Fujinoyu Ebisuya

A small hotel with pretty basic facilities.

Nice place....

The owner moved slowly and was quite old, so you may need to be patient with him. Still, he did his best to sort out our room heater after we used translation software several times to explain that it wasn't working properly. There was a spare heater, which solved the problem. The room was spacious, with a little entrance area, toilet and sink. I especially liked having a kotatsu, the heated table. Cleanliness was okay, though we did notice dust in a few spots. The public bath was a good size and the showers had been fixed. We came for the Ouchi-juku Snow Festival, and the location worked really well. It was near the station and the road up the mountain, so getting around by bus or car was convenient. I'd read mostly negative reviews before the trip and had prepared myself, but the stay turned out better than I expected.

The view from the outdoor bath was beautiful, but the water was lukewarm and the shower there didn't work either. In the women's area there were several wooden carvings of male genitalia, which made it feel awkward. The night before, my wife couldn't get any water in the women's bath, so she couldn't wash and had to just soak in the tub. In the main bath area, mold was visible in many places and none of the three showers worked. When I arrived to bathe, the owner was leaving and walked through the lobby naked. Our room was filthy, with stains on the walls, sheets and towels. The yukata smelled moldy and couldn't be used. We arrived after a long trip hoping to have a bath, but first we had to call out in the hallway because no staff were around. Eventually the elderly owner came and showed us to our room. We paid 14,000 yen for one night in these dirty, run-down conditions. At around 7,000 yen I might have been able to put up with it, but this price was unacceptable. I understand the owner is elderly, but if the inn charges this much, I think someone should be hired to handle repairs and cleaning. It might be okay to stop in for a day visit to the outdoor bath, but I wouldn't recommend staying overnight. We stayed one night. When we arrived, we couldn't find any staff to assist us. Finally after calling down the halls, the elderly owner came to take us to our room. When we got to the room, it was filthy! There were stains on the walls, sheets, and towels. Yukatas also had a moldy smell. We had a long day and just wanted to go take a bath. When I arrived at the bath, the elderly owner was coming out. He walked out of the bath and into the lobby completely naked!! As I tried to take my bath, I noticed mold growing in many places and that NONE of the three showers was working. My wife also stated that none of the water was working in the women's bath either. NO water to wash with at all, just bath water! The next morning, we tried the outdoor bath. While the view was nice, the bath was not very hot and also had no functioning showers. It was also very awkward that the women's bath area had multiple wood carvings of male gentiles. This one night of filthy, run-down, accommodations cost us ¥14,000. I might have let it slide if it were ¥7,000, but this filth and disrepair was unacceptable. I understand that he owner is elderly, but for these prices, someone should be hired to repair the property. If we were just stopping by to enjoy the outdoor bath, it might be ok, but I do not recommend staying at the inn.