Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is in the Nagano prefecture, known for its beautiful mountains and hot springs. We arrived by private car from Tokyo, a 3.5hr trip (stopping on the way for lunch at the delicious Komoro Honjin Omoya an Italian and Japanese restaurant.)
We arrived to the friendly staff at our hotel lobby. Amusingly the kids excitedly exclaimed “Pika Pika!” showing off their mini-sized Pikachu toy from the Pokémon Centre in Tokyo. Later some of the lovely staff would, to our surprise, bring them a cuddly Charmander and Pikachu toy to the room; such is the consideration, kindness and hospitality you can expect at the Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku.
We settled into our ryokan rooms (traditional Japanese inn) which have an elegant and soothing design, including tatami mats and wooden balconies. Later, our beds would be prepared on the floor while we were enjoying dinner and packed away during the morning meal. The service, both in dining and making up the rooms is one of ‘quiet luxury’.
We booked mid-week to assure we could stay in the Superior Suite with Open-Air Bath and the Family Suite. The first room I mention has a private wooden bath built into the balcony, overlooking the lush tree tops and mountain range. Not only would we be at the public onsen daily (a beautiful spot in nature fed by a waterfall) but we also took many baths in our own company.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku was chosen because it is known for its luxurious dining and onsen experience and it is in easy walking distance to the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park.
Once you arrive to the entrance of the park is a 1.6km hike through a forest of Japanese conifers to the monkeys. It is a beautiful walk which we did in the summer on a cool day, given the season we got to enjoy tens of baby monkeys clinging and feeding from their doting mothers. As we are travelling as a family the hotel kindly lent us a wheelchair to make the walk a bit easier for the older generation.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is also very popular in the winter, where you can see the Snow Monkeys in the hot baths and take the hike with crampons for the frozen ascent. We have heard it’s very busy in the winter so we felt gratified to see the plentiful monkeys and babies, without too much of a crowd of fellow tourists.
Another perk of staying in the suite was a private dining space, this is an especially welcome comfort after a few days already in Japan enjoying fine dining in the company of kids. As the hotel is somewhat remote we pre-booked our meals, a combination of Japanese or Western breakfasts and always Japanese dinners. The meals are so delicious, healthy and generous, we haven’t really needed lunch. The service is very good and while we are eating here everyday the food has been delightfully different every time we sit down, usually drawing on yummy local produce.
However, wine lovers should note that the wine list is very limited. Uncharacteristically for Japan, they offer only Japanese wines, and a wider range of traditional Japanese beverages, instead.
There were several handy amenities, such as a little shop selling local snacks and drinks as well as souvenirs and a beautiful garden to summon a meditative feeling. We particularly had fun sampling different kinds of apple juice, which are presented in a row ranked from most sweet to tart. If you want to walk into town, as we did, it’s about 45 minutes downhill on foot to Yudanaka Station and a straightforward 10 minutes or less taxi ride back to the hotel.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is a serene and welcome change of pace. The rooms and hotel overall present quiet space to relax and enjoy a restorative time whether that be a soak at the onsen, time in the massage chair reading your book, chatting with family or eating nourishing food.
