Kyukamura Minami-Aso

Dinner & breakfast buffet selection fairly decent, the real highlight of this place. Great view and nice little play area in lobby for kids. But the rooms, oh gosh. I can't see how others can give this a 4-5 star rating. Dated is an understatement, but still acceptable. Lack of maintenance & cleanliness is not. Mould everywhere, rusty taps, walls haphazardly patched up. You just get the impression they have totally given up trying.

This hotel is situated in a perfect location to visit both Aso and Takachiho Gorge. There is also a visitor centre nearby. The hotel room was comfortably Japanese style with public onsen. The buffet was great with fresh sashimi, choices of local hot dishes and fruits with strawberries. Staff provided excellent service and responded to my urgent requests satisfactory. I will surely recommend this hotel to others!

The hotel is a bit dated, rooms need some renovation. Futons were a bit dusty and old. But the best parts of this hotel are staffs and the food. - all staffs are really nice and helpful. - dinner and breakfast buffet are better than the expectation. They are not the best in quality but they are good enough and have a huge variety of choices. They provided 6 types of strawberry unlimited and you could also bring them and other desserts, tea and coffee back to your room after the dinner. Addition, the view is also stunning. Definitely, this is one of the good choice to stay around Mt Aso.

Great value! Hotel’s a bit old but extremely value for money. The buffet dinner had 6 types of fresh strawberries! Dinner and breakfast was great! Good Mountain Views too. Air purifier available on request for rooms.

Loved the views and the traditional Japanese tatami styled rooms. It felt like grandma's place back in the 90s. Room was very spacious and tatami beds were comfortable. Location was really convenient with ample of parking and 5mins drive to grocery store. View of mount Aso was absolutely amazing though. Second floor had laundry. Hotel was a bit outdated compared to the photos in terms of amenities and the rooftop was closed during our visit in late September. Hotel was very family-friendly, had play pen for kids and toys in the lobby.

Highly recommend for non-Japanese families like ourselves. In addition to the 5 star service which has become a baseline in all Japanese hotels, staff here seem to have multi-nation origin so quite a few of them speak fluent English. But language is a minor point. The buffet dinner and breakfast is the best as the grandma doesn’t eat beef and seafood and kids don’t take raw food. Yet, everyone was happy during meal time. The highlight is the all u can eat Kumamoto strawberries and dessert which u can bring back to ur room after dinner. Onsen was the best at late night as few were using. Don’t miss the outdoor onzen with view to the 2 mountains.

A nice place off the beaten track. Taking the small line minamiaso train line is interesting ... one of the bridges has been rebuilt several times. If you message them in advance, you can get a shuttle pickup from Takamori station. The onsen is good--the people either ignored me or were friendly (both are fine). Beautiful mountain views. Dinner and breakfast buffets are extensive, and a nice mix of eastern and western foods. That said, the menu is the same each day. There are some nice shrines that are within walking distance, as well as restaurants if you want lunch. Outer camping area is nice for nature walks: we saw a Japanese wolverine and a wild pig one evening. Having a car would make things really great though to be able to visit more remote places. Room was a little dated and ... not dirty, but there are stains on some of the walls and curtains. FYI: a couple staff members struggle with English, but there are 3 or 4 who are excellent and can help.

Poor service, and staff wasn't helpful. we had to set a bed by ourselves. And I suggest not to stay at this ryokan.