Hakone Kowakien Mikawaya Ryokan

It was good. Just no touch pay like the USA unless you’re staying at its sister location then they do. Anyway good service, food and experience for a 5 star Ryokan.

Beautiful and traditional. We had the outside onsen room and it was so cozy

This ryokan is very conveniently located beside a bus stop, which makes transportation easy around the hakone area. They also have a shuttle bus to gora station. We had the room with private onsen, it was so amazing we were speechless! Our half board included kaiseki dinner with crab and japanese style breakfast, which are also 10/10. The whole experience was delicate, the service was attention to detail oriented. The only thing I wish they could improve would be the noise while dining, the sound of the staff walking and handling the plates, as well as one particular staff talking very loudly.

Onsens were too hot and having the sink attached to the toilet took some getting used to but its a nice hotel.

I would give this 6 stars! The theme of the ryokan took us back to retro Japanese era. We enjoyed the indoor and outdoor baths to the fullest. We will definitely plan to come back

I really enjoyed the rooms at the property. The Ryokan style rooms with paper screen sliding doors and tatami mats made the room feel comfortable as well as the western style beds. The meals were served in the dining hall. Overall the property is quite nice and we felt welcomed on check in and during our stay.

across bus stop

Very cozy stay

Private onsen was amazing and the food was delicious!

Great value for the price. Only wish they offered earlier transportation services in order to have a head start on the day

Beautiful stay in a beautiful ryokan with traditional but comfortable decor and furnishings. The staff, the service, the food, the onsen were all superb and we especially loved our spacious suite with amazing views of the countryside!

A lovely Ryokan experience, great food, free alcohol in the evening, friendly staff, but a little bit too expensive.

This is a wonderful, magical trip back in time. The staff is truly dedicated and attentive, and the onsen is terrific.

I’ve been to several different onsen in Japan and this is THE WORST one. Atmosphere was good from outside but as soon as I try to walk in into to my room which was located on 1st fl it started to smell in the hallway like a sewer. I can see they were trying to cover ip with somekind of aroma. Once I walked in to my checked room #100 It stinked like pee all over the room. They had air purifiers that made worst so we turned it off. Went to dinner and came back but still had the stinkyness in the bathroom. Not to mention Broken hanksink faucet too. Went to front desk and complaint to change room but they refused to because they were booked completely, only taking about aroma aroma… Spent well enough $550 / night fir the worst ever onsen and got treated this way. DO NOT RECOMMEND to this onsen. I say again DO NOT RECOMMEND.

Dinner was great (pleasant surprise) and it was lovely to have a small hot springs bath/tub off the deck of our room. Bus was our only option, really, that far up the hill - so would plan some cushion into your day for that when getting around.

Stayed in the main building of this Ryokan from the 19th century. Large room, beautiful view and surroundings. Very charming and conveniently close to a bus stop. There is also a free shuttle. Food was wonderful and plentiful, and the staff was able to accommodate for my shellfish allergies. There are some minor downsides, the bathroom I had, with a bath that has a hot spa faucet (not a full private onsen which some rooms/villas on the property have) did have some dark spots. Similarly the self-serve coffee room while nice feels lower end in quality for the price. Drinks at dinner cost extra (no big deal, just weird it is a separate cost), there is a self-serve free happy hour at 9pm but at that point I was in a food coma with no desire for more drink, so it felt like a wasted perk. Overall, a unique experience but one's expectations should align with the age of the property.

felt old and dusty.

The private onsen was very nice and food was superb.

It was great, albeit slightly old facilities.

We had the superior room with private onsen. While we did not have the beautiful patio view of our friends on the upper floors, the first floor offered private decks with the onsen we used 5 times in one day. It has fencing around for privacy but the stars shone bright at night from the onsen. Outdoor shower as well. Loved the traditional floors, Japanese attire provided for us to use indoors, at all meals, and in the huge extensive gorgeous garden. Indoor ryokan common area shoes and bathroom shoes as well were provided. I thought the kaiseki meals might leave us hungry and be too small like artistic French food. Not at all! While it was gorgeously presented in several rounds, by the end we were absolutely completely and utterly stuffed at both our breakfast and dinner meals both days. All 4 of us were blown away by the quality and amount of food. When breakfast rolled around, we were not yet hungry as we ate so much in the private Ryokan dinner. Yet we finished our breakfasts anyway to honor the chef and fully enjoy this kaiseki presentation. On a different note, there was certainly some street noise as the Ryokan is close to the road, but not a big deal. Easy access to the bus outside the Ryokan was helpful, plus they had a free shuttle from the Gora station. Photos on their website showing the shuttle stop and directions to is from the station were spot on. Staff was super helpful while not all spoke English or very well. Google translate is great.