Gasthof Ascot

Way too expensive for a room of such poor quality. No Wi-Fi. Terrible.

Beautiful.

I stayed for three days and ended up killing what I estimate were 10 to 20 insects. Ladybugs and stink bugs kept appearing all over the room despite the doors and windows being shut. It was early spring, with mornings around 2-3°C outside. One evening a fairly large bee was flying inside, too. I told the owner, who half-laughed and said, "You're afraid of bees? Haha," before reluctantly coming in to kill it with a fly swatter. That really angered me. If insects bother you, I strongly suggest staying elsewhere. I also had the uneasy feeling the manager kept coming in and out of my room, though I can't be certain, so take that with a grain of salt. Closed windows had been left open, the air conditioner was off when I returned, and insects appeared unexpectedly. I considered whether he might have been cleaning, but rubbish was still there, tissues hadn't been replenished, and the bath towels were untouched. If that was cleaning, I wondered what he had been doing. The bathroom setup was awful. The private rooms have no bathtub, and the large communal bath had been turned into equipment storage. Staff told me the public bath wasn't available, so I had to use the shower in my room. It felt like being squeezed into a phone booth. My room had a unit bath, and although I thought I could put up with it, it was so dirty, presumably from years of use, that I hesitated. The water pressure was extremely weak, about like a child's elephant-shaped watering can. I stayed in March, and the morning shower was too cold to use, so I went to a nearby public bath at night. Towels were changed only every two days, which struck me as very unhygienic. The hairdryer was also feeble. I can't say if that's typical of older inns, but a light spring breeze might dry your hair faster, and people with long hair could be waiting until sunrise. The manager is another problem. You'll likely meet him when you arrive and need to depend on him for questions or problems, but I found him consistently rude and unfriendly, enough to spoil the trip and make me regret booking. For personal reasons, he was sometimes away from the hotel, leaving no one there to handle issues. There are plenty of smaller things I could mention, but this gives a fair sense of the place. I was told many guests are connected with nearby equestrian activities or competitions. Perhaps people used to insects and plumbing problems might not mind, but I wouldn't recommend this inn to an ordinary traveler, someone hoping to enjoy a trip, or anyone wanting a pleasant stay. If you're curious about the place or want to experience a traditional inn, you can stay at your own risk. The price isn't cheap, and I strongly suggest looking elsewhere. The only exception I'd make is for someone prepared to waste their money and have a terrible time in Yamanashi. Some unusually positive reviews made me wonder if they were fake, from staff, or from acquaintances.

We were a family of three, and the good part was the breakfast: it was tasty and there was plenty of it. The rest made the stay disappointing, especially for the price. There was only a shower in the room, no bathtub, and the water pressure was weak. I imagine that would make winter particularly cold. Pajamas weren't provided. When we asked for a yukata, a Japanese robe, for an extra charge, the staff seemed annoyed and got the price wrong, charging double until we corrected it ourselves. We were told it was on the second floor, but couldn't find it. The innkeeper eventually came, unlocked a storage room, and handed it to us.