Daimaruya Ryokan

The owner was extremely friendly and kindly drove us to and from the monkey park and station. The rooms are basic, as expected, but they were very dusty and unpleasant to spend time in. A good, thorough clean is what would bring this stay up to five stars. I've seen other guests mention the dust too.

The owners are very, very nice and attentive. The rooms are old and basic, though more spacious than Western ones. The place has its own ryokan with mild temperatures. There's no sewer in the room, just a toilet.

The hotel is close to several restaurants and lots of free public onsen. The owners were friendly and offered a free shuttle from the train station or to the snow monkey park. Check the webcam before going, since the monkeys don't show up some days. Our room was large, which made sorting through luggage easier. Most of the onsen were soothingly hot, but the shared private onsen was too hot to get into. Since it's a natural hot spring and the temperature fluctuates, I'll have to come back and try it again.

The husband and wife hosts were lovely and very accommodating, and their English was great. They picked us up at the station and took us straight to the monkey park, since they said it was a good day to visit before rain the next day. We saw lots of monkeys, which was amazing. At the ryokan, they provide traditional robes, wooden clogs, towels, and a key for visiting the nine onsen around town. The hotel's mixed private onsen was beautiful, and my partner and I liked being able to bathe together, unlike the single-sex onsen we'd visited elsewhere in town and Japan. Everything was as described, and we had a lovely stay. Good value for money, would recommend.