Takamiya Rurikura Resort

Our room was upgraded, and it was clean, roomy, and comfortable. The restaurant service stood out as especially good. I’d love to come back, or try one of their other locations in Japan.

The location is hard to beat, right beside the Zao ropeway, which we could see from our window. We had a lovely spring stay, and the food was fresh, nicely presented, and well prepared, even if it wasn’t fancy. The staff were friendly and gave warm, personal service. Inside, though, the hotel feels dated and could use a refresh. The furniture was worn and dusty, and the corridor carpets were stained.

We stayed four nights during ski season, and the staff made the service feel personal after just a couple of days. They picked up on what we liked and preferred. The rooms were spacious, with separate living and sleeping areas, very clean, and facing the ski area. The ski lift is across the street. The ropeway is beside it, but the queues were long, so we took the chair lift up the mountain each day. We were told the wait was about two hours around 9 a.m. Dinner had different choices each night. I liked the pork shabu-shabu best since I’m not much of a beef person. Definitely recommend staying here.

For 20,000 yen per person, we got a large Japanese-style room with a private Onsen, and it felt like very good value. The resort group has seven hotels nearby, and guests can use the Onsen at all of them for free. The staff took good care of us, and dinner’s beef sukiyaki was excellent.