Houshi Ryokan

We stayed in Enmeikaku, the VIP hall. The price was around 100,000 yen per person (about 650$ per person) for around 4 people. Overall, we spent more than 2500$ for one night. But the experience was stressful. I would not say that it’s worth coming as a family here. Maybe as a couple the price becomes worth it. The hall itself is stunning and a real piece of history. The staff at the front desk and in the room had very kind and courteous service. I was also deeply impressed by the beauty of the entire property. However, I must mention that the checkout process is unacceptable. There was no prior notice in the morning that the card reader was unavailable, so I was unable to prepare cash in advance. It is difficult to expect guests to handle such large amounts of cash without notice. As a result, a visit I had scheduled that same morning with another ryokan was delayed, and I had to leave in a very rushed manner because they found no solution. Today their only solution is to send a Japanese wire transfer, that doesn’t work for international accounts, or cash by post, which is unsafe. I asked for clarification on how to proceed, and was left with no answer by AryPutra from the front staff. So I still did not pay my bill today and keep messaging them. I find this deeply concerning for a “VIP” experience of 2500 dollars a night.

Beautiful place. Sensational garden, friendly and authentic staff. The dinner in the evening is delicious (a large and exceptionally well preserved tasting menu), the rooms are authentic and traditional and the onsen is fabulous. Tattoos allowed, too. Thoroughly recommend!

Staff are very welcoming and some can communicate in English. This onsen town seems quiet but the ryokan itself is good enough for a stay-in trip to relax and use the onsen. Try to visit Natadera temple before you check-in.

Pros: historical significance, beautiful decor in the common areas of the ryokan. Staff was hospitable. Large rooms Con: a relatively big ryokan so the onsen can get crowded (although we were there during off peak season). Dining area was in a partition in a big hall, quite austere. Breakfast was good, though had better at other ryokans. The room did not have any bath amenities other than toothbrushes, not even towels to dry your hands with. Got a set of bath and hand towels to use at the onsen. Additional note: when you book, make sure you select the option that states half board with breakfast if you want dinner and breakfast. I had thought all ryokans with onsens come with dinner, and made the mistake of selecting only breakfast so missed the dinner.

What a fabulous authentic Japanese Ryokan! Continuously operating for more than 1200 years, beautiful hospitality, its own onsen and if you organise it in advance, spectacular food. Some staff speak English, others don't, but all are extremely helpful.

We had a wonderful stay, the garden is magical, and the food was great. We stayed in the room with the private onsen, and I would highly recommend.

Being the second oldest hotel in the world, this was a cool place to stay. The reception staff and hospitality here was top notch. As i pulled up in my taxi, they were waiting in front of the hotel and knew my name. I was immediately whisked inside where they serve me hot tea in the lobby. The onsen was great, and the morning sunlight in the room was gorgeous. The garden was INCREDIBLE! Cons: Parts of the hotel seem outdated (including the bathrooms in the room). As a family owned hotel on quite a large property, I understand that it would probably be very expensive for them to renovate and they likely need to prioritize other maintenance costs. The location is kind of far removed from other areas you might be visiting in Japan, and there is not a ton to do nearby. Overall this is a cool hotel, but if your time is limited in Japan, I wouldn't necessarily consider it a "must see". I'm grateful that I was able to check it out though.

It is advertised as the oldest ryokan (hot springs hotel) in Rokuriku region. It is historical buildings but was taken very good care of. The staff were very nice. The older Japanese staff don’t speak much English but you can easily feel their enthusiastic hospitality. The room was a bit old but still in great condition. The public baths are both great indoor and outdoor. The indoor pool is huge with several areas and kinda different temperatures to choose from. Unfortunately, the Sauna room was not hot enough. The buildings are all connected and surrounded by a big and beautiful Japanese garden. It was nice wandering around the garden both day and night.

You know you are going to get a great experience and stay when a Ryokan has been here since 718 (founded over 1300 years ago!!). That in itself is significant. First, some details. You can either arrive at JR Awazu station or JR Kagaonsen station. They have a shuttle bus service available to pick you up! The moment you arrive, you are greeted by a large group of staff. They first direct you to their tea-lounge (even before check in!!). There you take a sip of their fabulous tea and snack. From there you get to view an amazing garden situated within the hotel. We then proceeded to the check-in process. Just fyi, English is very limited. I had to utilize Google translate to help assist with the process. Afterwards, we were directed to our room with our primary hotel hostess. Her hospitality was beyond our expectation. At one point I offered to carry my own luggage, she politely declined, indicating I should just focus on enjoying our stay. When we arrived at our room, it was jaw-dropping. We have never been to a room with two floors and connecting to our own private garden (just fyi we booked a duplex suite with jacuzzi for just the two of us). Our hostess sat us in the main living room area, where she served us fresh tea with snacks (notice a trend? Tea is their primary focus and boy is it good). From there, we were left with enjoying the rest of the hotel facility, mainly their public onsen, and our private open air jacuzzi. Public onsen: separated to males and females' as excepted. Large area to first shower, and then you have the option of an indoor or outdoor onsen. Within the onsen region, you have a foot massager, cold water station, and a hair-drying region. There are lockers. The facility itself you can walk around (there is the public garden, as well as our own private). Provides different vibes during day and night. Be careful of mosquitos during those warm weather. Food: Our first traditional Kaiseki dinner. It was amazing and filling. Each dish provided with its own unique taste, filled with its own beauty and savourness. It was really a journey into their 46 generational history. The breakfast course was just as amazing (we scheduled our breakfast at the earliest time at 0700h) as we would have to catch our earliest shuttle at 0930h. Just fyi the meals can take a long time (2-3h for dinner, and 1h for breakfast). Room: While we spent most of our time at the living room region, and our open air jacuzzi, the actual bedroom is upstairs (where they lay the tatami bedding during dinner hours). It was our first tatami experience, so it certain was unique to us. It was only one night that we stayed. Wished we can stay longer to continue to soak this experience. I came away amazed by their gracious hospitality. I wish we could be there as the trees change in color. But nonetheless, you will be fascinated by every aspect of this hotel.

