Ryokan Shinsen

Seeing its high ratings and being listed among Asia's top 100 hotels, I specifically booked a room with an open-air bath. The price wasn't cheap, costing about 13,000 for two nights. Upon check-in, I found the room didn't have an open-air bath, nor did the bathtub have hot spring water. To make matters worse, the hotel didn't even have a large public bathhouse, which was incredibly disappointing – I felt completely deceived. The hotel staff were polite but slow; it took nearly an hour for them to understand the situation, only to say they didn't know where the mistake was, but that the room type I booked was simply unavailable. Finally, they gave me an older room that probably isn't rented out often (the faucets were old and had no hot water) but did have an open-air bath. That somewhat salvaged the first night. For the second night, since no one had cancelled, the hotel was fully booked, meaning no hot spring rooms were available. We specifically traveled to Takachiho for this trip, thinking we had booked a beautiful hotel for a great experience, but it turned out to be extremely disappointing. The hotel and travel agency spent a lot of time trying to sort things out, which really soured everyone's mood.

It's fair to say it's five-star price with five-star service. They proactively ask about your upcoming plans and, if possible, arrange transportation, such as to the bus station or to the Yakagura show. Dinner was also incredibly delicious.