Hotel Jogakura

“Onsen hotel in the mountain”

Located off the mountain road into a forest, it is a hotel with western style building. We arrived a bit late at before 5 o’clock. Check in was smooth. The hotel prepared an English version information sheet for the English speaking guests. We have a deluxe room facing the forest, and it is kind o… more

Located off the mountain road into a forest, it is a hotel with western style building. We arrived a bit late at before 5 o’clock. Check in was smooth. The hotel prepared an English version information sheet for the English speaking guests. We have a deluxe room facing the forest, and it is kind of a suite, with bedroom and living room area separated. There is a small balcony where when weather is good one can enjoy the good scenery. There are two air conditioners in both sides of the room which provide both heat and cool. Other room amenities are provided such as bottle water and coffee. There is no elevator in the hotel so you may have to carry the big bag up or down the steps. Onsen is located on the lowest floor. The outdoor onsen is very good, overlooking the forest. But it seems that the onsen is visible form the parking lot. There is a rest area with massage loungers outside the onsen. The dinner and breakfast are served in two separate restaurants. The dinner we enjoyed gave us a pleasant surprise, the food quality and taste are both very good. Breakfast was buffet style with good quality of food.

less

“Relaxing place near ski lift to Hakkoda”

Accessible by public transport and near hakkoda ropeway. Good choice of food and very friendly staff. Outdoor onsen was good but we could have enjoyed more if only they have removed pile of snow blocking most of the view.

“Decent Scandinavian style accommodation in Mount Hakkoda area”

Coming down from Mount Hakkoda, we drove for a short while to arrive at the hotel for the night. Hotel Jogakura (城ヶ倉), surrounded by virgin beech forest, is a Scandinavian-style resort hotel blessed with majestic natural scenery. With good access to Lake Towada and Oirase Gorge, it is the perfect b… more

Coming down from Mount Hakkoda, we drove for a short while to arrive at the hotel for the night. Hotel Jogakura (城ヶ倉), surrounded by virgin beech forest, is a Scandinavian-style resort hotel blessed with majestic natural scenery. With good access to Lake Towada and Oirase Gorge, it is the perfect base for enjoying the seasonal activities in the area. The hotel has 30 rooms designed with a luxurious, warm and welcoming ambiance, using plenty of wood, reminiscent of European villas. We are staying at the Grand Comfort (グランドコンフォート) Room, all located on the mountain side, and the beech forest can be seen from the spacious living room and bedroom. The scenery changes colours in each of the four seasons, making you forget the passage of time. This western-style room is of 42 sq. metres in size, and got its own open-air hot spring bath. It is pure pleasure to open the windows to look out at the forest, surrounded by cool air and the scent of nature from the mountains, and immersing in the clear spring water. The Simmons beds also promises the best sleep to guests during the stay. Every morning, the chef will select the fresh fish caught in the waters of Aomori, and seasonal local vegetables and beef grown in the area. Dinner is served at the Dining Room with fireplace, where guests can enjoy kaiseki cuisine that changes from season to season. Breakfast is of buffet style and served in the banquet room. Guests can enjoy seasonal ingredients such as local farmers' vegetables and Sakamoto (坂本) poultry eggs. Below was our dinner menu: Sakizuke (先附) - Mushroom with Spicy Konbu (茸汐辛昆布和え), Crab with vinaigrette vegetable (蟹膾), Grilled Eggplant Tofu (焼茄子豆腐) Sashimi (造り) - Blue Fin Tuna (本鮪), Strait Salmon (海峡サーモン), Conch (真螺), Greater Amberjack (寒八) Yakimono (焼物) - Grilled Scallop with Cheese (帆立チーズ焼) Konro (焜炉) - Aomori Beef on Stove (青森県産牛柳川) Futamono (蓋物) - Crab Tofu (蟹豆腐) Konno mono (香の物) - Pickled dry squid and konbu (松前漬) Tome-wan (止椀) - Fermented fish broth (鰊切込み汁) Shokuji (食事) - Glutinous Rice on Snow Crab Shell (ズワイ蟹甲羅おこわ) Dessert (水果子) - Strawberry Cream Mochi (クリーム苺大福) The public bath of the hotel offers an open-air bath which can be used all season. Guests can enjoy the blissful moments while watching the fresh greens, vibrant red leaves, and the strict white silver beech forest in each season, and at the same time listening to the mountain stream of Tori Takizawa (鳥滝沢). There is also an inner bath with a big bath, mist sauna, rain shower and jacuzzi. The onsen is a chloride spring (塩化物泉) with temperature of 50.2 degree Celsius, suitable for healing neuralgia, muscle pain, joint pain, coldness and fatigue (神経痛、筋肉痛、関節痛、冷え症、疲労回復). The bath is also open for day-trip guests from 11:30 to 16:00, but is exclusive for guests from 16:00 to 23:00, as well as 5:00 to 10:00. On the next morning a buffet breakfast was served which was nice and delicious. The overall experience at the hotel was good, as we can enjoy a Scandinavian accommodation for a change. Ground Comfort グランドコンフォートwith two meals for two (44,455 yen)