7/16/2018: I plan visiting Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel in 2019 after visiting my ancestral land in Balatan, Camarines Sur Province, Philippines-yes, I do speak my Mother's tongue despite, being born in NorCal~LOL. BTW: After living in Sokcho, Gangwon Province, South Korea for two and a half years, on a whim, I decided I would visit Japan from February 9 to March 10, 2009 . . . Shockingly, I missed the Fukushima Earthquake event by ONE DAY=March 11, 2009! If, I left for Narita Airport on March 11, 2009, in the morning rather than leaving on March 10, 2009 from Sakura Hotel, Jimbocho, +81332613939, 101-0051 Tokyo Prefecture, Chiyoda-ku Kanda-Jinbocho 2-21-4, Japan-info@sakura-hotel.co.jp, I wouldn't be alive writing Houshi Ryokan's review right now or ANY Yelp reviews after March 11, 2009 to present date . . . Eeeeeek! Incidentally, I do speak broken-well, okay~admittingly, I do speak Dragnet-style, botched Japanese . . . There! I stated that fact so, don't make fun of my inability speaking Japanese, reading or writing Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana scripting, ALRIGHT? Alrighty, then~grrrrrrr . . . Anyway, I'll be visiting Japan so, I will learn speaking Japanese, reading and writing Kanji, Hiragana, and Katakana as well as I do speak Korean . . . Augh~I'm still having a problem reading Hanguel . . . That's Korean scripting. Anyway . . . I'll stay at Sakura Hotel first for about a week healing my jet-lag flying from USA then, I'll begin traveling to Houshi Ryokan: Hopefully, there won't be major flood events or disastrous earthquakes (I'm trembling right now) preventing me riding the Japanese Transportation System like the extreme flooding happening in Japan the last couple weeks, July 1-16, 2018! So, let's proceed-ONWARD to Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel . . . I'll be booking my hotel reservation after Christmas 2018 hoping, Japan has recovered from the extreme flooding event which prevented me from visiting Japan right now. Please watch "Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel"-English translation videos below: 1. https://vimeo.com/114879061?ref=tw-share 2. http://www.ho-shi.co.jp/en/ for further information. Backstory: Since the year of 718, "Awazu Onsen Hoshi" has been offering its ever-flowing hot spring to its visitors. The legend historically recorded, the Awazu Hot Spring was founded 1,300 years ago when Taicho Taishi, a Buddhist monk, dreamt of the location of this sacred, hot spring. According to Houshi Ryokan's current, Hotel Owners, they state healing your body and soul enjoying the scenery from their open-air baths is absolutely relaxing. Moreover, relaxing in the Japanese, traditional-style rooms are simple but, well-appointed; in addition, enjoying the traditional Kaiseki cuisine surely, will be a memorable experience. Surprisingly, for a 1300-year old hotel, Houshi Ryokan has High-Speed Internet (LAN) available in some public spaces located at Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel-you may check YELP while bathing in the hot springs' mineral pools! WOW, wow, wow! So, YELPERS~Make sure you do a YELP check-in, okay? FYI: It takes thirty minutes by car to Komatsu Airport, fifty minutes by car to Kanazawa, one hour and thirty minutes by car to the Shirakawa-Go(Volost). Shuttle services are available to and from Awazu and Kaga Onsen stations. Below is the name of Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel in Japanese; it's imperative you MUST copiously copy and paste the Kanji scripting exactly onto your travel, itinerary schedule showing the Japanese Kanji business name for Houshi Ryokan to the transportation operator who unfortunately, might not read English which visiting Japan my first time in 2009, proved tremendously problematic; worse-I can't read Kanji scripting or speak fluent Japanese~Eeeeek! Hello, sir: Please-I want to go to Houshi Ryokan Hot Springs Hotel. Kon'nichiwa, sā: Watashi wa Houshi ryokan hottosupuringusuhoteru ni ikitaidesu. こんにちは、サー：私はHoushi旅館ホットスプリングスホテルに行きたいです。 北陸 栗津温泉法師 Awazuonsen, Komatsu-shi, Ishikawa TEL. +81 761 65 1111(Representative) +81 761 65 1112(Reservation) FAX. +81 761 65 1115 Transportation Tips: Situated in Awazu Hot Springs, Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan. By car: 5 minutes from JR Awazu Station, 15 minutes from Komatsu Station and 20 minutes from Kaga-Onsen Station; 15 minutes from Katayamazu Interchange and 20 minutes from Komatsu Interchange, both of which are on the Hokuriku Expressway. Forty minutes from downtown Kanazawa and 20 minutes from Komatsu Airport. To JR Hokuriku Kaga-Onsen Station: By express train, 4 hours and 30 minutes from Tokyo, 2 hours and 30 minutes from Osaka, and 2 hours and 30 minutes from Nagoya. To Komatsu Airport: By plane, 1 hour from Tokyo, 1 hour and 30 minutes from Sapporo, 1 hour and 15 minutes from Fukuoka, 2 hours from Seoul, 3 hours and 20 minutes from Shanghai, and 4 hours from Taipei. Driving Hokuriku Expressway: Katayamazu Interchange, Komatsu Interchange.