Excellent location, right by the harbour, (whilst other hotels are mostly set back up the hill). Our rooms had balconies with private onsens overlooking the harbour - wonderfully relaxing! The buffet restaurant was huge but had lots of choice. Staff were very helpful. There are convenience stores and a post office right outside the main entrance which is great if you are travelling around, as we were. Easy hotel for western tourists but still plenty of Japanese character.
Another good hotel at Hokkaido, hotel buffet is good with many varieties. The hot spring is good with good viewing area to the harbor and watching the snow fall and I think it would be great experience during the summer too.
The room size is extremely generous with a fire place. The bath room size is also great with many facials products. I have nothing to complain and put this one down as my choice hotel to visit this area.
We stayed two nights while visiting the Shiretoko National Park which had spectacular scenery and wildlife. We had a Seaview Room in the West Wing “Okhotsk Club” which was a lovely room, with a view over the working port to the sea. The room was a very good size with two very large twin beds put together as a huge double. We also had an expansive round sofa which looked directly to a fireplace that we did not use. If I stayed here again I would take the next step and select a room with an in-room bath, as we are not Public Onsen type of people. The only issue in room was that all explainations, room guide etc were in Japanese, with no English provided. The breakfast buffet was huge, with mainly Japanese offerings but there were eggs, toast & sausages for those wanting a western breakfast.
Reception staff spoke good English, which we found rare in other Hokkaido Hotels. If you arrive before 2.30pm you will find the reception area in darkness and no-one in attendance. Parking outside the hotel was limited so I would try to arrive before 3pm, however you will not be able to check-in before that time. As Westerners we found this Japan wide policy of 3pm Check-in really frustrating given the wonderful service culture one finds in Japan. To us, if the room is ready and a guest arrives before 3pm, they should be allowed access. I think this policy needs to change before the 2020 Olympics, as Western visitors are going to be very frustrated by this rule. We were checked-in at 2,30pm but of course had to wait until 3 pm to get the key. In this hotel a Receptionist yelled out something in Japanese at 3pm exactly and all the waiting guests raced to the reception desk to collect their keys - it was bizarre.
I traveled here alone for a night stay here because I'd always wanted to visit Shiretoko & Utoro. Can't afford to stay more than a night because I'm only in Japan for a short marathon trip nearby in Abashiri. Will highly recommend this hotel if you are looking for a stay in this area. While it's not the most beautiful or nicest hotel I'd stayed in Japan, I believe it's one of the best. The hotel staffs were all very warm and helpful, especially one of the female staff whom I forgot to ask for her name. I'd made some enquiries about transportation to this area in Jan 2019 after my breakfast because I'm considering coming back again with my husband during our annual vacay. Although the mentioned staff is not very conversational in English, she tried her very best to explain and provide me with the necessary information, even going the extra miles of finding the extra information for me and passing it to me when I was checking out. As for the hotel and nearby (walkable access) attraction, my pictures will speak for me.
stayed for 1n in what was previously called "okhotsk club" room, the one with onsen bath on balcony, and a gas fireplace. very nicely laid out and tastefully decorated room, really enjoyable. the rest of the hotel was nice and stylish too, but obviously caters to a lot of people at the same time. dinner was a buffet - above average for sure but nevertheless a buffet. public onsen was a disappointment: was very 'clinical' - nothing natural about it, no smelly water. given the proximity of shiretoko national park, i was expecting something little bit more 'natural' overall. not a bad place for a very large tourist hotel, but if you're looking for something down to earth, go somewhere else.
