สถานีชินาโนะอาซาโนะ × ที่พักชมดอกไม้มีคะแนนอาหารสูงโรงแรม·เรียวกัง

Obuse, the town of Hokusai and chestnuts, is known for its beautiful streetscape that feels almost like a theme park. We arrived a little early by car, so we visited Gansho-in Temple and Jokoji Temple before heading to Masuichi Kyakuden. The ceiling painting at Gansho-in—Katsushika Hokusai’s “Phoenix Glancing in All Directions”—was truly breathtaking. As soon as we pulled up in front of Masuichi Kyakuden, a staff member came right out and efficiently carried our luggage inside. The highly sought-after “Chestnut Dessert Suzaku,” which is notoriously difficult to secure, will be offered from 9/10 this year. Because guests staying at Masuichi Kyakuden receive priority guaranteed access, it becomes even harder to make an Accommodation Reservation for stays from 9/10 onward. Since our stay was before then, making a Reservation was easy. Stepping inside Masuichi Kyakuden, you’re immediately enveloped by the stately atmosphere of the kura storehouse building. Our Room was on the second floor; we chose the Relax Twin style. Despite being in a kura-style structure, it also has a terrace, with plenty of natural light and an open feel. There are also more traditional, calmer kura-style Rooms available; however, we were told they are designed with high ceilings to avoid any sense of confinement. Designed by architect John Morford, the Room is fully Western-style with extensive use of stainless steel—its glass-and-stainless bath is well worth seeing. Amenities are L’Occitane; the refrigerator includes complimentary drinks; plus coffee and tea—everything you’d expect from a high-end Ryokan-style stay is provided, making the Room very comfortable. For dinner, we walked about three minutes to Obusedo Honten (part of the same Masuichi group). Every dish showcased the head chef’s experience and refined sensibility. The soup course, simmered dishes, and grilled items had a Kyoto kaiseki influence—above all else, the dashi was exceptional. The sashimi was fresh and perfectly seasoned as well. Local ingredients were used throughout for very high satisfaction overall. One note: the first items served—lightly dressed Kurakake beans and Matsumae-zuke—are not part of the course menu itself (just so you know). They’re clearly intended as snacks with alcohol—especially sake brewed by Masuichi Ichimura Sake Brewery within the same group—and both paired beautifully with their sake: firm Kurakake beans soaked in elegant dashi alongside Matsumae-zuke packed with rich seafood umami made each sip even better than before. In autumn Obuse becomes all about chestnuts; while we couldn’t try “Chestnut Dessert Suzaku,” we did get to enjoy “Mont Blanc Suzaku,” a Western-inspired take on Suzaku. It’s available at their affiliated shop “Entotsu.” We nearly gave up due to long lines but learned that overnight guests can make Reservations—so we were able to enjoy it without waiting. If you stay at Masuichi Kyakuden, be sure to indulge in one of their “Suzaku”-style chestnut sweets if you can. Overall it was an outstanding stay—we thoroughly enjoyed Obuse from start to finish.

I had previously visited for a day trip to the Onsen and loved both the Onsen and the scenery, so I decided to stay overnight. The meals were excellent, the view from the Room was wonderful, and my stay was very comfortable. Unfortunately, the outdoor bath in the morning was so cold that it hardly felt like an Onsen.\n\nAs it is currently off-season, there was no shuttle bus on weekdays, which made things difficult. Even one round-trip Shuttle Service would be very helpful.

Unlike the Kanazawa Station location, I did not receive a confirmation call about pre-booking the EV charger. As a result, I called several times to Check Reservation, but every call was automatically routed to the call center, and I couldn’t tell whether my Reservation was secured until I arrived. When I explained this at the front desk, an older staff member apologized politely. Thankfully, the Reservation had been made. The EV charger is located behind the Hotel, and there is only one unit. By the way, this staff member provided the best and most professional service I have ever experienced at Route Inn—his attentiveness was outstanding. The lobby offered local Nakano apple juice and chilled sweets, which was a nice touch. The Room had been renovated, but the unit bath was an extremely small old-style type—especially the toilet. There were few restaurants nearby and it’s quite far to the station area, so we used Hanachaya in the Hotel for dinner. Route Inn properties with limited dining options nearby often have Hanachaya. I don’t think this was available before, but they now offer all-you-can-drink: 1 hour for 1,000 yen or 1.5 hours for 1,650 yen. It’s an excellent deal and hard to pass up. The draft beer was great, and they also had three types of local sake. The food was simply good, and the older gentleman working there was very kind. The bill ended up being very reasonable as well—I was satisfied overall. The only downside is that there aren’t many menu items; if you doubled the menu selection, sales and guest satisfaction would probably double too. Please consider it. Breakfast was fine overall, but it was disappointing that there wasn’t any curry here.