Find 3-Star Hotels in Yamagata

A wonderful place to stay in. The service was fantastic. The room was huge, much too large for just a solo traveler like me but it would have been perfect if I had brought my wife and child along. The onsen quality was great, albeit the fittings at the shower area were a bit old. The food was hands down amazing and featured great local produce. Honestly there was too much for one person to finish! What I especially liked was that they had a separate room on the first floor where if it was too early for you to check in, you could drop your luggage off, change, and then grab your gear and head to the slopes. Same thing if you intend to charge the slopes a bit more on your last day, just leave your stuff in the storage room, hit the slopes, come back and change out, hit the onsen for the last time, then go off. Definitely recommending this place to my friends visiting Zao.

This ryokan-style hotel boasts a beautiful location on a snow-covered mountain, right next to a stunning ski resort. The accommodations are very convenient, featuring separate shower and toilet facilities within the room. There's also a private onsen available for a small fee, offering a wonderfully private outdoor bathing experience. The hotel provides excellent shuttle services to various destinations; you can easily request a ride to the Zao Ropeway to see the Snow Monsters, as well as to restaurants, the bus station, and more.

The trip was planned few weeks ahead, accommodation options in Zao Onsen are scarce. If there were other options, I probably would not go with this hotel again. - Before arrival, I called the hotel twice using trip.com but no one answered. - There was only one front desk staff handling check-in. I have waited for 20 minutes for check-in and the Indian family has it waited for 35 minutes. There was another staff coming out from the office and acknowledged the queue. However no action was taken despite the long wait by guest. - I inquired about shuttle bus service but the staff at the entrance said “No shuttle bus”. I saw shuttle bus having the hotel name around the Zao Onsen area. - On the first day of room cleaning, the cleaning lady has not replaced the used porcelain cup and Japanese cup. Also no replenishment on tea bags and toilet amenities. At this price point of over USD500 per night, I was quite surprised. - There are 2 onsen places, one outside the hotel and one on the 1F. The outdoor onsen inside the hotel was not opened and the reason is “snow accumulation”. Overall, the room is spacious and clean but the service did not meet the expectations.

Although it is a traditional Japanese-style inn, there are art decorations and piano music playing for a long time, making it feel leisurely and comfortable. The food quality is better than expected, with western elements added, I am very satisfied. The hotel has a shuttle bus service, but no relevant information was provided during the booking process. We walked to the hotel by ourselves, which took more than ten minutes. It was a bit embarrassing in the snow in winter.

The location is just across the road from the central cable car station. It takes about 15 minutes to walk from the bus terminal to the hotel. There is a small slope of about 800 meters. One berth and two meals can eat breakfast and dinner made by the elders every day. There is a laundry and dryer. There is a snow drying room. The hot water supply of the shared bathhouse is unstable. Sometimes there is only a slight temperature and no hot water to take a bath. You can soak in the hot springs every day. It is relatively simple. I still recommend this homestay.

Our family stayed here for two nights from January 2nd. As winter sports enthusiasts, we were thrilled that the hotel is located right below the Zao Sky Cable car! The convenience store is a 15-minute walk, but it's a pleasant stroll to pick up essentials. Suigawa Shrine is next to the hotel, but if you enter through the torii gate from the mountain path, you'll be greeted by a lot of stairs, which might be a bit daunting if you look up from the bottom. The open-air hot spring bath, with its natural free-flowing water, and the slightly hotter indoor bath, felt incredibly smooth and soothing on our tired bodies. The meals offered a wide variety of dishes, and the Yamagata rice was absolutely delicious! Even though it's quite a distance from Tokyo, our whole family definitely wants to come back and stay at Zao Plaza Hotel again.

The hotel's onsen (hot spring) was incredibly appealing and clean. Its location is super convenient, less than a 10-minute walk to both Zao Onsen town and the ski resort. The staff were also very professional and attentive. I experienced this firsthand after checking out: there was an issue with my luggage that I had asked them to ship for me, as the delivery information was incomplete and the courier refused to accept it. The hotel promptly emailed me to understand the situation. Given that I only had two days left in Japan and had already traveled far from Zao, the hotel thoughtfully assisted by explaining things to the logistics company and advocating on my behalf. In the end, they even arranged for a special vehicle to deliver the refused luggage to the nearest JR station's courier counter for immediate arrangement. I am truly grateful for the hotel's assistance and swift action!

After arriving at the bus stop, I found out that there are no taxis in the Zao Onsen area in the summer. I was in a pinch, so I called the inn and they arranged a free shuttle, which was very helpful! As soon as I got off the bus, a staff member greeted me with a smile and quickly carried my luggage into the inn. Once I arrived, all the staff were very polite and pleasant, leaving a very good impression! The man at the front desk was especially kind and warm, and his soft Yamagata accent was very soothing. The hot spring water temperature and quality were excellent, and the open-air bath allowed me to relax and unwind while feeling the nature. It was also very convenient to be able to watch YouTube and Netflix on the TV in my room. There was an event going on, so the menu was different from usual, but the food was excellent. Everything was delicious, and I was especially impressed by the large selection of fresh vegetables and the many options available, including one that catered to vegetarians and vegans! Overall, it was a wonderful inn, but there were some disappointments. Even though the room was renovated and comfortable, the unit bath was quite old and dated. Also, while soaking in the smaller of the two large (small) baths, the bath was so small that body soap and shampoo from people washing their bodies and hair kept getting into the hot spring, which was very unpleasant. It's a real shame to have such a wonderful hot spring bath only to be soaked in dirty water and soaps constantly seeping in. 😢 I really wish this smaller bath would be a private bath where only those who have thoroughly washed themselves in the larger large bath could enjoy a leisurely soak, eliminating the body soap and shampoo.

I used this hotel as a base for my trip to Yamagata. It's about a 15-minute walk from Yamagata Station, but it's within walking distance. If you have a lot of luggage, a taxi will get you there quickly, so don't hesitate to take one if you're concerned. Nanokamachi itself is a tourist area, and you can enjoy walking around the town. I was surprised by how impressive the municipal hospital behind the hotel was. There are many delicious restaurants near the hotel, so you'll have plenty of choices for meals. There's a Lawson convenience store on the first floor of the hotel, which is convenient. The building itself is old, but it's well-maintained, and I had a comfortable stay with no issues regarding cleanliness or security. A spacious public bath is one of the highlights of traveling.

There is a festival around the hotel on the day and the traffic is stopped in various places I can't get to the hotel and call the hotel. The front desk was politely navigated by phone and finally arrived. The front desk waited outside when we arrived and guided us to the parking lot. Ding Ning な Yuan に moved The front desk! Thank you 🤲