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Reviews of ZEN Hostel

2 out of 5
ZEN Hostel
3031 Hirao, Shimotakai-gun, Nagano, Yamanouchi

Reviews

8.6

Excellent

Rating 10 - Excellent. 24 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 16 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 6 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 2 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 0 out of 48 reviews" "

8.6/10

Cleanliness

8.8/10

Staff & service

10/10

Amenities

8.2/10

Property conditions & facilities

10/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Very chill, run by nice people
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2020

8/10 Good

Fook Wai

Traveled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

10/10 Excellent

Lorena

Traveled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Enjoyed our stay at Zen hostel. The staff was attentive and helpful in planning activities.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2019
Response from Maya on 2019/11/14
Thank you so much for coming and staying with us! We loved having your warm and friendly presence!

8/10 Good

Jon

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Nice on a budget
Cheap, clean, friendly staff, lots of trust, good breakfast
Stayed 1 night in May 2019

10/10 Excellent

luis

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great value and attention to details from the hist
It was a great stay! Everything that you could need was provided! Very friendly environment both the staff and the guest! Special Kudos to Maya who manages the hostel very professionally and welcoming. She provided very useful information as well as the gentleman that was also there!
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019
Response from Zen Staff on 2019/4/16
Thank you so much for your kind review! We hope to have you back again soon!

10/10 Excellent

holly

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great place to stay in Yamanouchi!
Zen Hostel is in a neat, old, traditional Japanese building. The lounge overlooks a pretty Japanese garden which can be viewed through the giant windows making it seem like you are outside. The walls throughout the hostel are adorned with nice photos from around the world. The floor in my private room was covered by beautiful tatami mats on which a futon is placed for sleeping. The futon was a little thin for sleeping on my side (boney hips) but was otherwise comfortable. Everything is clean. The heaters provided kept the room as toasty as I needed but the common spaces are pretty cold so bring warm jammies in the winter for the trip to the restroom. I don't consider this a negative for this hostel as I found it is normal for there to be cold common spaces in places in the low budget range (I wouldn't know about the fancy hotels in Japan). The staff were super nice and speak English. The breakfast options were yummy and reasonable at 600 yen. The dinner menu is limited but my curry was good. The location is perfect, just 5 minutes walk to the bus and train station and close to all restaurants. I definitely recommend this place!
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019

8/10 Good

Nelson, Kuala Lumpur

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Clean hotel, but wifi is slow and too far from metro or JR station
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Kevin

Amazing, non expensive and clean place.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Staff & service
Not bad but expensive for what you get
We stayed at a "private" twin room and once our door was opened by someone while we were away, and another time while we were still inside someone came into our room even though it was locked! It was a mistake but I couldn't recommend the private room if you are concerned about someone entering the room. Furthermore my girlfriend didn't think the room was that clean, personally I thought it was average. Service was nice and it's not far from station. However this area doesn't have many stores or restaurants that are open. I chose to come here because my girlfriend lives close by, but hotels in Nagano city are much cheaper and cleaner if you book in advance. Unfortunately my girlfriend was a bit picky and didn't want to travel to Nagano so I ended up paying more money for less. If you have the choice, stay at a hotel in Nagano city or choose this if you want to be close by some specific tourist attraction.
Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

ANDY, Tokyo

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
個室に泊まりましたが、旅館のような部屋に泊まることができくつろげました。 また、近くの有名温泉旅館と提携していて、追加料金で温泉に入れる仕組みがあり、助かりました。
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018

8/10 Good

adam

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Town stay for snow monkey trip
Convenient for snow monkeys and nice nearby onsen. Employees very kind made nice breakfast and drove us to the station
Response from Zen Staff on 2018/5/17
Thank you for your review and for staying with us.

6/10 Okay

ren

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Beware, this is NOT in Shibu Onsen town!
We chose this hostel by mistake. We thought it was in Shibu Onsen since this what we searched for when booking. Our fault!! We were disappointed to learn this place is in neighboring village and can not provide key to the 9 public onsens in Shibu Onsen. The owner didn’t bother explaining where we got it wrong. He pretended he doesn’t know what we are talking about and offered to sell us entry to an Onsen nearby his place where he has a deal. What is the problem helping us understand the situation? This is not the friendliness and hospitality we got accustomed to traveling around Japan. The hostel itself is ok, very basic and abit unhygienic in Japanese standards. It is quite cheap so you get descent value for money.
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2018
Response from Zen Staff on 2018/5/17
We are sorry to hear that you had an unpleasant experience. We will work to do better in the future. We do appreciate you staying!

