Tokachigawa Onsen Sanyoan

“Intimate ryokan”

Tiny 10-room establishment that is best thought of as an annex to the Daiichi next door; you can use the bigger brother's facilities, such as the onsen, but not vice versa. We booked the entry-level room, #256, a 'mountain-facing' 40m2 western-style twin bedder with an outdoor terrace. I thought … more

Tiny 10-room establishment that is best thought of as an annex to the Daiichi next door; you can use the bigger brother's facilities, such as the onsen, but not vice versa. We booked the entry-level room, #256, a 'mountain-facing' 40m2 western-style twin bedder with an outdoor terrace. I thought I should share more about the room, since there's not much info otherwise about them, here and on the website. Although the room is in the lead-in category, it's spacious, with a separate living area, and a bathroom with separate toilet, sink and shower/bath zones. The bathroom contains a lovely cypress bath, which fills (quite rapidly I might add) with the moor spring water the area is famous for (and not just heated tap water). It feels as if the 40m2 does not include the outdoor terrace space. Speaking of which, although the website says that the terrace is unavailable during winter, fact is that the door remains unlocked, and we were told that we could go outside to smoke if we wished. There's an aroma therapy burner and a CD player and you could borrow discs from the lobby. A few things to nitpick about the room. There are no power sockets near the bed at all. Keeping your phone charged or near your bed: pick one or the other. There's also not much of a view from the terrace. It overlooks the carpark, and beyond that, the main road and some farmland. I believe the rooms on the other side of the corridor would get the lovely views of the garden. Service was pretty good. A few things stood out: we had to leave the hotel early after our second (and last) night, but breakfast starts only at 7:30. We emailed ahead to ask if we could eat earlier, but they apologetically couldn't oblige. They did, however, arrange for us to have the buffet breakfast at the Daiichi next door, which starts at 6:45. The lady who tended the bar was also very friendly and engaging, and taught us how to solve the various puzzles they had provided as amusements for guests. Preprandial drinks are free. Finally, the concierge helped us take care of some restaurant bookings, even though they were for outside of our stay. What wasn't that great: nobody was watching the entrance, so when we arrived by car, we had already unloaded all our bags before someone noticed and came out to help. During the Sairinka festival, there's a shuttle bus, shared among various hotels, that leaves from the driveway of the Daiichi at roughly 20:00, with two return journeys at 20:30 and 21:00, if I recall correctly. Sanyoan comes at quite a premium over its sister establishment, and while I liked the intimacy of Sanyoan and otherwise enjoyed my stay, I am not sure if I wouldn't pick the Daiichi the next time I come to Tokachigawa Onsen.

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“A perfect 24 hours”

Blessed with crisp blue skies, we had a marvelous time. I don’t profess to be an onsen expert, but here’s what made this place memorable for me: - The huge lawn at the back of the hotel where we relaxed in the morning sun. Leaves were turning autumnal red and a squirrel was scampering in between t… more

Blessed with crisp blue skies, we had a marvelous time. I don’t profess to be an onsen expert, but here’s what made this place memorable for me: - The huge lawn at the back of the hotel where we relaxed in the morning sun. Leaves were turning autumnal red and a squirrel was scampering in between the trees. - The small onsen in the hotel (which has both indoor and outdoor areas) and the much larger public onsen (again both indoors and outdoors) that is located in a larger hotel interconnected by an indoor walkway. It’s a marvel of Japanese etiquette that the sharing of these facilities works so smoothly. - The complimentary afternoon drinks at the bar overlooking the lawn. - The size of the rooms which have their own decently sized hot tub. - The 11 am checkout. Some places have a 10 am checkout policy which brings an end to the onsen experience all too soon. So, how to get here? It’s a fifteen minute taxi ride from Obihiro JR station which is in turn a 2 hour 45 minute train journey from Sapporo JR station. And what’s the damage? JPY80,000 for two persons sharing one room. Our large room (251) overlooked the lawn and we couldn’t have asked for much more. It sounds a lot but you get a lot - including a super omakase dinner and buffet breakfast.

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“ A tasteful annex to its adjacent sisters”

A short stay of 2 nights (went just before the earthquake). Sipping free wine on its bar, while watching rain pattering gently on leaves over the pasture was soothing. With less than 15 rooms, it felt like we were special guests invited to a private mansion. Both breakfast and dinner lived up t… more

A short stay of 2 nights (went just before the earthquake). Sipping free wine on its bar, while watching rain pattering gently on leaves over the pasture was soothing. With less than 15 rooms, it felt like we were special guests invited to a private mansion. Both breakfast and dinner lived up to its fame in Tokachigawa. Room was very nice, spacious and came with a private bath, with a limitation - this side of the hotel room faces the main road and could be noisy.

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“Peaceful and nice garden view hotel”

We spent 1 night in the room 252 that has a very peaceful and beautiful garden view with private onsen. The room also decorated nicely. This hotel is connect to the Daiichi Takachigawa onsen that is very big and have very big public onsen and nice bridge view. We like the Kaiseki dinner in this h… more

We spent 1 night in the room 252 that has a very peaceful and beautiful garden view with private onsen. The room also decorated nicely. This hotel is connect to the Daiichi Takachigawa onsen that is very big and have very big public onsen and nice bridge view. We like the Kaiseki dinner in this hotel very much.

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