The Prince Hakone Lake Ashinoko

The Hakone Prince Hotel is a stunning embodiment of Japanese hospitality, blending traditional charm with modern comfort. Nestled in the serene beauty of Hakone, it’s a perfect retreat for relaxation, especially for special occasions like our honeymoon. The rooms are spacious, elegantly designed, and impeccably maintained, offering a true taste of Japanese-style luxury. The views from the hotel are nothing short of breathtaking, with nature’s beauty unfolding right outside your window. Hakone itself is an idyllic spot to unwind, and this hotel elevates the experience. However, a slight downside was the Japanese restaurant on-site. While the dinner was enjoyable, it felt overpriced for what was offered, marking the first time we felt the cost didn’t quite match the experience. Overall, we had a wonderful stay and highly recommend the Hakone Prince Hotel for its incredible ambiance, gorgeous views, and tranquil setting - perfect for a memorable getaway!

Disappointing stay – not worth the money This was the most expensive hotel we stayed at during our trip to Japan, and unfortunately also the most disappointing. We booked a fairly pricey room (over €300) expecting a four-star experience, but the reality didn’t come close. The room had a beautiful lake view, but everything felt outdated and in need of a refresh. The hotel is nicely located by the lake, but that also means you’re far away from everything else — no restaurants or shops nearby. So you’re basically forced to eat at the hotel, and they take full advantage of that. We paid nearly €200 for a very basic buffet for three people, with a time limit of just 90 minutes. Not exactly a relaxed dining experience. The food was average at best, heavily focused on pork, which isn’t ideal if you don’t eat it. Easily our most expensive and worst meal in Japan. To make matters worse, a beer at dinner cost €9, and everything comes with a surprise 15% service charge — which feels inconsistent when they claim to follow Japanese tradition (e.g. denying access to the onsen for guests with tattoos). Respecting local culture is important, but it shouldn’t be applied selectively. Navigating the hotel is also a nightmare. The place feels like a maze with confusing signage and no clear direction. This might once have been a great hotel, but now it feels like a trap — overpriced, outdated, and underdelivering. I’m sure there are better options in the area. Would not recommend.

Please read my review before booking here thank you. First of all the staff are mostly fantastic. Liao made us feel very welcome and was a lovely person to deal with and the Fuji views from our room were amazing. But that’s where it stopped being amazing It’s mid summer in Japan when we arrived (30-35c) and the air conditioner didn’t work in our room it was an oven. We advised this to the staff that it wasn’t working and they brought a fan to the room… alright but not the experience we were expecting. Then dinner came omg for the Japanese restaurant we were booked in for was absolutely unbelievably expensive. Like the most expensive food I have seen in my life. Like 180,000+ yen per person there was no way I was going to spend that much money on dinner. We tried all the restaurants onsite and they al were so expensive and looked average at best. I ended up driving to the 7/11 down the road and got a whole basket of food for 60,000 yen that fed my partner and I with alcoholic beverages and also gave us breakfast the next morning. I’ve stayed in a lot of hotels in Japan over the years and this is the only one I’ve went out of my way to write poorly about. You need to renovate this hotel and work on the facilities and add some basic meals for people not wanting to spend 300,000 yen on dinner.