Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is in Nagano Prefecture, known for its beautiful mountains and hot springs. We arrived from Tokyo by private car, a 3.5 hour journey (stopping en route for lunch at the delicious Komoro Honjin Omoya, an Italian and Japanese restaurant).
We arrived at our hotel lobby to the friendly staff. The children excitedly shouted “Pekka Peeka!” Showing off his miniature Pikachu toy from the Pokemon Center in Tokyo. Later some lovely staff, to our surprise, brought them a cute Charmander and Pikachu toy in the room. This is the kind of consideration, kindness and hospitality you can expect at Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku.
We settled into our ryokan rooms (traditional Japanese inns) which have an elegant and relaxing design with tatami mats and wooden balconies. Later, our beds were made on the floor while we enjoyed dinner and packed during the morning meal. The service is one of ‘quiet luxury’ in both dining and room making.
We booked midweek to make sure we could stay. Superior Suite with Open Air Bath And Family suite. The first room I mentioned has a private wooden bathroom built into the balcony, which overlooks the lush treetops and mountain ranges. Not only would we be at a public onsen (a beautiful nature spot with a waterfall) every day, but we also took many baths in our company.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku was chosen because it is known for its luxurious dining and onsen experience and is within easy walking distance to Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park.
Once you reach the entrance of the park, there is a 1.6 km trek through the forest of Japanese conifers for monkeys. It’s a beautiful walk we took on a cool summer day, weather wise we got to enjoy feeding dozens of baby monkeys clinging to their mothers. As we are traveling as a family the hotel kindly provided us with a wheelchair to make walking a bit easier for the older generation.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is also popular in the winter, where you can see snow monkeys in hot baths and hike with crampons for a frozen ascent. We heard it gets very busy in the winter so we were happy to see lots of monkeys and children, without the hordes of fellow tourists.
Another perk of staying in the suite was a private dining area, especially welcome after spending a few days in Japan enjoying fine dining in the company of the kids. Since the hotel is a bit remote, we pre-booked our meals, Japanese or Western breakfast and always a combination of Japanese food. The meals are so delicious, healthy and generous, we really don’t need lunch. The service is great and while we’ve been eating here every day the food is delightfully different each time we sit down, usually made with delicious local produce.
However, wine lovers should note that the wine list is very limited. Unusually for Japan, they offer only Instead Japanese wine, and a wide range of traditional Japanese drinks.
There were several useful amenities, such as a small shop selling local snacks and drinks as well as souvenirs and a beautiful garden that invokes a sense of meditation. We especially enjoyed sampling the variety of apple juices, which range from the sweetest to the tartest in a row. If you want to walk into town, as we did, it’s about a 45 minute downhill walk to Yudanaka Station and a 10 minute or less taxi ride back to the hotel.
Kanbayashi Hotel Senjukaku is a quiet and welcome change. The rooms and hotel overall offer a quiet place to relax and enjoy a restorative time, whether it’s soaking in the onsen, reading your book in a massage chair, chatting with family or eating a nutritious meal.
