Lovely traditional Japanese rooms, great onsen, games room with a huge range of board games, extensive manga collection (all in Japanese, as were the games), extensive selection of good quality food, great views. We thought this was a great place to stay after hiking the Nakasendo trail

Communication before arrival was a bit hit and miss. It was hard to get a clear answer regarding the free shuttle and the local transport options. The free shuttle operates on a set schedule, and needs to be booked in advance or it may not run. In the end it was more practical for us to take the local bus from Tsumago. Then we booked the hotel shuttle to Nagiso station the next morning. It all worked well, but it shouldn’t have been so difficult to get the info! The included meals are buffet style, good quality and an excellent selection. However the restaurant is a very brightly lit cafeteria type space, so the styling could have been nicer.

Exceptional outdoor bath, beautiful! Lovely common areas. Yukata choices were beautifully presented. Nice buffet choices at dinner and breakfast.

No shuttle from Nakasendo trail. We hiked from Nakatsugawa and missed the local bus so we had to hike the 3.2 km along the highway in the dark and in the rain. It was a little treacherous.

A gorgeous, elegant, luxurious Hotel, surrounded by gorgeous mountains and forests, with a fantastic spa (onsen), with outdoors and indoors facilities, and sauna. There is also dinner - as well as breakfast opportunity, which is recommended as nearest town is a 40 minutes drive, with infrequent public transport. The dinner and breakfast are both exceptionally good quality and very generous - 'eat as much as you wish', a very high quality, buffet style service.

It is very far from any town, a 40 minutes drive with a very infrequent hotel shuttle bus service. There is also public transport: a bus service, every two hours, with a bus stop at the Hotel. Taxi is extremely expensive, due to large distance to any near towns.

Open air Onsen was wonderful. Large and not crowded. Breakfast and dinner buffet were very good. Tasty and plentiful. Complimentary wine, beer and highballs, soft serve ice cream were very nice amenities. Staff were very warm.

Tour buses of people was disconcerting but because the hotel is very large, it never felt too crowded. You need to reserve your breakfast and dinner time. Best to do that first thing when you check in if you want an 7:30-8:00am breakfast time or 6pm dinner. We recommend ordering the special beef on ceramic grill, extra. Most guests are Japanese. So Google translate is your best friend.

Fabulous hotel! The place is absolutely stunning. While it’s a bit far from the station and taxi fares can be somewhat expensive, they offer a shuttle service from the station around 4:30 PM, which you can arrange in advance. Both dinner and breakfast are marvelous, and the thermal baths are truly incredible. Unfortunately, we only stayed for one night. Had we known how great it was, we would have extended our stay by at least one more night. It’s the perfect spot to relax and recharge, especially if you’re traveling extensively through Japan

We would love to have stayed for one more night but it wasn’t not possible because we needed to check out and check in again at 4 pm

We walled from Nakatsugawa to the hotel so it was quite a journey. Check in was quick and straightforward. The room was large and had spectacular views of the surrounding area. We had dinner and breakfast, both had large selection of food which was very tasty. The onsen area, especially the outside bath was amazing. After hard day of walking we enjoyed the bath near the waterfall. After that we tried their massage chairs (free to use 24h). The controller was in Japanese but we used the translator on our phones and worked it out in 2 minutes. The hotel offers massages which need to be booked at the reception. In the downstairs lobby near the reception is sitting area with fireplace overlooking outside garden. There is drinks and snack available free of charge to enjoy the view. I would highly recommend staying in the hotel and not only enjoy the surrounding area but also the services that hotel offers.

My sister had a 6mo and I was 27 weeks pregnant and we traveled here to explore the Kiso Valley and the Nakasendo Trail. We are from Tasmania, Australia and Hotel Kisoji was absolutely amazing accommodation, comfort levels, onsen provision and incredible delicious food. I would highly recommend Hotel Kisoji to anyone. They are so accommodating.

Hotel Kisoji is a pretty comfortable chain hotel that provides the basics expected of Japanese hospitality. The room was comfortable and clean and the hot spring was maintained very well. There were both indoor and outdoor options, and the outdoor one was especially clean and comfortable, especially since the weather was cool. Meals were buffet-style, and food standard was good for the price we paid.

The staff were friendly but it was a bit difficult to communicate with the front desk staff. If you want an extra towel, you will need to pay an extra charge. No room slippers are provided, only the usual indoor slippers that are more meant for wearing around the hotel grounds so just bear in mind.

The onsen is great! A large inside bath, 3 outdoor pools and a sauna provides the perfect relaxing treat for a short break. I visited with my husband whilst walking the Nakasendo. We were given a large modern room on the 2/F in the annex, with spacious entrance for our luggage. Futons were comfortable and we slept well. The restaurant can get very busy, prepare to patiently queue, but provides a good variety of food which is very tasty. There is a games room with a huge selection of board games! Overall a great stay and we would visit again.

Location is on a busy mountain road, so you can’t really leave the hotel to go for a walk. It would be even better for guests staying longer than 1 night if the hotel could provide a gym.

The baths are excellent! It's worth coming here just for the outdoor onsen experience. I was a little skeptical about the property, judging by the photos it seemed like a touristy (theme park-ish) hotel. But the Japanese style rooms and the large baths changed my mind!

I have stayed in Tsumago area before, and honestly, this hotel will not provide the 'traditional' feel of the area. It definitely feels catered more to western cultures. If you want to immerse yourself in the atmosphere of nearby towns, I suggest you find a local ryokan or guesthouse. Also, getting to the hotel without a car is a bit of a pain (you need a taxi).