Ajiro Isofune Hotel

They have private onsen baths. Great!

The room and food were good quality, but the service left me very disappointed, especially for what I paid. I won’t stay here again. The towel policy bothered me most. They provided only one bath towel per person, and since I like to bathe once in the evening and again in the morning, I was told to dry the towel in my room overnight and reuse it. That made me uncomfortable. I went to the front desk in the morning to ask for a fresh one, and they handed it over reluctantly, saying there was normally only one per person. I thought guests shouldn’t have to use the same bath towel twice. There’s no washing machine either, just somewhere to hang it to dry, so I worried it would get dirty overnight. Dinner timing was another irritation. I’d been told to arrive punctually, so I got there ten minutes early, only to be told to wait because they weren’t ready. They called me in two or three minutes after the scheduled time. If they ask guests to be punctual, I thought they should be too. During the meal, I moved my plate to make it easier for the waiter to serve the next dish. They told me not to move it because they would do it, and said I might lose track of where I’d put it. Maybe they didn’t understand that I was trying to help, but the explanation didn’t make much sense to me. I was annoyed, and wished they’d at least remembered where I’d left my plates.

The room was spacious and clean, and we were able to relax in the hot spring. We even caught the fireworks just in time. Service was good, and I was very satisfied. There was plenty of rice, so we ate a lot at breakfast and dinner. Both meals were delicious, with dinner offering lots of different dishes and breakfast having so many sides to go with the rice that we went back for seconds.

The private bath was affordable for two people, at 2500 yen plus tax, or 2750 yen total. You can expect to use it for about an hour. The water was hot and warmed me right through. It looked a little cloudy, but the floating bits are mineral deposits, so there’s no need to worry. I went for a day visit. I’d checked that the baths opened at 10 AM, but got there at 9:30. When I asked at reception, they said I could go in right away, so I bathed at 9:30 without waiting.