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Friendly English speaking staff, good breakfast, private showers, comfy bedding and good location handy for the snow monkeys.
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2017

10/10 Excellent

CC, Sydney

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice Hostel close to the mountains, friendly staff
Out family of 6 stayed in the self contained suite that had our own toilet and bathroom very comfortably.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Modern comfortable
Our party of 5 stayed in a private room with shared bathroom. The traditional tatami room is nice and the staff are great. They serve good choices of breakfast at their lounge area for a fraction on price. Had their fresh fruit smoothies, matcha latte and roll cakes in the afternoon and they are delicious. Totally recommend this place to all travelers.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Modern meets Japanese simplicity
Great value for a private room which was warm and spacious. It was surprisingly quiet considering the paper walls and doors. The common areas seemed new, modern, and clean. The shared bathroom was clean and the shower booths were great, very private. One of very few places without its own onsen or yukatas but you still get some traditional features like the garden off the lounge area and Japanese style rooms with tatami and futons (Japanese floor mattress). The cafe had good prices for drinks but a limited menu. Breakfast was good but expensive. No amenities in the room, not even tissue. You need to rent towels and bring your bedding down to the laundry bins but it was well worth it to save on the cost.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness
Weekend Adventure
It was a wonderful stay. Coming from a warm environment, the cold rooms were a challenge. The heat in the rooms is kerosene. The heater runs for 3 hours and then beeps, and shuts off. So, if you are a light sleeper, this could be a problem. The showers are located on a separate floor-not with the toilets and it is co-ed, with private shower stalls. The shower area was not heated. With an outside temp of 24 F it was quite cool in the showers. Overall we had a delightful adventurous time, but it does take some grit to keep the smile on. The staff were amazing, helpful, funny and kind. Also most importantly...they speak English :).

10/10 Excellent

Yin Ping

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Helpful and budget
We almost couldn't go there when the local train has stopped because of heavy snow. I called them and got a pick up from them as a service, I saw people taking taxi into the town and it must cost a fortune. So they are willing to help on contingency. The paid access to a nearby hotel's onsen is quite good, in a good timing we were in public bath with nobody else. If you go to nearby ski resort(Ryoo for my case), ask for coupon as the discount is really good compare to the original walk in price.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveler

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Freezing but nice staffs
•Freezing almost everywhere •Hot water stopped in the middle of shower •Coffee was terrible... we ordered 2 and the 2nd one was like brown hot water. We didn't mind if they were free but actually paid ¥350 each •The staffs are nice and friendly

10/10 Excellent

NANCY, US

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent stay-close to Snow Monkeys
The Zen hostel is very close to the Yudanka train station and takes no more than 5 minutes to get to. The hostel is very well laid out and decorated. Our room was clean and provided just what we needed- - place to sleep. The facilities ( bathroom and showers)are very clean. The buikding itself is very historical- but has been updated to be quite modern. Each room has its own heaters. Food served here is quite delicious. The owner was kind enough to give us a lift up to the snow monkeys- which is a huge plus. Just make sure you know your way back down or can catch a taxi cab. Enjoyed our stay very much and would most certainly return!!!

10/10 Excellent

Hon Nam

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Super friendly host.
It is a very new hostel. Bright, comfortable, modern. Owner has tastefully decorated the hostel. He speaks good English, friendly and helpful. Price is very reasonable. Best hostel that I have stayed so far.

