YamaYuri No Yado

Good.

This was the worst accommodation I’ve ever stayed in. We stayed several nights over New Year’s. The air conditioner remote in the room worked only intermittently, and the humidifying air purifier barely humidified the room at all. It was hot and very dry, and without any humidity one of us coughed all night while the other had such severe dry skin and mouth that drinking lots of water didn’t help. There was only one vending machine with two or three kinds of soft drinks, and they were far too expensive. On New Year’s Day, our symptoms got so bad that we skipped our first shrine visit and went to the holiday clinic. Getting there was difficult too. We struggled to clear the snow off our car in the parking lot, even though our license plate was recorded on the guest list. Just as we were about to leave, an employee’s small car was parked in the road right in front of us. I called to say we couldn’t get out. The owner came and then we had to wait while they cleared snow off their car. A car coming down honked, understandably, since the car was parked in front of the lot on a narrow hill. We eventually made it to the clinic. One of us had a fever over 38 degrees, a swollen and inflamed throat, though they hadn’t noticed the fever; the other had worsening phlegm, coughing, and a runny nose. The terrible room conditions caused this. When we returned from the clinic in the heavy snow, the entrance was closed, the lights inside were off, and there was no heat. Moving rooms meant walking all over the property and using lots of stairs. I think it would be impossible for older guests or people with limited mobility. On the way to our room, we had to use the one elevator, a small, narrow one between the first and second or third floors. Just before 3 p.m., it still held five large green or blue laundry bags full of used yukata and bath towels from cleaning. I told a cleaner in the room right in front of the elevator. She only said, “Oh, you’re right, sorry,” and didn’t move the bags. The two of us managed to get in, but I fell against the bags and hurt my back. After we reached the room, I called the front desk and explained what happened, asking for a pain relief patch. They told me to go buy one at Tsuruha myself. That was the last straw. I thought, “You should consider what caused this before giving directions.” I explained that the bags had been left in the guest elevator and asked if I really had to go out in the heavy snow with an injured back to buy a patch. There were no convenience stores or shops nearby, it would take around 20 minutes, and I didn’t even know if anything would be open on New Year’s Day. They said they would bring one, but it would take time. A man eventually knocked, opened the door when I answered, said only, “I brought the patch,” handed me two, and left. I said, “What?” but got no reply, so I closed the door. The bathroom sink was badly clogged, but we put up with it. When I finally complained, they said they’d come look during dinner. Nothing changed. I asked whether anyone stayed multiple nights in such conditions. They said some people did, but they either rested in their rooms or went out. Cleaning supplies were left in the hallways, more than half the lights were turned off, the heat was off, and there was no consideration for guests staying multiple nights. I asked for an amenity listed in the lending book, but staff hadn’t shared the request with one another, and it never arrived. At breakfast, they brought the wrong drinks both days. A binder with personal information was also left in the hallway. At checkout the next day, my back injury made it take longer to get ready, and the front desk called to hurry us along. I explained that I had hurt my back and that an older guest was taking time to repack. They just told us to hurry. I asked if they could carry our bags, and one man came, took something, and left, even though we also had a suitcase. Soon after, another call said we had to leave the room quickly or pay an extension fee. I asked if we could pay for about an hour if needed. They said it was around 6,800 yen per person per hour, the highest rate I’d ever heard of. After returning home, I checked the terms on the website, which listed 3,000 yen for one hour after checkout, so I wondered whether they had given us false information. I didn’t want to pay that, so I asked them to carry all of our bags because the front desk was far away through stairs and corridors. They asked how many people they should send. I couldn’t know, and said so. They replied, “Understood, I’ll come right away,” then abruptly hung up. The staff showed no consideration. At checkout, I said I wanted them to pay the medical bill because I was going to the hospital. They replied, “We can’t pay because the injury was your own responsibility.” But the large laundry bags had been left in the small elevator guests use, and I fell against them when I rode it. How was that my responsibility? They also kept telling us to pay and leave quickly. I said I was still there because the conversation wasn’t over, but eventually they stopped answering anything and ignored me. Then they said, “This is obstruction of business.” I only wanted to speak to the person in charge and asked them to contact that person urgently since they were absent. I asked for contact details and the company name. The person who said they were the person in charge currently on site told me to look it up myself. When I asked their name and how to write it, they said, “Who cares?” I said the situation didn’t constitute obstruction of business and that I only wanted to talk to the person in charge, but they continued ignoring me. They suddenly picked up my phone from the front desk table, which was just a tiny table with one chair opposite it, and said, “You’re recording this anyway, aren’t you?” Why touch my belongings without permission? My phone had been lying face down as usual. I made them let go and told them not to touch it, but the protective glass on the screen was chipped. Could that instead be property damage? They said the person in charge had gone out and wasn’t answering the phone. I asked them to contact that person urgently, but even 12 hours later I still hadn’t heard anything. While continuing to ignore my questions and refusing to answer, they told the employee carrying our bags, “It’s scary, they’re even recording us,” making an assumption that wasn’t true. We paid over 100,000 yen for two nights and regret spending New Year’s at a place like this. This property needs corrective action, including basic customer service and incident response training, even if that just means attending a general company seminar.

This was the worst hotel I've stayed in, and I regret not checking the bad reviews before booking. Staff seemed completely incompetent, and even the parking was badly managed. If they can't handle parking, they should cut down on reservations. The same goes for meals and service, they should limit bookings to around three groups instead of filling the rooms. The food service was the most frustrating part. We waited 30 minutes with no explanation, and nobody even took our order. Why ask us to choose a dinner time at check-in if this is how it goes?

My husband and I spent one night at Yamayuri no Yado, a small, relaxed inn that suited me well since I don't enjoy big, crowded places. Some parts of the building felt old, but the hot water was really good. The food was delicious, with hearth-baked dishes made from local ingredients. Yamayuri no Yado's own sake was especially good, really, really good. The staff were polite, and I felt at ease during the stay. I'd love to go back if I get the chance. Thank you so much.