This was an absolutely amazing stay that far exceeded our expectations! It was our first experience in a Japanese style room and an onsen, and the room was a delight. Comfortable futons impecably laid out while we had dinner, a lovely highgloss low table with comfortable seating. The tatami flooring was a delight to walk on. There is so much attention to the little details, even slippers ready to slip into in the toilet! The dinner was absolutely fabulous. This was one of the healthiest dinners we've had this vacation, with plenty of vegetables and soup and good quality seafood. The breakfast was also more than plenty with a varried delicious buffet. And the onsen was amazingly hot and calm. I actually intended to leave after a quick dip but immediately returned to it as it was so comforting. The cool relaxation corner next to the onsen is also a very nice touch, as is the tv playing a documentary of the region's culture and nature at a suitably pleasant low volume. The staff is also amazing! Though they don't quite speak English, they are all very kind, attentive, and enthusiastically helpful. Even if you don't immediately see anyone, as soon as you're on the premise looking a bit lost, they will show up to unobtrusively offer their assistance. The souvenir shop is also a very nice touch! With many nice local foods, some of which are also used in their restaurant and nice snacks, cloth and trinkets I hadn't seen elsewhere.

A bit of a downer but no fault of the hotel is that it turns out that during winter, it's quite hard to reach both the foot and the summit of Mount Haguro. All walking paths are closed during winter as they're not kept snowfree. Being the adventurous type we checked and the snow on the paths is between waist to even chin high. The only option if you don't have a car is by bus, as we haven't seen any taxi or shuttle options. During newyear's holidays, which runs from 31/12 till 03/01, the amount of buses is also severely limited. Information on Google Maps might not be correct either, such as the opening hours of the museum Ideha Bunka Museum. This wasn't an issue for us, but a possible point of attention for western travellers is that the rooms don't have a shower or a bath. You're expected to use the onsen, which is a communal bathing area, segregated by gender. (Young kids can join their parent regardless of gender)