Private Resort Senkyo

Private Resort Senkyo is a 一棟貸し — a whole-house rental — in the hills of Gora, Hakone. Its own site says the building sleeps up to 16. Check-in is self-service, worked with a keypad lock, at any time from 16:00, and access and entry details are sent three days before arrival; check-out is by 10:00.

Two ground-floor bathrooms are described by the house as carrying Hakone hot spring water, each sized for about two people, and there is a sauna with a cold plunge and shower. Some bedrooms have baths of their own: one a half-open-air tub (半露天風呂) on its veranda, one a hinoki tub, another a shower room. Walls and ceilings use solid timber alongside lattice screens, shoji and plastered walls; the dining room is tatami-floored, and the ground-floor lounge has a large screen and speakers.

No meals are served. The kitchen is stocked with pans, a rice cooker, knives, crockery, glasses and a coffee set, so cooking is yours to do.

Gora Station is a 17-minute walk away, or four minutes by taxi. Parking is one car at the front entrance plus about three below the building. Pets cannot stay, the building is non-smoking, fireworks on the grounds are prohibited, and the house asks that it not be used for parties or events; minors may not stay unaccompanied.