Lotte Arai Resort Hotel

Overall Rating

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel5/52
Lotte Arai Resort Hotel5 out of 5 based on 2 reviews
  • Recommend
    100%
  • Would Revisit
    100%
http://www.powderhounds.com/site/DefaultSite/filesystem/images/Japan/Arai/Accommodation/LotteAraiResortHotel/01.jpg

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel

The Lotte Arai Resort Hotel provides delightfully deluxe accommodation at the base of the impressive Lotte Arai Ski Resort.

The Lotte Arai hotel consists of two adjacent buildings, The Arai and The Lodge. Both buildings offer deluxe western-style accommodations, and you can utilise the extensive facilities and services of both hotel “wings”.

The Lotte Arai Resort Hotel is rather unique for accommodation at a Japanese ski resort. The hotel wasn’t built during the bubble era. Instead it is modern and luxurious, and has all the elements that discerning skiers and snowboarders would seek. 

Where is the Lotte Arai Resort Hotel?

Both hotel wings are located at the base of the Arai Ski Resort. You can ski in to the hotel when the snow's good and it’s just a minute walk to get to the gondola building.

Lotte Arai Resort is located in the Niigata Prefecture of Honshu Japan, and just a little north of Myoko Kogen. To get there from Narita Airport you can catch the train to Tokyo (or Ueno) and then the bullet train to Joetsumyoko train station. The latter takes about 110 minutes.

Lotte Arai Resort is 15km southeast of the Joetsumyoko train station, and from there you can get one of the free shuttles (or a taxi).

To get to Arai from Myoko Kogen, there’s a Myoko shuttle that does a couple of trips a day between Akakura Onsen and Arai Resort (the trip takes about 50 minutes).

Hotel Rooms

The hotel has a large range of room configurations to cater for up to 2 to 4 guests; all with incredibly comfortable western style beds and deluxe bedding.

The superior rooms have a decent amount of space for a hotel in Japan. Located in the Arai building, they offer modern Japanese décor with warm tones.
  • Superior twin – 2 large single beds
  • Superior double – one queen bed
  • Superior family twin – one queen bed and one large single bed (for up to 3 guests)
  • Superior triple – 3 large single beds (for up to 3 guests)
  • Superior family triple – one queen bed & 2 large single beds (for up to 4 guests)
The deluxe rooms are a little larger than the superior rooms, and are housed in The Lodge building. The Lodge has wooden floor boards and other wooden features, and it’s reminiscent of modern and glamorous North American lodge style accommodations with hints of Japanese décor.
  • Deluxe double – double bed (up to 2 guests)
  • Deluxe twin – 2 large single beds (up to 2 guests)
  • Deluxe family twin – 1 queen bed and 1 large single bed (up to 3 guests)
  • Deluxe double twin – 2 queen beds (up to 4 guests)
  • Deluxe quadruple – 4 large single beds (up to 4 guests)
All rooms feature a small sitting area and views of Mt. Okenashi and the surrounding nature. In-room amenities include a TV, telephone, WiFi, kettle, tea set, mini refrigerator, hair dryer, iron (rental), humidifier, safe, bathrobes, yukatas, slippers and provision of toiletries.

There are some inter-connecting rooms, whereby the 2 rooms can accommodate up to 6 guests.

The hotel also has a range of suites with extensive space overall and large sitting areas, catering for up to 4 guests.

Services and Facilities

The Lotte Arai Resort Hotel has a very good range of upscale facilities and amenities:

  • Indoor and outdoor onsen baths
  • Saunas
  • Indoor swimming pool for an additional charge
  • Small gymnasium
  • Day spa with massage and other treatments
  • Various communal spaces to relax or socialise, including a library with amazing picture books
  • Souvenir shop
  • Ski and snowboard retail shop
  • Ski and snowboard lockers
  • Karaoke bar (additional fee)
  • Child care (2 years+)
  • Wifi throughout 
In the gondola building are further facilities and services:
  • Ski and snowboard rental shop
  • Food court
  • International snowsports school
  • Trampolines
  • Indoor bouldering

