5-Star Hotels in Nagano Prefecture, Japan

From the bottom of my heart I would like to express my gratitude to all the staff of the hotel. Your hard work is invaluable! Everything in the hotel is made with love and care. Each piece of furniture is in its place. Everything is harmonious and really magnificent! The service is impeccable. Soft ice-cream and welcome drinks for the guests in the lobby made our waiting for dinner enjoyable over watching a beautiful sunset there. The dinner was amazing with its delicate dishes and polite waiters. Onsen, with its outdoor bath and stunning rooms for women with floor-to-ceiling windows from where you could see the bath itself, is marvellous! I'd never felt such peaceful atmosphere in a ryokan before.

The hotel environment is great, and the room facilities are complete. The minibar isn't free, but the bedding is comfortable. There's a shuttle bus available, and a supermarket nearby. The only downside is the breakfast, which is quite ordinary and doesn't offer a wide variety of dishes.

This hotel is definitely one for the bucket list! The service is excellent, and the food is delicious. They also offer a shuttle service to Karuizawa Station, with a polite driver and soft music playing in the car. My only minor complaint is that the hotel doesn't provide bicycle rentals, but you can easily find rental shops nearby.

We do really love this hotel. It’s on our special occasion and they contacted us prior to arrive if we want to have cake. They also arrange a hand written card which is very cute. The room is spacious with nice decoration, room also have a kitchen and dining area with ding tools. Staff is very helpful and friendly, we planned for a cherry blossom but it’s too soon. She recommends us for a nearby town with full bloom period. I can’t remember her name but she’s great. For next time in Hakuba, we’ll surely stay here again!

Amazing experience as always with the Fufu brand. We stayed at the Hakone one previously and thought it was one of the best hotel experiences we've ever had. Our trip to Karuizawa this time was driven by our intent to try Fufu Kyukaruizawa, and it did not disappoint one bit. From the zen interior to the most attentive and friendly staff to the never-ending dining experiences (yes, even for breakfast it was a multi course menu), we were utterly blown away by our two-night stay. The fireplace in the lobby and in our room was such a pleasant touch even though we stayed during May, our teppanyaki chef personally seeing us out to the lift and bowing until we were out of sight shows how they go above and beyond, and we really appreciated how at each interaction the staff knew and clarified our coming arrangements, ensuring our entire stay was a seamless experience. Fufu remains our favourite Japanese hotel brand. Just wish they had a loyalty program as we are looking to check off all the Fufu hotels in our lifetime.

I brought my own snowboard to Karuizawa. It's a 70-minute Shinkansen ride from Tokyo Station to JR Karuizawa Station. The Shinkansen luggage racks have straps to secure snowboards. After exiting the station, head to the hotel service center (open until 7 PM) located on the far right of the 7/11 convenience store at the South Exit (Pic 7). You can drop off your luggage there and then explore the Plaza unencumbered. Take the brown hotel shuttle bus to B21, where The Prince is located, every hour on the hour and half-hour. Your luggage will already be in your room, but snowboards are not allowed inside. Each day, I'd take my own snowboard on the brown bus to the gondola at the East Building. You can buy ski passes and rent equipment there. Ski pass prices are shown in Pic 6. Only guests staying in the East Building can use the hotel's lockers for ski equipment. The West Building also has a gondola, but it requires a short walk. You can't enter the hotel wearing ski boots, but the Makibi restaurant seems to be an exception. After skiing, take the green bus back to the hotel. Of the two onsen, Hongye Bisen has newer facilities and better views from the outdoor bath. All Prince Hotel restaurants require reservations made via QR code. Pics 4 and 5 show the breakfast at the main building, which is high quality and delicious. From 10 AM to 8 PM, you can enjoy unlimited soft drinks in the bar area. Finally, use the luggage delivery service when checking out. I think The Prince offers the best value for money.

Had a great time at this resort hotel! Rooms are spacious and beds are comfortable! Had a great experience with all the ground staff. Breakfast, Lounge access staff were all excellent! Special thanks to Miyata, the lady in short hair with black jacket and trousers. They were lovely and super helpful and friendly.

The room terrace during the autumn foliage season is truly dreamlike, beautiful in different ways both at night and during the day! It's worth coming just for the terrace and garden alone! A special highlight was leaving a note on Trip.com hoping for a room on the second floor. I didn't have high hopes it would be seen, but they actually arranged it! The service attitude is excellent. After arriving at Karuizawa Station, you can call the hotel to pick you up, and they're very quick, arriving in about 5 minutes. The only minor drawback is that there was a noticeable humming sound in the room, whether it was the heater or some other machine running. It was loud enough that I could still hear it even with earplugs in. I tried turning off all the appliances I could find in the room, but it was still there. At the time, I thought maybe I was just too sensitive to noise, but there was no such sound at the other hotel I stayed at the next day.

Le Grand Karuizawa Hotel & Resort is a perfect place for great views, relaxation and luxury retreat. We stayed on the top of the resort where the view of the Asama Mountain is breathtaking. The room is spacious but cozy. The dinners were very good. We stayed two nights (half board), the two fine-dining French dinners with local ingredients we had were superb. The courses served at the dinners didn’t have any repeat. I will definitely come here again for other seasons.

The place looks exactly like the photos, no exaggeration at all. The entire house is enveloped by nature. In the mornings, I meditated and read in the garden with birds singing in the woods – it truly felt like my body was completely at one with nature. The owner mentioned that this particular unit boasts the largest garden among all their room types and was designed to mimic the architecture of the Kogen Church. The upstairs features an open sleeping area with four futons, which could easily accommodate six people. Downstairs also offers a tatami sleeping area. One thing to note is that sound travels easily between floors, as they are all open-plan rooms. The bathroom facilities are absolutely fantastic! With a built-in drying system and a hairdryer, the floor dries instantly after you shower. All the room amenities felt like they were from premium brands. My favorite item, surprisingly, was the trash can, haha! It's exactly the kind of setup Shanghai's waste classification system desperately needs. I'm already 'sold' on it and planning to get one myself, haha! Guests can also cook their own meals here. The owner's breakfast was not only generous but also incredibly delicious. I'll definitely have to try the steak for dinner next time – I'm sure it's excellent. The owner was incredibly kind and patient, helping us arrange taxis and even providing pick-up and drop-off services. We're very grateful. Karuizawa's summer weather is wonderfully comfortable and refreshing. The hotel's location is also fantastic, within walking distance of the Wild Bird Forest. Just a quick note: breakfast and dinner need to be reserved in advance!