Harataki

“Relaxing and traditional stay in the countryside. Absolutely beautiful location on a waterfall.”

Honeymoon trip to Japan. Absolutely beautiful location. Very friendly and helpful staff, limited English but had a voice translator that worked great. Room was traditional and comfortable and staff even brought up our luggage and made up the beds during our private hot spring time. Private hot spri… more

Honeymoon trip to Japan. Absolutely beautiful location. Very friendly and helpful staff, limited English but had a voice translator that worked great. Room was traditional and comfortable and staff even brought up our luggage and made up the beds during our private hot spring time. Private hot spring was super relaxing next to the waterfall and would recommend for couples. Dinner on the waterfall was spectacular multi course meal with a fantastic atmosphere. Warning for Americans, it is a very traditional style of food but highly recommend giving everything at least a try. Women can rent a nicer yukata and there are multiple colors, patterns, and sizes. Take a taxi from the train station, navigating the bus and shuttle without speaking Japanese is a little tricky, save yourself the hassle. By far our favorite place we stayed in Japan and would highly recommend to other couples or those looking to have a relaxing time outside of the big cities.

less

“Beautiful Experience”

Aizu-Wakamatsu was the second stop for our first adventure in Japan. Our language skills are very limited, and knowledge of etiquette quite rudimentary. We opted for the Harataki as a soft-entry into ryokan experience, and for two full days and three nights it was wonderful. First, the front desk … more

Aizu-Wakamatsu was the second stop for our first adventure in Japan. Our language skills are very limited, and knowledge of etiquette quite rudimentary. We opted for the Harataki as a soft-entry into ryokan experience, and for two full days and three nights it was wonderful. First, the front desk staff were very courteous and accommodating, particularly given our limited language skills. Also, we did not expect to be picked up at the onsen bus station, but they sent a car. The dining room staff for both dinner and breakfast could not have been more friendly and helpful. Same for women tending the private bath, and shop. The meals were outstanding. We had half-board accommodation (breakfast & dinner), each meal provided a different combination of table setting, always including a rectangular plate with two items, plus a box with six tasty dishes, plus small braiser that rotated per meal between grill, steamer, and soup pot to which we added fresh vegetable and meat from yet another dish. Then there was a generous buffet, including beverages and deserts. Everything was delicious. Alcohol was available, but billed separately to room. The room was lovely and clean with sea green tatami mats, and a nice view of the trees across the canyon, and the river below. It must be glorious in fall colors. Every night, while we were at dinner, the staff moved the furniture and laid out the futon bedding. The bathroom and toilet felt a bit tight, but were clean and very functional. We opted for the private onsen bath, rather than the public, selecting the oval ceramic Moon tubs from three choices offered, with splendid setting just above the river. The bus station is about 600m from the hotel. A nice walk, morning and evening. A day pass for the buses that loop in opposite directions gives easy access to the town. We enjoyed the castle grounds, nearby museum, the herbal garden (beautiful), and old town. Taxis were easy to find or call when needed. Overall, a spledid place from which to explore Aizu-Wakamatsu.

less

“lovely spot for an onsen”

By the running stream, ticks all the ideal attributes of an onsen, love the outdoor baths by the stream, excellent kaiseki and good amenities, limited english so be warned but good service throughout even if u struggle to respond. only complaint is room temp is set too warm.

“Nice rooms, unfriendly staff”

To me one of the joys of staying in a ryokan is the attentive service. The facilities here are very nice--it seems to have been recently refurbished--but the staff was so cold. It was very strange. The hotspring bath was fine, but there were only two pools, an uchiburo (inside bath) and a rotenb… more

To me one of the joys of staying in a ryokan is the attentive service. The facilities here are very nice--it seems to have been recently refurbished--but the staff was so cold. It was very strange. The hotspring bath was fine, but there were only two pools, an uchiburo (inside bath) and a rotenburo (outside bath) and I confess I like a bit more variety. I recommend Shintaki which is a bit closer to the station, cheaper, and has a very friendly staff and lots of baths.

less