My biggest mistake of this trip to Yamagata is to book this hotel. It's a good hotel but it's in the middle of nowhere. You will want to stay around the city of Yamagata province which is also called Yamagata city just so you can get to famous tourist spots. However this is 4 hours away from all of these. I had to book another hotel so I can stay 1 day in the city when I wanted to visit these places and the traveling time just completely made me exhausted. It took like 1 day to go to a place and 1 day to go back. It was so terrible, I was crying. This place is closed to Shonai airport not Yamagata airport so I also had to book another flight from Shonai. I wasted so much money for transportation. It was such a terrible experience.
However the hotel is incredibly beautiful with smart design in everything. I loved the onsen very much. If it was just a vacation/restcation for relaxing purpose or isolate yourself from the human word, it's the best choice for you. Since its in the middle of the endless rice field, there is nothing to eat except for paying very high price to eat at the hotel's restaurant. And the food was just okay.
The beauty of this hotel was like a trap. Its like I was blind from its beauty and couldn't see all other disavantages.
I was very impressed with my stay at this hotel. The service was good, the rooms were clean, and the breakfast was varied. If I come back here again, I will definitely stay here again. Most importantly, there is a window with a view and the room is spacious and comfortable.
Located on the top of a business building linking to the Yamagata station.
You won’t have to be worried even if it’s snowing or raining.
A side note to travellers from the hotter climate, the hotel doesn’t supply air conditioning during winter. Instead it has a small webbed facility that allows outside air to flow into the room. This slight chills the room. However during the day, the room will be super hot.
Initially we had a room facing the sun and when we checked in, the room is super hot. Called the customer service only to find out they didn’t have air conditioning during winter and we have to rent a fan from them.
After a slight communication, the customer service is kind enough to upgrade us to a bigger room which is slightly cooler. Big props to the customer service lady! 5 stars service !
The room is spacious comparing to Japanese standard. The location is behind the yamagata station. There is 7-11 and open 24-hr supermarket right behind the hotel.
I love how you can choose the need of cleaning on the television. You can also see the status of the laundry on the television.
There is free drink, free ice cream and free noodle. The noodle is quite good. I like it.
Staff is very nice and helpful.
Ps. Please clean the trouser pressing, it’s so dirty.
The hotel exceeded all the expectations! Would definitely recommend staying here if you are in Yamagata.
The personnel is very polite, very helpful, and tries to make sure you have a pleasant stay.
The hotel is a new building I would say, very close to the station. There is a 7/11 store on the 1st floor which is very convenient.
The room is very spacious, has everything you might need. Also you can take all the necessary items such as face creams, toners, lotions, hair oils, toothbrushes, hair ties, teas, coffees etc. at the front desk.
Absolutely wonderful experience!
The whole hotel gives an old impression.
The air conditioning is centrally controlled and the temperature cannot be set.
The bathtub is small and it's not possible to relax in it.
I think there is a reason why it is cheap.
There is a multi-story parking lot behind the hotel where you can park for 750 yen per night.
I think the Washington Hotel in front of Yamagata Station is several times better.
The room was very large and spacious for a family of three. The hotel was a bit dated, but very comfortable. The beds were not the best, not very supportive on the back and shoulders. Overall, it was a comfortable two night stay in a very nice and convenient area with a lot of restaurant choices within 500 meters.
This Yamagata hotel is excellent, part of the JR Hotels group. It's located right above Yamagata Station. I found it very new and comfortable. The 11 AM check-out time was also a plus. Being right on top of the JR central station is incredibly convenient.
The room was a good size and had no problem opening two large suitcases. The mattress was comfortable but the pillows were too thin.
Breakfast starts at 6:30, which is good for a business hotel, especially the variety of breads is quite attractive. 
There are only about 10 parking spaces outside the hotel. Once they are full, you can park in another large parking lot about 60 meters away.
Great
88 reviews
9.1/10
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NZD 65
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GGuest UserI love Bernese Mountain, and I’m lucky enough to stay here and play with Haruda San (I hope I spell her name correctly). The breakfast and dinners are sumptuous and of good portion.
Staffs are attentive and swift to provide shuttle bus services.
All rooms with no shower facilities, meaning you have to go to public bath area to take shower. For rooms located at west annex, it’s a bit of walk and you need to pass through a short outdoor alleyway. I would recommend to try onsen at No. 1 and 2 site as they are close to public bath area. If you try onsen at other sites, which is at west annex, you need to go to another side of the hotel to take shower before and after the onsen as they don’t provide shower facility during winter.
GGuest UserMy room, shared restrooms, & bath were extremely clean! The home is full of character & clearly well-taken care of.
Right by Yamagata Station & perfect place to shop. Bunch of parks as well, Kajo Park in particular has the Yamagata Castle Ruins. I spent a day going to Ginzan Onsen, further away compared to Zao. Definitely beautiful view but make sure you are aware of the bus & train schedules, because they come by roughly once an hour.
The hostess is as nice as the reviews say she is! A little awkward at first, but she'd chat with me & patient when I tried speaking in Japanese. Very cheery personality! There was an avalanche risk warning, but she reassured me I'll be safe going to Ginzan Onsen. She'd come out to greet or see me off each day. Overall, very pleasant!
