Reviews of Ryokan Sumiya Kihoan

We have a room with private bath (onsen). This is worth it because it gives you the privacy of bathing anytime and alone. The meals provided were also very good. We were served by Mr. Hitomi and he was very very good, attentive and took time to explain to us about the meals and food elements. Overall, a very enjoyable stay at Sumiya.

I had a wonderful stay at this hotel. The staff were exceptionally friendly and attentive, providing excellent service throughout my visit. The included meals were absolutely delicious, offering a great variety of flavors. My room was spacious and comfortable, featuring large, cozy beds. The onsen was a delightful addition, adding a relaxing touch to the overall experience. Highly recommend!

We book the hotel with private onsen, the room and services are great, only one compaint with the dinner and breakfast. Hope they can be improved, dinner was not well prepared but presentation was nice. The meat was really poor quality for shabu while the beef steak contained too much fast for grill by ourselves

The staff were very friendly. The restaurant was very clean, and the kaisaki and breakfast were healthy and hearty meals, highly recommended. However, the large bath was disappointing. Even though it was winter, the washroom was very cold, dark, and cramped. There's nothing nearby, so stay here after sightseeing. It's a two-hour round trip to the city center.

A Japanese-style hot spring hotel worth visiting two or three times. (For a detailed review, please see my other review.)

This was my first time at a Japanese ryokan. It was my first time sleeping in a tatami room, and it was a wonderful experience. Because of its remote location, the inn provided a shuttle bus to pick us up from Kameoka Station. We booked the shuttle through Trip.com's chat service. The kaiseki course meal and breakfast were both delicious. However, the menu was only in Japanese, which I was concerned would be difficult for foreigners to understand. It would have been nice to have an English menu as well. Still, the staff were friendly and helpful, and overall, we had a satisfying stay.

The environment is tranquil, the service is first-class, and the waiters are friendly.

A wonderful place for a couple's getaway! The staff is friendly, the rooms are spacious, and the onsen is wonderful! We highly recommend it.

2025/04/025 The following are the sentences expressing serious dissatisfaction: 1. This time I went to Sumiya Kihoan Hot Spring Hotel, and the experience was really bad. This hotel kept me awake the whole day, and the environment was extremely unsanitary. 2. Going to this hotel is like going to a black shop. There is no courtesy, no service, no basic service, and the sanitary environment is so bad that it is unacceptable. 3. There is no indoor restroom for showering and changing clothes, and the brush and mouthwash cups are not cleaned at all. 4. When we asked the waiter to tidy up the room, he didn't come. We had to ask him several times before he helped us tidy up. When he did come, he was very reluctant. 5. There were small insects on the bed sheets, and there were a lot of small spiders and insects in the private bath. 6. One of the meals only had white rice and a few side dishes, which was totally unacceptable. 7. Hot spring water is like disinfectant and is not hot spring water at all. 8. Coming to this hot spring hotel was a mental torture for me, and I really don’t recommend it to anyone. 2024/04/25 1. This stay at Sumiya Kihoan Onsen Ryokan was a nightmare - I couldn't sleep the whole day. 2. The sanitary conditions here are terrible, which is very different from Japan's usual clean image. 3. It feels like entering a shady shop. The staff are rude and don't even provide the most basic service. 4. There is no indoor toilet for people to take a shower or change clothes, and the toothbrush cup has obviously not been cleaned (attached photo). 5. When we asked for room cleaning, the staff kept ignoring us and only came reluctantly after repeated urging. 6. There were bugs on the sheets and the private onsen pool was full of spiders and all kinds of small bugs. 7. One of the dinners was outrageous - just white rice and a few side dishes, totally unacceptable. 8. The "hot spring water" smells like bleach, which is not what a natural hot spring should smell like. 9. This place not only did not make me relax, but instead became a mental torture. I strongly recommend that everyone avoid it. 25 Apr 2025 1. This stay at Sumiya Kamehoan Hot Spring Ryokan was an absolute nightmare—I couldn't sleep a wink the entire day. 2. The place was shockingly unhygienic, a far cry from Japan’s reputation for cleanliness. 3. It felt like a shady business; the staff showed zero courtesy, and basic services were completely absent. 4. There was no indoor restroom for bathing or changing, and the toothbrush cups were visibly filthy (photos attached). 5. When we asked for room cleaning, the staff ignored us until we repeatedly demanded their attention, and even then, they seemed extremely reluctant. 6. Insects crawled on the bedsheets, and the private hot spring was infested with spiders and bugs. 7. One of the dinners was a joke—just plain white rice with a tiny bit of side dish, completely unacceptable. 8. The “hot spring water” smelled like bleach, nothing like natural hot spring water at all. 9. Instead of relaxation, this place turned into a mental ordeal, and I strongly warn everyone to avoid it.

The stay at this ryokan was incredibly comfortable and authentic. The staff is incredibly helpful, always ready to help, offer advice, and provide directions. They speak excellent English, so communication was seamless. Incredibly clean. The onsen is beyond praise, a 45-minute session exclusively for one person (in my case, for room guests in other rooms). It was like visiting grandma's house in the countryside. The kaiseki experience is simply amazing; afterward, you'll turn your nose up at any sushi. I loved it, 13/10

We stayed here as a group of three, including my elderly parents. Thank you for accommodating my mother's sudden request as she is physically disabled. We were very satisfied with all of the services provided. We would definitely like to visit again. We look forward to seeing you then. Thank you very much!

The Japanese hot spring is comfortable, the tatami room is cozy, the food is rich and delicious, and it is the season for viewing maple leaves

The food, drinks, and service are perfect💯! But there was a small episode. There was a strange noise in the room on the 3rd floor at night, which seemed a bit "not very clean". Fortunately, I was brave. This old hotel has too many stories and it's a bit scary.

Overall it was great! It was a pity that it rained when we checked in. We gave up going to the private hot spring at night because of the rain. Later we chose the indoor public bath which was also very good. The three of us basically reserved it! The kaiseki cuisine at night tasted average, but the cuisine in the morning was a pleasant surprise. The outdoor scenery is beautiful! The attitude of all the service staff was very good. It was a great experience!