less

“Expensive, average amenities”

The good; 1) Dinner and breakfast were good. As we stayed 2 nights, the dinner menu were different. On the 2nd night, we had horse meat, it was a pleasant surprise. 2) Clean room 3) Quiet room, you couldn't hear your neighbors 4) Very good service The bad; 1) Expensive. I stayed in another hotel … more

The good; 1) Dinner and breakfast were good. As we stayed 2 nights, the dinner menu were different. On the 2nd night, we had horse meat, it was a pleasant surprise. 2) Clean room 3) Quiet room, you couldn't hear your neighbors 4) Very good service The bad; 1) Expensive. I stayed in another hotel around Oirase Stream, and it was definitely top notch that cost less 2) Onsen was dull, and simple 3) No toiletries in the room, that's a great disappointment 4) WiFi was spotty, and it doesn't always work 5) Extremely dated furnishing 6) No lift

less

“Adequate but not good value for us”

It is hard for me to write this review. On the one hand, there were some very nice features of the hotel, and there was nothing wrong with it, but on the other hand, the hotel was very expensive for what it offered. The positives were that the room was comfortable with an upstairs bedroom and a s… more

It is hard for me to write this review. On the one hand, there were some very nice features of the hotel, and there was nothing wrong with it, but on the other hand, the hotel was very expensive for what it offered. The positives were that the room was comfortable with an upstairs bedroom and a small living room and bathroom downstairs. We had quite a few stink beetles in the room although it was gauzed and probably only a seasonal problem. The building where we stayed was probably built in the 1970’s and the furniture was newer than this but certainly a bit dated. The food was adequate and the staff were very nice. The location was beautiful as we were in the middle of koyo and the trees were at peak autumn colour. The inside and outside onsens were top notch with clean, hot mineralized water and a nice view. The downsides of the hotel were that the meals although adequate, were not as fine or as sophisticated as they have been for some hotels where we paid half the amount. For example at Jozenkei, we stayed in a beautiful hotel for about half the rate and the menu contained 11 courses for dinner with each one looking like a painting. At Jogakura, we always had sufficient, but the tableware was not as beautiful and the offerings neither as attractive nor as sophisticated as at Jozenkei. I also drew the line at sashimi horse meat! The breakfast was buffet and there were many Japanese offerings including scallops, salmon roe, natto, curry sauce and fish as well as several kinds of vegetables and pickles, rice and miso soup. In the Western section there was one cereal –probably puffed rice with some other ingredients, as well as fruit, and salad vegetables, croissants and a couple of other things. As commented above, the staff were very friendly, but no-one spoke much English and it was hard to communicate. There seemed to be a number of tour groups visiting at the same time as us. Would I stay there again? Yes I would if the price was good but for $A2,200 for four nights, it was not the luxury experience I expected.

less