan, and THIS was our big splurge! We stayed here one night on our way from Tokyo to Hiroshima. We took a JR train from Tokyo to the Odawara Station. There we got our Hakone Free Pass tickets and changed trains for the Gora Station. Once in Gora we used a service that took our luggage to the hotel while we went sightseeing. I'll omit the big loop we made around the area (via funicular / bus / cable car / and boat) in the interest of focusing on the hotel review, but I'll share that info if you message me. The bottom line is that we caught a bus from the lovely town of Hakonemachi-ko (on the shore of Lake Ashinoko) to Ten-Yu. Please note that the bus does not stop at Ten-Yu, but at the resort downhill next door ... Yunessun-mae. Once there we trudged uphill to Ten-Yu and were absolutely blown away. It doesn't look like much from the outside but once you enter it is spectacular. The photos here don't do it justice. It is so much nicer than you can imagine. We had a traditional Japanese style room with a tatami mat floor, a low table with stubby-legged chairs and pillows for seating, and a private balcony overlooking the gardens below and the mountain above, with a huge metal tub connected to the hot springs. It was a private onsen suite! The resort provided slippers / clogs / getas (?) to wear in the room (you do not wear your "outdoor" shoes inside) and either a Yukata robe or a Samue outfit for use in the resort. They also provide the socks with the big toe separation, and completely different set of slippers for use when you go to the toilet. We opted to include a kaiseki meal with our stay and were not disappointed! It started with five appetizers, then there was a soup course, a main dish, then sashimi, a fish dish, a meat dish, a rice course, the two different desserts. We shared a bottle of sake, and I also had a sake cocktail that involved passionfruit juice. We enjoyed all this while wearing our Yukata robes (like most other people there). It was beyond fabulous. We also enjoyed the breakfast buffet before we left the next morning. There was a wide variety of western breakfast items as well as traditionally Japanese options. I have nothing but praise for Ten-Yu. I hope to experience this kind of luxury once again some day!

I LOVED this ryokan at Hakone. Yes, it is very expensive and a splurge, but worth it if you can afford it :) we stayed for one night. Impeccable service, delicious food, clean modern room, and different, well maintained hot springs. The outside bath (roten buro) was AWESOME! I would go again in a heartbeat. (Suggestions to foreign visitors: If you can and feel comfortable, I highly recommend the large communal public hot springs vs. the small bathtub at your room. You will get similar medicinal effects as the large public bath, but the experience is so much better! Just be aware of cultural manners when enjoying the Japanese style hot springs. Go during off peak times (really early/late or mid afternoon) if you are shy about the nudity thing (I am too but can't resist hot springs)

My family and I came here to stay for one night and everyone was blown away at the service and the detail to attention this place has. Service was impeccable, friendly and prompt. The room itself was very open and the garden view we had was amazing! We had the 5-course meal for dinner and breakfast which was authentic, tasteful and the attention to detail of how they displayed the dishes were amazing. The room we got was the one with a private onsen on the deck which was BOMB and the fact that you can have your own personal hot springs while being in the middle of nature in Japan has to a check off on my bucket list of things to do in Hakone, Japan. We spent $1000 a night for the room, but everyone had an amazing time and hopefully we'll get to visit this resort in the near future!

I booked through Japanican and was totally misled. $700 a night for a glorified apartment building with a tiny one person bathtub on the patio. I booked for my honeymoon and thought my husband and I could enjoy the (fake) hot springs together, as it said communal springs were available, as opposed to your typically segregated public baths, but on arrival realized they are all sorted by gender. what a waste of money. Regardless of the hot spring sitch, for a hotel that touts luxury, the service is unbelievably poor. I called to request a glass of milk, and was directed to a vending machine... luxurious my a$$

I'm writing this review strictly from a westerners perspective. We upgraded to a "king" sized room in which we received two twin sized beds pulled apart from one another. We indulged in a deep tissue spa but received more of a back scratch for 60 minutes. The bar charges a $10 cover charge just to enter and the drinks were of no special relevance. The service was dedicated towards those looking for more of a more traditional Japanese experience and for that I cannot complain. We paid for a Japanese meal each night but only partook in 1 of the evenings festivities. Instead we visited the Nobo ITOH style dining down the road and were blown away. This meal was the highlight of our 2 week journey and I would highly recommend this to everyone!!

This place sucks, we paid $700 a night for a basic hotel room with a bathtub on the balcony. Wouldn't even pay $200 for the room. Don't be fooled by the sponsored content on travel websites. Avoid at all cost!