During our 10-day trip to Japan, we had high expectations for Hotel Indigo Hakone as it was our special splurge hotel booking. We invested a significant portion of our accommodation budget here, reserving a spacious room with a private onsen for one night. Unfortunately, the experience fell short of our expectations.
The major issue was the ongoing construction work at the river/dam directly in front of our room. The heavy machinery not only produced sewage-like odors that made it impossible to enjoy our balcony and private onsen but also started operations before 8 AM, which was particularly disruptive given our jet lag.
The dinner experience was equally disappointing. Despite making a 9 PM reservation (with the kitchen closing at 9:30 PM) and ordering immediately upon being seated, most dishes were served cold and bland. While the meat dish was delicious, other items like the dry burrata, cold vegetables, bland mashed potatoes, and watery creamy spinach were subpar. To make matters worse, the staff rushed us through our meal in an notably impolite manner.
We also received misleading information about the ropeway. When we inquired about recommendations, we were told it was closed for the day due to wind conditions. We later discovered it only closes temporarily during high winds, not for entire days, causing us to miss this opportunity entirely.
On a positive note, the hotel's decor and amenities are nice, but this doesn't compensate for the numerous issues we experienced.
