Hot spring Hotels in Kamogawa

The hotel looked great on “paper”, however there is a lot that their web site is not up to date on, and a few other items that need mention. Their sister property, the Kamogawa Grand Hotel, clearly is the primary focus, as the Grand Tower, is being somewhat left behind in maintenance. The Lobby presents well, a little bit of a late 80’s vibe, but well maintained, bright. The accomdations, are in the middle floors of the hotel, the top and bottom floors are owner/ occupant. Exiting the elevator, the first thing I noticed - on floor 12 - was the carpets, totally stained. This followed in the hotel room, the carpets were stained throughout. The room was HUGE, kitchenette, fridge, washer/dryer, large bathroom. Wrap around balcony - I paid a little extra for an ocean view - glad I did - fantastic. So everything was in working order, just a bit dated (80’s again) and you can tell is starting to feel/ look its’ age. So, the ammenities, the pool and “European jacuzzi” - closed, not just for maintenance, they seem to be closed. The second floor, all that remains are some tables, a common area, and the public bath - that was in good working order, no “Supply store”. The restaurant has limited hours, and you need to make reservations. Breakfast is fine, but Japanese style (no surprises), but they would not accommodate an request for extra egg omelette, and lite on the fruit and vegetables. Dinner was AOK, service was modest, but pleasant. Limited Japanese menu, very expensive at that, not a course on there for under 30,000 Yen. lastly, their 33rd floor “Sky Bar” - closed, so no second restaurant / bar. You can run across the street to the grand, make use of their pool / Onsen, Bar and restaurant. However, their restaurant is buffet, again nice hotel pricey, and often booked solid. Would I stay here again - maybe, only if the grand was booked solid. Brute Spot - as you can imagine - the staff were super great!

In February 2022, the sixth wave of Covid-19 had started to ebb. I visited this ryokan in Amatsu-kominato on the southern seaside of the Boso Peninsular to enjoy a quiet stay and onsen bath. I had visited Amatsu-kominato before but it was the first time to stay at this ryokan. The ryokan was much larger than I had expected and was quite busy in spite of the pandemic. This was a surprise for me, as there were very few travelers at the sightseeing spots in the vicinity. It was a cold day and I enjoyed a quick bath in the rooftop public bath. I had ordered an early supper which was served in the guest tatami room I was staying. The southern seaside of the Boso Peninsular is a great place to enjoy fresh seafood and I was looking forward to the meal. I was not let down. Starting from a full set of appetizers using local seafood and including assorted fresh sashimi. the course also included a small grilled half lobster and a simmered red Kinme-dai (a local favorite). Although each dish was not that voluminous, I quickly became full leaving not much room for the red snapper rice and dessert at the end. I took an early bath (which opens from 5am) before breakfast served in one of their banquet rooms. They had quite a decent selection of western style dishes as well as local dishes to help yourself to. The staff were friendly and very efficient. Their room rate is higher than average, but well worth it to enjoy a relaxing break at a seaside onsen ryokan.