The twin room was very spacious and comfortable. Dinner was superb, even though the choice was limited to 3 set courses. Breakfast was a mix of Japanese and Western buffet. The location is great, with views of Kintaikyo from the restaurant.

The breakfast had a good selection.

The Kokusai set menu meal was very ordinary with ice cold sashimi and bland offerings. The Chawanmushi was nice. You are better off ordering a la carte or pre book Teppanyaki well in advance. We tried to upgrade to a Teppanyaki meal but this was too difficult at 2:00pm for that evening's meal. Everything else was fine.

Wonderful staff and comfortable room. Food was great, including the breakfast buffet which had a great selection of dishes. Location could not be better: close to bus station, great views of the river, bridge, and castle. Onsen was lovely, especially at night.

An oddly stained carpet did not seem in sync with the otherwise wonderful room.

The private onsen in our room was superb. Dinner and breakfast was very delicious showing Yamaguchi prefecture dishes

The main staff of the hotel was amazing and helpful. I am still struggling to learn Japanese, but they managed to come over with good enough english to overcome the language barriers. It is not only within walking distance from the Kintaikyo Bridge, the focus of my visit, it is just across the street. The bus from Iwakuni station is just across the block. Room was larger than expected, separate toilet and shower was a plus and allowed for more free space into the actual room, a usually overlooked value of a good architect. Breakfast was plentiful, varied and delicious. It was the most comfortable bed of the travel so far, having stayed in 5 other hotels in Japan this month. I felt truly welcomed most times (look into what I didn't like for the one exception).

The Second Floor Restaurant. For a hotel of this price range and desired excellence, even if most of its patronage is chinese and japanese, having english speaking staff makes the difference. The language barrier was impossible to overcome and made for a poor dining experience.

location, onsen

bathroom

We had a huge room with a view of the Kintai Bridge, Kikko Park, and the Castle. The actual bedroom with western beds could be blocked off from the rest of the room by shoji screens. There was a sitting area with a low table where your tea service and cookies were replenished every day. There is also an alcove right next to the window with a small table where you could work. There is a large dressing area right outside the toilet room and bath/shower/sink area. There is plenty of room for your luggage. The tatami mats provided a nice fragrance. The hotel offers smaller rooms for businessmen. The public baths were clean with 2 inside pools and 2 outside pools with tranquil scenery. The breakfast buffet offers western and Japanese dishes ranging from eggs, bacon, toast and croissants to local Iwakuni dishes, broiled fish, nato, rolled eggs, ochazuke, salads, and fruit to name a few things. Tea, coffee, milk, and juices were also offered. It was hard not to overeat. The kaiseki dinners were wonderful. Starters, sashimi, grilled oysters, shabu-shabu, sukiyaki, tempura, puffer fish sashimi were among the stand outs.

The bathrooms need to be renovated. Everything was adequate but looking a little shabby. Also, it took 10 mins for hot water to get up to the 4th floor for showers or private baths.

Excellent staff, delicious food, onsen rotemburo with a view