Lake Toya - Toya Kanko Hotel (Ryokan) Review
I stayed at the Toya Kanko Hotel during my visit to Hokkaido, Japan.
Lake Toya is situated in the southwestern part of Hokkaido, just 2 hours away from the New Chitose Airport by train. It is a relaxing vacation spot for family and friends of all ages.
There are plenty of hotels available, but we've decided to stay at a ryokan to experience Japan culture - including futon beds, communal hot bath and kaiseki!
If you stay at a Ryokan, dinner is usually the highlight. The Japanese dinner (Kaiseki) consists of multi-course Japanese style haute cuisine. Meals often feature local and seasonal specialties.
For starter, there is a seaweed salad mixed with bean curd. The plum tastes amazing!
Main courses include sliced raw fish (sashimi): squid, sweet shrimp and mackerel dressed in vinegar based sauce. The steamed dish is savory egg custard (chawanmushi). There is also deep fried fish, boiled pumpkin with minced pork and shiitake mushroom with scallop.
The shokuji set consists of miso soup, pickles (tsukemono) and rice with diced chicken.
For dessert, there is pineapple and mango pudding from Okinawa.
Ryokan is a great way to experience Japanese lifestyle: Tatami floors and futon beds and communal hot bath! There is a bath for the ladies and the other for men. The first thing is to wash yourself at the seated shower station before entering the hot bath.
I would highly recommend staying at a ryokan for at least one night to enjoy this traditional Japanese experience. The average cost of a ryokan stay is about 15,000 to 20,000 yen, per person per night.
At night, we enjoyed fireworks at Lake Toya from our room...
A fireworks cruise is also available at additional cost.
The communal hot bath inside the hotel can be enjoyed in the morning, before dinner and before bed. This is a picture showing the entrance for women bath. The hanging curtain for men bath is blue in color.
On the next day, we had a morning walk at 5 a.m. Lake Toya is very beautiful.
Be sure to stay hi to this amazing cat!! ლ(=ↀωↀ=)ლ
People kept taking photos of him - he is the star of Lake Toya!
I waited so long to touch his back. His fur was so soft.
Japanese cats are so clean and graceful ♪
After the walk, we had breakfast at the hotel.
It was a traditional Japanese breakfast buffet with seasonal produce.
The food include white radish (daikon), yam (nagaimo), lotus rot (renkon) and burdock root (gobo). Not the seafood feast that I was hoping for....
Hokkaido is famous for its potatoes. It accounts for 2/3 of all the potatoes grown in Japan. The Danshaku variety, in particular, was highly prized for its thick consistency and savoriness.
The tranquil grassland and sunny weather also made Hokkaido the biggest agricultural area in Japan. Remember to indulge in the diary products, including lots of milk, pudding, butter, cheese and ice-cream during your stay!
I would recommend staying at the Toya Kanko Hotel. It is affordable and the location is great. In the summer, you can see fireworks inside the hotel room.
Address: 33 Toyakoonsen, Toyako, Abuta District, Hokkaido Prefecture 049-5721, Japan
Phone: +81 142-75-2111
Website
Lake Toya is situated in the southwestern part of Hokkaido, just 2 hours away from the New Chitose Airport by train. It is a relaxing vacation spot for family and friends of all ages.
There are plenty of hotels available, but we've decided to stay at a ryokan to experience Japan culture - including futon beds, communal hot bath and kaiseki!
If you stay at a Ryokan, dinner is usually the highlight. The Japanese dinner (Kaiseki) consists of multi-course Japanese style haute cuisine. Meals often feature local and seasonal specialties.
Main courses include sliced raw fish (sashimi): squid, sweet shrimp and mackerel dressed in vinegar based sauce. The steamed dish is savory egg custard (chawanmushi). There is also deep fried fish, boiled pumpkin with minced pork and shiitake mushroom with scallop.
The shokuji set consists of miso soup, pickles (tsukemono) and rice with diced chicken.
For dessert, there is pineapple and mango pudding from Okinawa.
Ryokan is a great way to experience Japanese lifestyle: Tatami floors and futon beds and communal hot bath! There is a bath for the ladies and the other for men. The first thing is to wash yourself at the seated shower station before entering the hot bath.
I would highly recommend staying at a ryokan for at least one night to enjoy this traditional Japanese experience. The average cost of a ryokan stay is about 15,000 to 20,000 yen, per person per night.
At night, we enjoyed fireworks at Lake Toya from our room...
A fireworks cruise is also available at additional cost.
The communal hot bath inside the hotel can be enjoyed in the morning, before dinner and before bed. This is a picture showing the entrance for women bath. The hanging curtain for men bath is blue in color.
On the next day, we had a morning walk at 5 a.m. Lake Toya is very beautiful.
Be sure to stay hi to this amazing cat!! ლ(=ↀωↀ=)ლ
People kept taking photos of him - he is the star of Lake Toya!
I waited so long to touch his back. His fur was so soft.
Japanese cats are so clean and graceful ♪
After the walk, we had breakfast at the hotel.
It was a traditional Japanese breakfast buffet with seasonal produce.
The food include white radish (daikon), yam (nagaimo), lotus rot (renkon) and burdock root (gobo). Not the seafood feast that I was hoping for....
Hokkaido is famous for its potatoes. It accounts for 2/3 of all the potatoes grown in Japan. The Danshaku variety, in particular, was highly prized for its thick consistency and savoriness.
The tranquil grassland and sunny weather also made Hokkaido the biggest agricultural area in Japan. Remember to indulge in the diary products, including lots of milk, pudding, butter, cheese and ice-cream during your stay!
I would recommend staying at the Toya Kanko Hotel. It is affordable and the location is great. In the summer, you can see fireworks inside the hotel room.
Information
Toya Kanko Hotel (洞爺観光ホテル)Address: 33 Toyakoonsen, Toyako, Abuta District, Hokkaido Prefecture 049-5721, Japan
Phone: +81 142-75-2111
Website
No comments: