Our stay at the Mountain Hotel was incredibly relaxing. There were only Japanese guests staying at the hotel, and it seemed like it was a lovely sanctuary for them too. There were a lot of children staying at the hotel, which made sense considering the family friendliness of Panorama Ski Resort, and thankfully the kids were very quiet and respectful.

We stayed in a Mountain Room which had been fully refurbished with lovely décor and the room was a decent size by Japanese standards. It had 2 large single comfortable beds and we had very peaceful sleeps and chill out time.

It’s always nice to stay at a hotel with an onsen onsite, and it was great to have a soak after the body had a battering on the slopes. The onsen baths weren’t that big, especially the outdoor bath, and it seemed rather busy with non hotel guests. It was a shame that the layout of the outdoor baths wasn’t better planned to take in mountain views. One of the baths overlooked some neighbouring mountains but the views were only accessible for 1 person sitting in the corner. The other rotenburo mostly overlooked the car park which wasn’t that picturesque and the experience was not a patch on a few of the nearby onsen in Matsukawa for example. Nevertheless, the onsen experience was very relaxing and we’ve probably just become onsen snobs!

We had breakfast at the hotel, which was a very high quality buffet with an array of options, and the views at both ends of the restaurant were very nice. We didn’t have dinner at the hotel but we heard that it is exceptional, and reasonable value if you get it included in your package. Unfortunately we didn’t, and at 7,250 yen per person, dinner was a little costly for us. There were no other dining options in the vicinity of the hotel, so we resorted to preparing a very simple meal in our room.

Overall, we recommend the Hachimantai Mountain Hotel as a great place to stay, although try to get a half board package with breakfast and dinner included. It makes a great base to visit various nearby ski areas.
See our video here