RETONA HAKONE

We have stayed with our dog at many luxury hotels in Japan and abroad, and this was honestly one of the very best—easily competing for No.1 or No.2. If I were to compare it internationally, it was so exceptional that I couldn’t decide which is better: this stay or The Manor at Capella Singapore. It was a magnificent detached villa suite that stands proudly alongside the world’s top luxury hotels.We stayed for two nights from 9/20 with three family members and our dog. Because a typhoon was approaching, we arrived early, but the staff handled everything politely and smoothly and escorted us to our Room about two hours earlier than usual.Before our stay, I read every Review on IKYU, and I felt that many of the points raised in the past had been improved. I was also impressed by how sincerely they take guest feedback to heart.Since this was a two-night stay costing around 1,000,000 yen, I was slightly concerned about whether the experience would truly match the price—but the sense of exclusivity in the detached Room (No.100) far exceeded my expectations. A dedicated parking space; an approximately 300㎡ private dog run; a two-story layout with two bedrooms; in-room dining available exclusively for this Room; complimentary champagne and free drinks in the refrigerator; private dining rooms when using the restaurant—these thoughtfully differentiated touches made perfect sense and felt genuinely worth it.The meals were especially outstanding—clearly a level above any Hotel we have stayed at before. The matsutake course and clay-pot rice were exquisite, and on the second day of our Multiple Night Stay they prepared an entirely different menu from the first day. For anyone considering RETONA, I strongly recommend staying at least two nights—and if possible, specifically in this villa suite—to truly experience what makes it special. (I’m sure other Rooms are wonderful as well.)It became an unforgettable three days worthy of celebrating my daughter’s 12th birthday and our dog’s 6th birthday. We are deeply grateful to all staff members for their kindness throughout—including their attentive email support even before arrival.If I may mention just one small request: there was a spider web on the ceiling above the sink area. We fully understand that insects are common given the lush natural setting—and it’s something we could remove ourselves—but checking higher areas as well would make everything even more perfect.Next time, we will definitely return as a family to stay in the same Room in spring or summer to enjoy seasonal dishes again. This has become one of my favorite luxury hotels—thank you very much for everything.

We have four dogs, including a Golden Retriever and a Mameshiba, so we always stay in a villa with a private dog run. However, every time we’ve felt that something was always just slightly inconvenient—but RETONA was perfect. Since there’s a splash pond in the dog run, we thought we should bring towels, but there were towels right at the entrance, along with a water tank for dogs and bowls. We also received one complimentary drink per person from the vending machine at the dog-run entrance!! Thanks to that, our dogs were able to run around the spacious dog run to their hearts’ content and slept soundly at night.For dinner, since our dogs are always with us as usual, we assumed the food would end up getting cold—but each dish was served at just the right time: hot items while still hot and cold items while still cold. Everything was delicious—the soup and even the mango vegetable juice—and the appetizers were presented like an afternoon tea set: not only tasty but also beautifully arranged.Whenever we met any staff member, they greeted us with wonderful smiles, and they even helped carry our luggage upon arrival—which was truly helpful for our multi-dog household. The bath in our Room was very spacious as well, everything was spotless throughout, and above all we didn’t feel any drawbacks or inconvenience at all.We travel at least five or six times a year, and during long holidays we often stay about four nights. We would absolutely love to visit again. Thank you very much.