Aibiya

A highlight of my recent travels, AIBIYA offered great accommodations in the small Onsen town of Yamanouchi. The hosts had great communication ahead of my stay and even though I arrived before the scheduled check-in time, they were extremely accommodating, offering me local sake and local insight into the city. Since I was the only guest that evening they upgraded me to a beautifully appointed larger room. While this location does not have its own onsen, they do have paid passes available to a few truly amazing ones just minutes away. Don't miss the change to soak in a UNESCO World Heritage Site! Breakfast provided was in the downstairs kitchen area and was cooked fresh to order. A highlight was the fresh local fruit! At check-out, I was gifted a hand-made soap from the local area. My only regret was not booking a longer stay at this great location.

I had a wonderful stay at Aibiya in February 2023. The accommodation is impeccably clean and very comfortable. Beautiful tatami mat rooms with comfy western beds. Both Yoshi and Seongmi are wonderful hosts with fantastic English. I decided to buy skis while staying at Aibiya and Yoshi and Seongmi went above and beyond to help me by calling friends at ski shops in Nagano and I ended up having fantastic skis with bindings mounted ready to collect the very next day - incredible. I couldn’t have done it without the help from Yoshi and Seongmi. Being able to access three different local onsen and with good value vouchers sold at Aibiya was lovely. For skiers it was also really helpful to have access to a washing machine, drying room (for wet ski gear) and Yoshi will even wax your skis for a great price. You can ski with Yoshi with his company Powder Geek Japan. Breakfast was a delicious western breakfast - I loved the yoghurt, granola and fruit. I cannot recommend Aibiya highly enough.