Akaishi Ryokan

The location is quiet and view is good.

No convenience store nearby so must well prepare with food before getting to the place.

The hosts were really kind and provided all sorts of amnesties. For example, after coming back to the hotel from hiking in the rain, our clothes and gears were drenched and we couldnt find any hanging spot in our room. We talked to the host and she said feel free to use the clothes rack and hangers behind the ryokan. We were impressed.

The onsen was smaller than expected and the common facilities such as bathroom and sink could use some improvement.

Best views for Lake Kawaguchiko and Mount Fuji, helpful and friendly staff, even picked us from Kawaguchiko Station. Ryokan was tad pricey but it’s great experience - clean tatami room and onsen was a plus. A great place to stay after our hike on Mt Fuji, wished we could stay for more days to enjoy the town.

a traditional ryokan, the place felt authentic and homely right of the bat. there was even an onsen there, easy to use. and the room in itself was clean, big, and with the standard futons for sleep. Tea and coffee were available, along with a water can to heat up water, and there were several toilets and sinks for everyone to use. The view was amazing - either overlooking the beautiful Kawaguchiko lake, or the majestic Fuji-San! We took long walks along the lake, visiting many good restaurants and cafes near the ryokan, and the roof had a great view of the mountains and the lake, and especially Fuji-San. The older woman running the place was very nice and welcoming, showing us around and telling us about the different facilities of the place. There is a bus running form the ryokan to the Kawaguchiko train station, which runs twice in the morning, at 08.45 and 09.45. It is also not a long walk, about 20-30 minutes by foot.

the place was obviously older than expected, and definitely more worn than the price reflected. While the room we had in itself was clean, our experience was that the rest of the ryokan was not. The toilets were dusty, the curtains, mattresses and duvets were full of mysterious stains, and the onsen especially was old and somewhat dirty. My boyfriend told me that the first time he visited the onsen, he ended up only using the showers, because there was dirt and rust in the waters of the hot bath. I didn’t have the same experience, but I did find the onsen to be tired, worn, and old. the changing room right outside didn’t have a proper door, just some small curtains, so anyone walking by would have seen me changing in there. Luckily for me, no one did walk by. We had booked a non-smoking room, but were told once we got there that all the rooms were smoking rooms. Our room luckily didn’t smell like smoke, but when there were other guests at the ryokan, the corridors and bath rooms would smell strongly of smoke. I am very sensitive about these kinds of smells, and my boyfriend has as asthma, so it wasn’t a great combination. But since the room we slept in and spent time in during the day didn’t smell, it wasn’t a really big problem.