Minshuku Katsuya

I've stayed here a couple of times and I will return again. Why? Well, first of all the location is very convenient. Secondly, the owners are relaxed and kind, and take the time to explain everything. This inn is old, but it is kept clean and I actually like the old-fashioned atmosphere. This place is an unbeatable value for the money. So if you're a traveler like me and would rather stay in a pared-down, simple, less-expensive (but still clean and comfortable) hotel and spend money on other things, this is the place for you.

The location of Minshuku Katsuya is super-excellent. From JR Shirahama Station (Bus Stop S-01), take Bus 12 or 30 to Shirahama Beach Stop (S-15) and then walk forward (to the South) along the road for only 30 meters, turn left and walk for another 100 meters. You will see Minshuku Katsuya on your left at the T-junction. |||Rooms are a bit old, but clean and cozy. Shared toilets are available for both Japanese type and western type (which I recommend Western, unless you are young and don’t have knee problem). Bed and futon are very comfortable, heater is provided free of charge but air-condition is coin-operated. |||Small Japanese garden in the middle of the house is very nice. We can see and admire it from corridor in front of guestrooms. |||There are 2 bathrooms with door lock and you can enjoy onsen yourself of you are not used to when there are not many guests in the minshuku. Onsen here is very comfortable. |||In conclusion, I think Minshuku Katsuya is excellent value for your money. I paid only 7,700 yen + 300 yen for tax a night for Japanese Twin Room and it’s worth every yen. I will definitely stay here again

Positive: The house is very old and therefore sometimes a bit shabby, however very authentic and beautiful. The facilities are simple, but you have everything you need, even four a couple of days. There’s a fridge, microwave and water boiler available. The staff is friendly and helpful. The location is great: within walking distance to the beach, onsen, covenience stores, restaurants and easy accessible by bus from Shirahama station. There are also some bicycles that can be used for free.. Negative: Just one bathroom (women/men one each), so you have to wait sometimes. But as there are so many favourable onsen nearby, you have plenty of other possibilities to bath. My room was towards the street, so in the morning it got a bit noisy because of the traffic..

I don't know why this place has such good reviews. Okay yes, the owner was very helpful despite the language barrier and momma (who smokes like a chimney fyi) even stuck her head out to say hello. My rating of two is ONLY for the service. There was a welcome sign, which was nice. But that's where what's nice ends. First off, my reservation with Hotels.com said I would be charged ¥6,700 (cash), but upon arrival I'm told ¥7,000 for "taxes". It seems very fishy to me.||The entire place reeks of cigarettes. It's disgusting!! You can book a "no smoking" room, but you can bet it has a nice ash tray paperweight decoration. The linens appeared clean, but the walls are badly yellowed with smoke, and there were several water stains on the walls in my room. The paper was warped in many places from what appeared to be water damage. I closed my door to the thick cigarette smoke wafting from the office downstairs, but it still gets in around the rice paper doors very badly. ||There was a "kitchen" available, but it only has a small fridge, toaster, and water kettle. This is the first guest house I've experienced to not have a stove, which being vegetarian in Japan is a big negative. ||There are two baths, and the tiles are sulfur worn as other reviewers mentioned. However, I also found the baths to be sub-par in terms of cleanliness. There are towels available, but if you do stay here and actually choose to bathe I would advise bringing your own. ||For me I was absolutely heartbroken the place is 100% smoking because this was supposed to be the highlight to end my time in Japan. Instead I spent my last day moving to a new hotel. I didn't even bother to ask for a refund because I was so finished with terrible hotels/hostels/guest houses in Japan.

This is a minshuku, not any luxurious ryokan, so it's rather simple and homely, but considering the price, location and very friendly and helpful owners, it's a great place to stay. It's located close to the beach, but on a quiet street. You can take a bus from the train station and the owner will come to meet you on the bus stop so it's no problem to find it. ||||The house is nice and quite spacious, there is a pond and mini-garden in the middle. Everything is a bit old, but it's very clean and well-kept, and has real "Japanese home" feel. Futon beds were very comfortable, and they have their own onsen! We loved it. There are actually two baths, in principle one is for men and that's bigger, and the smaller pink-toned bath for ladies. We used the one for men since we were free to choose (it was mid-October, and there weren't other guests). On the first night of our stay the water was really hot - in the beginning it felt almost painful but when you got used to temperature it was very relaxing, and afterwards you felt great. The next evening the owner must have thought it's not suitable to boil guests, I guess, and to our surprise it was much cooler, sorry to say but we had preferred it hot. If you're foreigner and happen to like your bath Japanese hot, maybe it's good to mention about it.||||They don't offer any meals, but there's a good supermarket nearby, so you can buy food and have a meal, there's a kitchen/dining room for guest use. We were actually very happy about this since it can sometimes be a bit frustrating to be a vegetarian in Japan if you don't speak any Japanese...||||The owner and his mother were very friendly and helpful, really lovely people, always checking if we had everything needed in our room and in the kitchen, and even our laundry was done for us. We really felt welcome. The owner speaks English so communication was quite easy. We'd definitely stay here again.

The other day I stayed one night here with my boyfriend. In a nutshell, this hotel turned into our favorite! | First, location is quite great. Shirarahama beach and a supermarket are located withing walking distance. Also, you can visit other attractions such as Senjojiki and Sandanbeki even on foot from this hotel.| Second, owners of this hotel are such kind. Even though our check-out time was 10:30, they let us put our bags inside. Moreover, in the evening (after the checking-out time) they allowed us take shower after playing at the beach.| Third, even though the time we visited was the busy season, we never met any other guests in the hotel, which made us more comfortable to stay here.

Positive: The location: 3 minutes from Shiharama beach, near restaurants, bus stop and cliffs. The host provides bicycles, towels and a map for free. The room is comfortable (the futons, but not the pillows).. Negative: We were surprised and disappointed with the host's welcome (compared to other reviews we had read). We expected a warm welcome, exchanges but on the contrary, the host is very distant, even fleeing. Something may have changed? The atmosphere is strange. The room is clean but the rest of the house is not. Everything seems to be abandoned. The bathroom is very clad, the 1st floor toilets smell bad. The house is very humid and a bad smell (of sulfur and cigarette) is present everywhere. We won't come back..

Positive: The Koi pond was beautiful had a very calming effect on the place. The price for having your own room in Shirahama was awesome. The onsen/shower was also private which is very rare. 3 min walk from beach, less then a minute walk to the restaurants and the supermarket is about 5 mins. The location is perfect! The host is lovely as well as the friendly obachan. Negative: It’s a bit out dated.