Hotel & Spa Resort La Vista Akangawa Kushiro

The place is such a beautiful accommodation. The views from the lobby, corridors and rooms is breathtaking. Gives a calm relaxing vibe. Rooms are very spacious and comfortable. Modern design. Lobby is very cozy and staffs are friendly. Will definitely stay with here again if I visit Lake Akan area again.

We have had the most wonderful 2 days here. The room was even better than pictured (and the pictures were great!), the in-room hot spring bath was to-die-for and all the small details were amazing. Little things like local printed fabric cushions, cute hand made pottery for coffee cups, a coffee grinder etc. really made the stay special. We had a river view room and saw deer and tanuki (racoon dogs) daily - which was magical. There are 3 private onsen that don’t need reservations (you simply see if they are free with the lighting system at the spa area). We didn’t use the public bath as our private tub and private baths were plenty enough. Little extras such as ice creams, drinks and snacks were really thoughtful. The staff were the highlight of our stay. Despite language barriers (on our side - we have VERY poor Japanese skills beyond basic ordering) the staff were so kind, patient and caring. Even if it took us 10 minutes between us, they waited and worked it out. We told them it was our honeymoon and received a cute hand written card and wooden spoon set. I can’t imagine where the comments of poor service come from - we did not experience this. This was our first ryokan style stay and we absolutely loved it. Thank you all! (Especially K Oto (おと)) who was so sweet and took good care of us.

I have visited Japan many times, 4 times in 2025 and probably stayed in over 10 hotels, never happened before. It is a very bad hotel as it never replies to email from guest. As a hotel, it is extremely unacceptable. Imagine when you need assistance before and during your trip in a foreign country, and you thought the hotel would give you some warm welcome and basic hospitality on behalf of their country. As a personal experience in December, I had to cancel the booking as I became very sick around the check in date. The hotel didn’t reply to the agency’s nor my email, even until now. Very poor attitude and management. Full booking money including service charge and tax taken (but no service being enjoyed at all). Never get the chance to stay in this hotel and probably will not be interested to book this hotel anymore. A warning, everyone.

I chose La Vista the last minute as our schedule has changed due to the earthquake. We planned to stay one night but unluckily(luckily) we got road block due to heavy snow, so we extended with another night. I would say I love everything in this hotel, the service, the onsen, the decoration, the room, the ppl. It is very convenient for us to find it with our own car as we were doing road trip. The reception gave a warm welcome, they are very helpful to share the food available before our dinner time. And yes, they offered some nice juice and steamed pumpkin for all customers. I had a language problem communicating to my hair salon which I booked in Sapporo and the people there are so helpful to support me communicating. The food for 2 nights are different (including breakfast and dinner). I would agree with many ppl that breakfast has space to be improved, but dinner menu, I would say it’s above my expectation especially the 2nd day with Wagyu. The room is spacious, my two kids can run a bit inside the room. And we love the decoration. Although the room has the onsen itself, I would really suggest you all try its private onsen and public onsen. You will really appreciate the wonderful world more with taking onsen and seeing the snow at the same time. The ice cream/yogurt after onsen was just nice. And If you are getting hungry at night, they also offer complimentary ramen. Oh, I forgot to mention there are two massage chair next to Onsen at basement level. Our family love the whole experience in the hotel, it’s quiet and independent from the town area. We also love the service people there, I don’t have all names, but I remember K.OTO San, a Chinese guy with surname 章，and many more staffs there being so helpful. Thank you so much! And we will go back again for sure!

Many reviews had been written about the La Vista Akangawa in Kushiro in Hokkaido. I noted that most of the reviews were complimentary while there were a few which offered otherwise - and I am sure that the writers had just cause to air their grievances. Based on our current 4-week driving tour of Hokkaido, I have to say that this hotel was the best that I had experience, bar none. We elected to stay in room with a view of the Akan River directly from our room and we were so glad that we did - the room was furnished with a bench seat which you could sit and admire the tranquility and natural beauty of the river and the forest. It was therapeutic. However, what truly impressed me was the layout of the room, the comfortable twin beds, a large sofa bed which you lounge in and spoil yourself, a generous washroom with a separate toilet and a private onsen. Besides the usual tea corner, the hotel also provides (for those who cannot wake up with coffee in the morning), a coffee corner complete with coffee beans and a grinder so that you can make yourself a fresh cuppa in the morning. The hotel’s replenishment of linen, towels, consumables and daily replenishment of bottled water and soft drinks in the mini bar was generous. No complains about the total service - the front desk, the restaurants - they were accommodating and happy to meet you half way even if you are unable to convey your requests or aspirations in unpolished Japanese like I did. Some would say that the hotel is off the beaten track - nestled in the woods by the river - while most of the hotels are huddled around Lake Akan. I found this actually refreshing and offered some relieve from the busloads of tourists that thronged the lake. I would not hesistate to stay at the hotel if I am ever back to this corner of Hokkaido.

Stayed 2 nights. Great room layout bedroom, living room n full window view of the forest and river. In room wooden bathtub. Bird watching and spotted an eagle. Dinner and breakfast were excellent. Our friendly staff Honda spoke good English and Mandarin.

A wonderful ryokan in an absolutely beautiful location. It's only a short drive from the main town of Lake Akan, but it feels away in the forest by the riverside. The in-room baths overlooking the river are great, and the outdoor public bath is even more serene.

Location is great, right in nature. Rooms are Japanese design, spacious and cozy. The lobby is not a nice atmosphere, it looks messy and crowded with a gift shop and too many messy things. There is no feeling of design and elegance.What is really bad and low level quality is the fact that all drinks are being served in cheap single use plastic cups. There is a beverage bar where you only get plastic cups. At breakfast in the restaurant you only get plastic cups. In the evening for the snacks bar, they also only have plastic cups and cheap paper plates. This is not in line with a hotel of high quality and standard, nor sustainability. I can only imagine the amount of waste that they have every day from only the single use cups and plates. And the feeling of quality and luxury is mainly disturbed by this. Sorry but you cannot serve sparkling wine, wine and any type of beverage in a plastic cup, this is unacceptable. There should be reusable glasses, it’s much better for customer experience and the environment.Also, the customization level of breakfast and dinner is a bummer. We asked for a vegetarian option and they emphasized that customization is not possible. I guess we have to accept that. They also said that food allergies and any other preferences (like vegetarian) cannot be accommodated. Then we simply asked to just not serve the meat, just leave it out. They said this is not possible - how can this be?? You can simply leave out and keep the meat if the guests do not want it. This aspect of customer service needs to be improved. If you cannot accommodate a vegetarian alternative that’s bad enough. But not being able to make this tiny adjustment when you serve the dishes means a refusal to recognize your customers’ needs. We were not asking for anything extra, we were only asking to leave something out and not serve the meat so that it’s not wasted because we do not eat meat. Ultimately we were served the meat and did not eat it - what a waste. I am still lacking an explanation for this inflexibility, bad customer service and food waste approach. The hotel needs to improve this.