8/10 Good

YUKAKO

Stayed 1 night in May 2023

10/10 Excellent

DAISUKE

Traveled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2023

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

Traveled with group
Disliked: Cleanliness
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2020
Response from Staff on 2020/8/11
Thank you for your review

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019

8/10 Good

Eidy

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Sep 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Le personnel est très accueillant, l’hotel Est très calme et d’une parfaite propreté. Notre chambre était très spacieuse, avec un petit balcon charmant.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2019

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Stayed 1 night in May 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019

8/10 Good

Suma, Kobe

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
スタッフは良い。チェックインの際、ペーパーに基づいて説明があるので利用に安心できる。ドミトリーの消灯は22時。シャワー個室に脱衣かごがあればより便利と思う。湯田中駅から約5分で近い。駅に近い所にコンビニエンスストアがある。
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019

8/10 Good

Suma, Kobe

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
スタッフは良い。チェックインの際、利用についての説明をペーパーに基づいてしてくれるので安心。ドミトリーは22時消灯。個室シャワーに脱衣かごがあれば便利と思う。
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2019

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
ゆっくり寛げます
ラウンジにある薪ストーブが最高です 歩いて3分ほどの場所にある、よろずやのお風呂に割引で入れるのも素晴らしいです。 スタッフの方はみなさんフレンドリーですし、朝食もおいしかったです
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2018

6/10 Okay

tabitah

Disliked: Room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
良かった。
居心地が良かったです。特に気を使うこともなく、特別にサービスを求めず、滞在重視な方にはおすすめだと思います。朝食が美味しかったです。スタッフも親切です。わが家に帰ってきたようなくつろぎを感じました。
Stayed 2 nights in Aug 2018

10/10 Excellent

Daniel

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Proche de la gare Yudanaka + Super deal Yorozuya
Très bon séjour: le bâtiment est ancien, avec un cachet certain. Espaces bar et lounge au rez-de-chaussée. Staff sympa et serviable. Dans les chambres, les banquettes sont en configuration auberge à l'européenne - c-à-d dos-à-dos plutôt que côte-à-côte, avec des rideaux sur le côté. Je suppose qu'installer des capsules aurait dénaturé le bâtiment. Elles sont confortables, pas de souci. Il n'y a que 4 douches dans la salle de bain (il y a peut-être d'autres sdb?), donc il y aurait un risque d'embouteillage - SAUF QUE: l’hôtel a un super deal avec le Yorozuya à proximité: il est possible d'accéder à leurs bains intérieur (on se croirait dans un temple en bois) et extérieur pour 800 yens, de 22 à 00h. De quoi profiter d'une super expérience d'onsen, et d’être sûr de ne pas faire la queue à la douche le lendemain, si l’hôtel est plein. L’hôtel n'est pas loin de la gare Yudanaka - super pratique! Le quartier est moins pittoresque que Shibu Onsen, mais en fonction des lieux que vous comptez voir il est potentiellement mieux situé (plus central) et en tout cas mieux desservi (gare Yudanaka). Pour le Monkey Park, il est assez loin dans les deux cas et il vaut mieux s'y rendre en bus (je m'y suis rendu en vélo: ~10min de Yudanaka Onsen à Shibu Onsen; puis 30min ou plus vers le Monkey Park par le chemin forestier [mais il est vallonné et fatiguant]).
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2018
Response from Zen Staff on 2018/8/7
Thank you so much! We enjoyed having you and hope to see you again!

4/10 Poor

TAKASHI

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
個室を利用しました
【悪い点】 ・寒い日ではあったが、とにかく部屋が寒く、エアコンををフルで動かしても温まらない（部屋の広さに対応しているエアコンではないと思われる） ・ガスストーブも置いてあるのに、物理的に使えない（使えなくしているのか故障しているのか不明で使えない旨の説明等一切無し） ・部屋内に洗面器と水道が付いているのに使えない旨の表示（理由不明） ・広い室内にコンセントが一箇所のみ。古いコンセントで口の間隔が狭くMacのアダプタを挿したら他の機器が使えなかった。 ・お茶や湯沸かしポット等一切無し。ティッシュも置いてない。 ・室内にコタツのような机はあるが、座椅子が無い（座布団はあり） ・共同トイレはとても華奢な造りで、プライベートの確保が完全ではない ・館内に温泉設備が無い（シャワーはあり）のはまだしも、館外の温泉設備へのアクセス情報が無い ・１階がBAR兼レストランになっているが、メニューが置いてない（言えば渡してもらえる）ので何が食べられるか分からない 【良かった点】 ・到着予定が大幅に過ぎてしまったが対応していただけた ・Wi-Fiが使える
Stayed 4 nights in Mar 2018

