5-Star Hotels in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

My non-smoking room smelled of smoke. Fortunately the staff were exceptional, and I soon received another room. One staff told me that because the room was ”Japanese Style”, and that I had to take the bedding from the closet, move the low table and make up my own futon. I live in Japan and I know what a ”Japanese Style” room is. Ryokans of a good grade will have staff make up the futons. When a hotel is too large, the work of making up the futons for all rooms becomes onerous, however, one wonders why ”five star hotel” if one has to make up one's own futon AND receive education on what a ”Japanese Style” room entails [ I am in the hotel business]. The lobby is bleak and looks cheap. No style, no charm. The seating is ugly and cheap. There are real plants here and there but no cut flowers. Cut flowers are very expensive in Japan. Too expensive for this hotel. The final point is that I booked this specific hotel in order to take a swim. Although the weather was fine, the pool had closed the day before I arrived. The pool was still full of water, perfect and peaceful, but ”closed”. No doubt, this saves on staff and other expenses, in the same way that making up one's own futon does . . . all this is fine for a hostel, but not for a luxury hotel. I have been generous with my star-giving because I like to be kind, and because several of the staff were truly exceptional in their kindness and service, however, we hope that the management will note our comments. Please pay for more staff and please keep your pool open as long as the weather permits. Global warming means pools can stay open longer. :-)

The hotel is right next to the Architectural wonders of Awaji and you can view them with the seaview as a background right from the balcony. The size of the room is also very comfortable. Would also like to recommend booking the breakfast buffet. We have tried two restaurants from the hotel and bought souvenirs from the shop and have nothing to complain about.

Very nice Japanese hotel with good service and facilities (public hot spring bath where women and men are separate and several private hot spring baths that I recommend to book in advance). We also had an amazing massage in the hotel spa. The down side would be that the hotel doesn't offer western beds (only Japansese futons) and that the personnel doesn't speak very good English (but are very nice and are trying their best to help)

Great stay, tasty breakfast buffet, clean comfortable room with wonderful view of Kobe city & harbour, conveniently located near JR Shin Kobe station.

Hands down best stay so far during my 15 days in Japan and the service is really immaculate. I've been to Japan on several solo trips and this is easily one of the most memorable hotels. The staff are really nice and the hotel room view is incredible. The room they upgraded me to speaks for itself, beautiful bathroom and really good amenities. Although the hotel is situated off the mainland, there is a portliner rail service and also a complementary shuttle service to two of the main stations in Kobe city area. Really value for money.

A great ryokan! Located 5 minutes from the Arima bus station. We chose a room with two beds in a European style - we were met by a Russian-speaking girl, she showed us to the room, told us everything. Dinner and breakfast, as in most places, must be ordered at least 3 days before arrival. Please note that check-in is from 15:00 to 18:00. The room is spacious, there is a free massage chair, tea, there is no bath or shower in the room. Since the building is old, you need to be quiet, since there is no soundproofing. We took dinner for 15,000 yen - they offer you a time, at the right time they show you to the table. It was delicious, but not too impressive. I would like to hear more information about the dishes from the staff. The food was brought out quickly, the staff is trying very hard. The dining room looks great. The source itself is quite small, I didn't really like the system with a low partition, but if you want to be alone, or you have a tattoo, you can visit it at night - it is open all day, except for 00:00-01:00 and 09:30-10:30 for cleaning. The water is golden We also took a private bath for 5500 yen/60 minutes, it is 5 minutes from the building, it is quite scary to go there at night, I wanted an escort. There is a hammam and all the necessary accessories.

The view outside the room is great as it is close to Kobe Harbour (not quite sure) but it is pity that the soundproofing not quite well as we can hear noise passed from another guest room. And I don’t recommend the dinner buffet here because the menu is limited Overall it is good ,the surrounding of the hotel is very beautiful

I was assigned to a very dusty room. When I opened the room door, I smelled something unpleasant and stuffy. There was dust everywhere, on the lamps, on the wall in front of the bed, on the door to the terrace...so I had to clean the room by myself. I really wonder if the room was carefully cleaned before it was ready for use. The mattress looked like 20-year old and the bed sheet was outworn, making me doubt if the hotel was really built in 2017. It was the most expensive hotel I booked in Kobe - over 400 USD per night. It was not worth the money. Strongly recommend visitors not to select this hotel.

Great that the hotel has shuttle bus service from Sannoymiya station, and the service is fantastic. It was hassle free and easy to get to the hotel. Other services were great as well, however, the laundry service was less than great. There are not enough washing machines for the size of the hotel, and many guests are always queuing for the washing machine. Also, the bell captain is inconsistent with the way of managing the laundry queue. Sometimes, there is a waiting list for guests to register on, while other times, there is a need to wait in person for the key to be available.

Although Yinhua Hotel is located far away, the environment is very quiet because of this. The hotel rooms and baths face the river, which makes people feel refreshed. The staff are all super friendly and kind, and guests will feel at home right from the start of the hotel. We stayed for three days and two nights and thoroughly enjoyed our stay. The hotel itself also takes good care of its guests. Even on the day of check-out, they will still take the trouble to tidy up the room so that guests can still have a comfortable place to rest before leaving. If I come to Kinosaki again, I will probably stay at this hotel again. Recommended !