Hotel Dining and Bars

The hotel offers several dining and drinking options for breakfast, lunch and dinner, ranging from simple fare to buffet meals, to exquisitely prepared cuisine for the discerning palate.
  • The Plate - western-style cuisine with buffet for breakfast including a dedicated chef to prepare freshly made eggs and omelettes. Set menu for lunch and buffet dinner.
  • Japanese Restaurant Asahi – exceptional Japanese cuisine – open for breakfast & dinner that’s usually buffet style or you can reserve a special kaiseki dinner. Set menu for lunch. The restaurant has various private rooms.
  • Cottage Lounge – café lounge serving a small selection of food, coffee, and a small range of alcoholic beverages
  • Bar Ruri – glamorous lounge bar offering great views up the hill for night skiing and a large option of beverages
  • Bakery – nice option for a simple breakfast
  • Library café – get a coffee and chill out
  • Jongno – Korean restaurant specialising in Korean Fried Chicken
  • BECO – restaurant specialising in steak along with a la carte seafood and pasta.
  • Sports Bar – tucked away in the club building. The bar has a few TVs that may be playing the sumo or tennis. It serves some very simple meals and snacks that you could have for dinner if you wanted to save some yen.

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel Rates & Availability

Check-in date
RadDatePicker
RadDatePicker
Open the calendar popup.
Check-out date
RadDatePicker
RadDatePicker
Open the calendar popup.
Rooms
Adults
Children
Room 1
Adults
Children
Room 2
Adults
Children
Room 3
Adults
Children
Room 4
Adults
Children

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel Packages

This property currently has no lifts & lodging packages available.

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel Features, Amenities & Services

Property

  • Bar
  • Communal area(s)
  • Convenience store
  • Fitness centre
  • Heated pool
  • Hot springs/Onsen
  • Hot tub/Jacuzzi
  • Non-smoking property
  • Parking
  • Restaurant
  • Sauna/Steam room
  • Ski lockers
  • Wellness day spa
  • WiFi

Rooms

  • Bath
  • Breakfast available
  • Fridge
  • Non-smoking rooms
  • Private bathroom
  • TV
  • Views
  • WiFi

Services

  • Baby sitting
  • English speaking staff
  • Lift tickets vendor
  • Massage Services
  • Ski rentals

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel Location

Lotte Arai Resort Hotel Reviews

Lovely Hotel

29/06/2020

POWDERHOUNDS.COM

Powderhounds Ambassador
Powderhounds Ambassador

POWDERHOUNDS.COM

Powderhounds Ambassador
Powderhounds Ambassador
  • Recommend
  • Would Revisit
  • Guest Type
    N/A
  • Guest Age
    N/A
  • Admin Rating
    5

Lovely Hotel

29/06/2020
Lots of time spent relaxing in the onsen
We really enjoyed our second stay at the Lotte Arai Hotel. It’s a lovely deluxe western hotel and considering that at many Japanese ski resorts there are dated Prince-type hotels sitting at the base, Lotte Arai is a delightful breath of fresh air. And the cost is only a little more than these hotels from the 80s.

Not surprisingly, the hotel has changed somewhat since it opened when we visited 2 years ago, and it has tried to find its groove and the right balance of operational costs versus price point. The extent of amenities has shrunk, probably because they realised they were way OTT. The day spa has rather limited hours and the amenities housed over near the day spa are no longer in existence or not accessible to hotel guests such as the large gymnasium, the 2nd swimming pool and sensory pool, and the 2nd set of onsen baths (which are now only for day spa guests).

The pool over at the main building now attracts a hefty fee which seemed unusual. The main onsen baths were immaculately clean and aesthetically stunning, and we used to rate it as one of the top Japanese ski resort hotel onsen, but it seems now that they are using some chlorine in the spring water so it’s not 100% natural.

As to be expected, the hotel was much busier than the last time we visited. The service levels have improved significantly, and there also seemed to be more staff that spoke some English. We heard some other guests complaining about the lack of English spoken by staff – the guests must have forgotten they were in Japan! One exception to great service was the Korean restaurant (staffed by Koreans) where the service wasn’t just lackadaisical, but the staff were also rude.