10/10 Excellent

B.W.Rider, Aichi pref. Japan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
So good stay
Nice and clean hotel close to the station. It was so comfortable stay. So it has nice cafe and bar, we could get good time in morning.
Stayed 1 night in Aug 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveler

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
とても綺麗なゲストハウス
とても綺麗なゲストハウスでした。近くの萬屋という旅館のお風呂に入れるのも良かったです。純木造伽藍建築で、平成15年に国の登録有形文化財に指定された素敵なお風呂でした。
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2017

10/10 Excellent

Jörgen

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Bra plats, en plats att återvända till.
Älskade mottagandet och servicen. Man fick god hjälp med allt man behövde få veta. Värden hade en bra engelska vilket hjälpte. Onsenbesök i närheten går att ordna för 800 japanska yen, ta med egen handduk, allt annat finns på plats på onsen badet. God mat på Zen hostel, speciellt frukosten och den japanska omeletten. Bor gärna där igen i framtiden.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2017

6/10 Okay

Verified traveler

便利な場所
親切なフロントの方でしたし、お部屋も十分なほど広く、快適でした。 湯田中温泉駅まで徒歩圏内ですし、駅前にコンビニもあり、宿の周りに飲食店もあり便利です。宿にはシャワーブースのみですが、シャンプーやボディーソープもあり、駅前に激安の天然温泉、少し歩けば有形文化財桃山風呂のよろずやがあります。 渋温泉も近いです。 古い建物だからなのか、上の階に子供連れのかたがいるとものすごく響きますし、虫も多く、ネズミの声が何度も聞こえました。

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Staff & service
晚上太冷清
我們的房間在3樓，但洗手間和浴室在2樓。晚上整間旅館幾乎無人，走廊又沒開燈，所以去洗手間要很大的勇氣。兩人房裏沒有電視，設備也不多，不過以這個價錢來說也是預料之中。有個男服務員很熱心，可以加分。 順便一提，這旅館後門是個小型墓地。

10/10 Excellent

Aznev, México

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excelente
Perfecto. Está a 3 minutos caminando de la estación de Yudanaka. Quienes atienden son muy amables y hablan inglés. Las instalaciones son muy bonitas. Ideal si vas al Monkey Park de Jigokudani.

8/10 Good

mee, kyoto

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
湯田中中心街のホステル
改装済みのきれい目なホステル。 館内は基本土足で、裏の駐車場も館内からのアクセスが可能。 個室でも部屋での食事は禁止されているが、共有で食事が取れる部屋がある。 調理場はないが、電子レンジと電気ポットがあり、インスタントなら問題なく食事にできる。 キーレスロックで気軽に移動できる。 乾燥室ではないが、スキー、スノーボードの置き場はある。 志賀高原での滑走時には、また利用したい。

8/10 Good

Verified traveler

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
This is great old style Japanese experience, they made it really great to live with.

10/10 Excellent

Hubert

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Un lieu bien placé propre avec de bons lits
Un peu dessus par l'idée que je me faisais du snow monkeys parc. Un attrape touristes même si la ballade pour y accéder est chouette, c'est sympa de voir les singes en liberté. Yudanaka n'a pas grand intérêt en soi. La Guesthouse est agréable bien qu'agitée. Le personnel est pro et serviable, il y a moins de convivialité que dans les petites Guesthouses.

8/10 Good

shimapara, 東京都港区

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
スノーモンキーと、新しい山ノ内と温泉と外国旅行気分が味わえるドミトリーと和室。
外国人だらけの宿泊者に、外国語が飛び交うラウンジ。伝統ある温泉に優待入浴でき、インバウンドに大人気のスノーモンキー見物にも便利。朝ごはんも美味しかった。
スノーモンキー
禅ホステル　外観
朝のフレンチトースト

8/10 Good

Masayuki

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
ドミトリーで外国人のバックパッカーの方も多くいます。オーナーの方もとても親切で居心地が良く、値段以上だと感じました。