Guesthouse Shitanoe - Vacation STAY 73436v

Perfect location at the Kohechi trail. Enough space for the seven of us. Good supermarket nearby. Friendly owner.

Only 1 toilet and bathroom, both rather archaic.

This is such a unique property that it begs a narrative and not just numerical ratings. First of all, the location is key because the hike from our previous location was so far. It was much more pleasant to break it up and arrive at Kumano Hongu Taisha early, have lunch, and arrive at Yumomine hot springs early before everyone else showed up. I'm not sure how everyone else is doing their mapping, but the trail goes north near this place before dropping south to Hongu Taisha. The place is located in a small village, and the property seems to have been a business next to the river. It's super quiet and the view of the river and mountain behind it is lovely. It's a super safe small town and the door is left open. The host is lovely, and speaks pretty good English. He stopped by in the evening to check in with us. The place is quiet and clean, has beautiful views, but sparsely decorated. My GF says "it needs a woman's touch" ;). There's a grocery store nearby, though the meals provided by the host were outstanding. Breakfast and lunch gets delivered between 6 and 7 AM.

For an overnight on a long hike on a remote mountain, it was totally adequate, and I'm grateful for the location and kindness of the host. But the place definitely has a guy's energy. Super primitive toilet, stainless steel bath tub, minimally insulated, and there was a kerosene heater downstairs that smelled a bit of kerosene. So not really a romantic getaway. Would I stay here again? For a pilgrimage hike, sure.

The host was amazing, helping us a lot

Spacious guesthouse, pleasant view from upstairs window, comfortable futon and pillow. Fresh quality coffee beans and local green tea were provided. The owner checked in each evening. Shoe dryer, fully stocked kitchen, plenty of hot water and other facilities also there.

The compost toilet may not have capacity for a larger group. The floors were unfinished with bare concrete showing in parts. Hand sanitizer and detergent would have been useful. Still quite a walk to get to the Kumano Kodo trail.

A house with potential, if only the hosts would make a little more effort.

No blackout curtains in the loft room (which could otherwise be nice), uncomfortable living area, inadequately equipped kitchen, gas cooker without instructions (constant alarm if used incorrectly and no help from the hosts when contacted), no remote control for the TV (only one channel), dry toilet (or whatever that was - was only used once) and a few other little things.

We kinda messed up our hiking schedule due to the heavy rain. The host is so kind to pick us up. Words cannot express our gratitude.Room is clean and cozy. Very nice view from outside.

After walking part of the Kumano Kohechi trail I was happy to find this little guesthouse. I was the only guest and Netchan the owner had already sent me the code for the keybox so I could check in early. The place has a kitchen, simple bathroom and eco-toilet, and upstairs futon with blanket. All next to the river and convenient. I had pre-ordered dinner and breakfast (which I suggest since there's not much in the neighborhood – they were both delicious and prepared locally), but the real treat was Netchan taking me with his family to a local onsen, the oldest in Japan! Yabai!

Host is a good communicator (English speaker), straightforward entrance (combination provided for key), the unit was comfortable and well located for the Hongu area. The small nearby supermarket (Michinoeki) was surprisingly well stocked. Our host helped with a transfer in poor weather (much appreciated). The view from the bedroom was great.

Part of ground floor is concrete floor and no window coverings in bedroom.