Amenities were great! She provided basic necessities without extra charge (toothbrush/paste, towels) AND a yukata!! The futon was already set out for me when I arrived. Each night, when I returned, the bath was ready so I could go straight to showering & soaking. Lastly the amazing breakfast like the other reviews have stated. So cheap for how much food she gives you! Great variety, the rice smelled amazing, & a little different each meal. You come down at the agreed time, sit at a table with the TV on, & eat the meal in peace.
Overall, the best place I stayed at in Japan & will definitely book again when visiting Yamagata! You really get to live the traditional Japanese-lifestyle!
AAnonymous UserMy biggest mistake of this trip to Yamagata is to book this hotel. It's a good hotel but it's in the middle of nowhere. You will want to stay around the city of Yamagata province which is also called Yamagata city just so you can get to famous tourist spots. However this is 4 hours away from all of these. I had to book another hotel so I can stay 1 day in the city when I wanted to visit these places and the traveling time just completely made me exhausted. It took like 1 day to go to a place and 1 day to go back. It was so terrible, I was crying. This place is closed to Shonai airport not Yamagata airport so I also had to book another flight from Shonai. I wasted so much money for transportation. It was such a terrible experience.
However the hotel is incredibly beautiful with smart design in everything. I loved the onsen very much. If it was just a vacation/restcation for relaxing purpose or isolate yourself from the human word, it's the best choice for you. Since its in the middle of the endless rice field, there is nothing to eat except for paying very high price to eat at the hotel's restaurant. And the food was just okay.
The beauty of this hotel was like a trap. Its like I was blind from its beauty and couldn't see all other disavantages.
GGuest UserThe trip was planned few weeks ahead, accommodation options in Zao Onsen are scarce. If there were other options, I probably would not go with this hotel again.
- Before arrival, I called the hotel twice using trip.com but no one answered.
- There was only one front desk staff handling check-in. I have waited for 20 minutes for check-in and the Indian family has it waited for 35 minutes. There was another staff coming out from the office and acknowledged the queue. However no action was taken despite the long wait by guest.
- I inquired about shuttle bus service but the staff at the entrance said “No shuttle bus”. I saw shuttle bus having the hotel name around the Zao Onsen area.
- On the first day of room cleaning, the cleaning lady has not replaced the used porcelain cup and Japanese cup. Also no replenishment on tea bags and toilet amenities. At this price point of over USD500 per night, I was quite surprised.
- There are 2 onsen places, one outside the hotel and one on the 1F. The outdoor onsen inside the hotel was not opened and the reason is “snow accumulation”.
Overall, the room is spacious and clean but the service did not meet the expectations.
GGuest UserWhen making the reservation, I requested an additional breakfast, but when I checked with the hotel, I was told that the hotel didn't ask about my request, rather than saying that the hotel was being strict. I told them that I had made an additional request, and somehow they made arrangements and I was able to have breakfast.
GGuest UserThe one-night, two-meal plan offers great value for money, and the large public bath is a definite plus. You can also opt for a private open-air bath at a reasonable price, which includes both outdoor and indoor options – very relaxing. The room view is also excellent, with beautiful and soothing views of the autumn leaves in the garden.
ZZoeAbsolutely lovely place. At first I thought I'd be uncomfortable with how spaceous the room was (I'm a very jumpy solo traveller), but the room was just so comfy with an excellent view. The heater was a bit hot, but there was an electric fan too, so all was great.
The hotel allows you to have a free 50 minute private bath each night, and the private baths are amazing, able to accommodate up to five persons and with windows to let in the light and stuff. Excellent onsen water -- very acidic and very hot. Takes some time getting used to the heat, but once you do it's a heavenly experience. There are also public baths (free of charge) that you could enjoy throughout the night and into early morning (they're closed for cleaning only during 9-12 in the morning), one indoor and one outdoor, both connected to one another. The outdoor one is a bit small, but it's so refreshing to be able to flee from the stifling indoor onsen to enjoy the crisp winter air while soaking up in the heat.
GGuest UserA wonderful place to stay in. The service was fantastic. The room was huge, much too large for just a solo traveler like me but it would have been perfect if I had brought my wife and child along. The onsen quality was great, albeit the fittings at the shower area were a bit old. The food was hands down amazing and featured great local produce. Honestly there was too much for one person to finish! What I especially liked was that they had a separate room on the first floor where if it was too early for you to check in, you could drop your luggage off, change, and then grab your gear and head to the slopes. Same thing if you intend to charge the slopes a bit more on your last day, just leave your stuff in the storage room, hit the slopes, come back and change out, hit the onsen for the last time, then go off. Definitely recommending this place to my friends visiting Zao.
GGuest UserEven though we called the hotel stating that we would be late for the check-in and dinner as there was heavy snow in the highway. The staff postponed it to 730. However, the snow was so heavy, we lost our way in town and we arrived at 8:10. The staff saying that we were too late and rejected to provide any food for us. we had to walk downhill to the town to find our own dinner. however, on the second night of our stay, we noticed that the other guests were having dinner at 9:10 when we passed by the restaurant. We know that we were late, but I believed that hotel is in the hospitality industry, the staff have to be considerate to the guests. as we were not meant to be late on purpose, just because of the bad weather outside, we couldn’t drive fast. We were in the highway 2 1/2 hours without any food and drink in the hope of arriving on time.
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