On our last visit the food quality was absolutely exceptional. It was still mostly very good to excellent, but we noticed a major change in the western restaurant in particular. Perhaps this was due to the change in demographic, whereby nearly all the guests there were western and Asian (non Japanese) families with young children. The Plate used to be a sophisticated restaurant, but now it seems it’s moved to more simple family friendly fare without a corresponding reduction in the meal prices. A great change has been the addition of a few more options for dining that are reasonably priced including the sports bar, and they also provide shuttles in the evening to a nearby town where there are izakayas for dinner.

Our hotel room was a little smaller than our last stay, yet it was still rather spacious by Japanese standards, especially the bathroom, but not as big as you’d expect for a deluxe hotel. The beds were incredibly comfortable and the pillows were the proper plush kind. Sleep quality was 10 out of 5!

We would highly recommend the Lotte Arai Hotel with the provisos that you have the right expectations for the hotel. It’s not the same as a North American 5 star hotel with true 5-star service, and it also doesn’t have the same price tag. Not all the staff will speak perfect English (it is Japan after all). As is the case at a lot of Japanese ski resorts (not the high profile westernised resorts like Niseko and Hakuba), there is just the hotel buildings at the base and it’s not a town or village. You have to go with the understanding that you’ll mostly be dining at the hotel and many of the meals may be costly, but then if you want to stay at a deluxe hotel you probably wouldn’t be expecting budget priced meals. Overall, it’s a very nice hotel at a great ski resort.
See our video here

Exceptional Hotel

09/01/2018

POWDERHOUNDS.COM

Powderhounds Ambassador
Powderhounds Ambassador

POWDERHOUNDS.COM

Powderhounds Ambassador
Powderhounds Ambassador
  • Recommend
  • Would Revisit
  • Guest Type
    Couple
  • Guest Age
    36-50
  • Admin Rating
    5

Exceptional Hotel

09/01/2018
No expense has been spared in recreating this hotel
Amzing food
One of the onsen baths
One of the swimming pools
The beautiful Japanese restaurant
The Arai Resort Hotel is very unique for a Japanese ski resort. In a country where many hotels and ski resorts were built in the bubble era and are now looking rather dull and dated, the Arai Resort Hotel offers very modern and delightfully luxurious lodgings. It is a very grand hotel and no expense has been spared in renovating and building this super luxe hotel. The staircase in The Lodge building is fit for a princess, the day spa complex is exquisite, and the other onsen facilities are simply beautiful.

The hotel had only been operating for a few weeks, and there were a couple of facilities not open yet, but otherwise the hotel was fully operational and the level of service was very impressive, especially considering how new the hotel was. Many of the staff speak some English, which makes life easier for Anglophones without compromising the Japanese experience.

The hotel buildings are very conveniently located at the base of the ski resort, right near the gondola station, the beginner chair lift, and the magic carpet for the tubing hill.

We stayed in a lovely superior twin room which was reasonably spacious (especially the bathroom) and offered lovely views towards the ski slopes. The beds were incredibly comfortable and we didn’t hear any noise from the corridor or adjoining rooms, allowing for a blissful sleep.

The hotel had many great amenities but the two (yes one wasn’t enough!!) spa, pool and onsen complexes would have to be one of the major highlights. There were multiple onsen baths to choose from, our favourite being the outdoor jetted onsen with lovely water cascading down illuminated steps and a little sassa grass planted near the bath for good Japanese effect. The swimming pools were also impressive.

Then there was the food – oh my! Much of the dining comes at luxurious prices and for that, you’ll be rewarded with plenty of culinary choices of exemplary quality. The western style buffet was the best buffet we’ve ever had (and we’ve done a lot of buffets!) but the piece de resistance was the Japanese restaurant that offered amazingly exquisite cuisine.

The value for the hotel is currently great (food and accommodation are pricey but of superb quality), and as the ski resort and hotel are in its infancy and the prices discounted, it wouldn’t be surprising if the rates increase as more people discover Lotte Arai.
See our video here
125
/site/DefaultSite/filesystem/images/Japan/Arai/Accommodation/LotteAraiResortHotel/01.jpg