Kijitei Hoeiso

“Wonderful traditional ryokan stay with nature onsen, in room kaiseki dinner and tatami mats and Japanese futons”

Very nice relaxing one night stay to end our busy Japan trip! It’s about $26-$30 taxi from Odawara station, or you can take a train to a bus to get there, or two buses from Odawara to get there. We came in via Shinkansen to Odawara and after our busy travels we decided to just take a taxi to and … more

Very nice relaxing one night stay to end our busy Japan trip! It’s about $26-$30 taxi from Odawara station, or you can take a train to a bus to get there, or two buses from Odawara to get there. We came in via Shinkansen to Odawara and after our busy travels we decided to just take a taxi to and from Odawara and we did not regret it! You can check an app called DiDi to get an estimate of the taxi price. It was pretty on par with what was quoted! Upon arrival, you remove your shoes and are given sandals to wear while at the ryokan. You will not see your shoes again until check out. You’re seated at a beautiful window overlooking fall foliage and trees and given mochi and tea while the room is being prepared. There is complimentary coffee in this area. You are then brought to your room which was basically a suite! We had 4 separate rooms and outside of that was a bathroom and shower room/sink in our private hallway. Two rooms are empty; one is transformed to your bed where your Japanese futon is made up at night. There are tatami mats mostly everywhere. One room has two chairs facing the outside view which was beautiful. A central main room has a tv, phone, and table where kaiseki dinner and breakfast was served. I originally had three stipulations for my first ryokan experience- a private onsen, and a kaiseki dinner in my room, and sleeping on Japanese tatami mats with a futon. 2 out of 3 fulfilled BUT after seeing photos of the onsen here tucked away in lush green foliage adjacent to flowing water, I CHANGED MY MIND AND I DIDNT REGRET IT! I think having a onsen in your room is more akin to a hot tub. It was so relaxing and beautiful with this outdoor onsen being out in nature, with the sounds of the birds and running water, fall foliage, and stars overhead at night. The walk down was truly magical. You can reserve private time after 730pm for 30 minutes so that you can spend some precious moments alone, with significant other or family. FYI you cannot reserve in the morning. Let them know when checking in. They also have an indoor onsen, I did not use it but I checked it out. Near these indoor onsen is where you should thoroughly wash and shower before getting in. There’s also a water station nearby to fill up waters. I was able to have one private session with my husband at night. And the two other times I went, I was alone! Score! Staff was nice and spoke good English. Tamoe helped us and she was great. As mentioned above, a second thing I wanted in my ryokan experience was the kaiseki dinner served IN MY ROOM. I saw a lot of the other ryokans were a shared experience at a restaurant. For this ryokan, we had both dinner and breakfast served in our room in our provided Japanese robes aka Yukata. We wore this the entire time we were there. It was so luxurious and amazing to have this course meal in our room. Kaiseki dinner was largely pheasant which is the National bird of Japan. I loved most dishes but I did not enjoy the pheasant cooked over a fire (chewy). Breakfast was absolutely amazing. The tofu and appetizers were so good! I’m sure there is something in each coursed meal that anyone could find enjoyable. There’s a lot of food and it’s brought out sequentially in courses. There’s a paper that explains what the menu items are. I liked breakfast explanation better because it came with a photo illustration with arrows. The dinner menu was a little harder to interpret since the items did not necessarily look like their description/ingredient. I would recommend making a photo menu with arrows for dinner too! Dinner and breakfast overall was an incredible experience, coursed meal, served in our rooms wearing our robes. I would attach photos here of dinner and breakfast but another reviewer I read didn’t, and I’m happy I wasn’t able to spoil the surprise for myself. I wish drinks were covered during dinner. We paid for oolong tea and sake. I would recommend bringing some of your own drinks for other times to avoid paying their mini bar fees. I think coffee should be included in breakfast but they charged for this. The menu said you can get it from the lounge complimentary but that was just inconvenient. You can request extra towels. We did so since we used our room towels for the onsen. Upon checking out, we were given our shoes and the staff helped us call a taxi. We had a wonderful time and I would recommend for anyone who wants a traditional ryokan stay with an in-room kaiseki dinner and an outdoor nature picturesque onsen. It is not the most modern place but that is the part of the charm. Everything was wonderful and our room was very large. This is not the place for you if you want the hustle and bustle. It was very quiet and we basically just relaxed and slept and wandered around the grounds a bit. I’m not sure if I could personally do two nights here because I think I would be bored. I’m not sure how far everything is. It seemed about an hour to Owakaduni (I wanted to get a black egg) so we skipped that in our itinerary. Something to take note of! One last note: my husband and I wished we had some small gift (since tipping isn’t customary) from our home country for Tamoe who helped us throughout our entire stay with our course dinners, showing us our room etc! She was very sweet and did a great job. We wish we could have given her a token of our appreciation, so if Tamoe sees this, you were amazing and THANK YOU!

less

“Absolutely perfect stay with excellent service”

Absolutely perfect stay! This property has exceeded my expectations! It is the BEST SERVICE i have ever experienced in all my travels. And the food was EXCELLENT! If you want to experience excellent traditional Japanese cuisine, then book this place! You will be amazed with their EXCEPTIONAL level … more

Absolutely perfect stay! This property has exceeded my expectations! It is the BEST SERVICE i have ever experienced in all my travels. And the food was EXCELLENT! If you want to experience excellent traditional Japanese cuisine, then book this place! You will be amazed with their EXCEPTIONAL level of customer service. Don’t mind the reviews whining about them not offering a Western food option. If you want Western food and Western bedding, then this is not the place for you. But if you want proper Japanese kaiseki and experience a proper RYOKAN stay, then this is highly recommended. The private onsen at night was AMAZING!

less

“Heaven on Earth”

The staff was welcoming and dedicated to the inn. Time stood still when you entered the inn, the views and grounds were lush and serene. My husband and I were truly able to relax in the peaceful onsens. Make sure you take advantage of the morning hike by the owner Hara-san. You will learn, see and … more

The staff was welcoming and dedicated to the inn. Time stood still when you entered the inn, the views and grounds were lush and serene. My husband and I were truly able to relax in the peaceful onsens. Make sure you take advantage of the morning hike by the owner Hara-san. You will learn, see and feel the history and the passion of the locals who have been there for generations. Also, we opted to take a relaxing yoga class from one of the lovely staff that took place in a 400 year old structure. The dinner and breakfast were as pleasing to the eye as they were to the palate. I cannot wait to return. This was the highlight of our second 10 day trip to Japan. I’m back home in New York City and I often think of my time at Kijitei Hoeiso.

less

“Pretty good onsen experience ”

Our stay at this ryokan was pretty good. Our room and bathroom are outdated, but the staff were very nice and helpful. Dinner and breakfast were good. We made a reservation for private outdoor onsen experience, which was nice.