Overview

Step into a striking blend of Japanese tradition and Western design at Hotel Sekifu in Isawa Onsen. A 1,000-tsubo Japanese garden spreads through the centre of the property, with koi swimming between rocks, waterfalls, trees, and carefully shaped shrubs. You can walk beside the pond, feed the koi and waterfowl, or watch the garden change with the light.

Inside, chandeliers, polished marble, rich carpets, and William Morris patterns create a more decorative atmosphere than you usually find in an onsen ryokan. The contrast works beautifully: you can enjoy tatami and garden views in one part of your stay, then relax with wine beneath a grand chandelier in another.

Natural hot spring bathing, seasonal Japanese cuisine, private onsen rooms, and access to Yamanashi’s wineries make Hotel Sekifu an appealing choice when you want more than a simple overnight stay.

Accommodation

Hotel Sekifu has 50 non-smoking rooms divided between five M Floor categories and seven traditional Japanese room categories. The M Floor focuses on William Morris wallpaper, carpeted interiors, beds, and private bathing options. The Japanese rooms use tatami, futon bedding, natural wood, and layouts suited to couples, families, and larger groups.

The Garden-Side M Type measures 39 square metres and looks across the Japanese garden. It includes a carpeted Western-style interior and a shower room. A second version adds an exclusive hot spring bath that remains available throughout your stay.

The M Type with Semi-Open-Air Bath measures 50 square metres. Its private onsen bath opens partly towards the outside air, allowing you to enjoy the spring without leaving your room.

The 80-square-metre M Suite with Family Bath includes a separate living room and bedroom, a private hot spring bath, and a massage chair. The 90-square-metre M Suite with Semi-Open-Air Bath gives you the largest M Floor layout, with separate living and sleeping spaces, a private semi-open-air onsen, and a massage chair.

ReFa hairdryers, shower heads, straightening irons, curling irons, and facial-care equipment are provided in M Floor rooms. William Morris’s Strawberry Thief pattern appears in unexpected places, adding a playful detail to the interior.

The Special V Type is the largest traditional Japanese room, combining 16-tatami and six-tatami spaces facing the garden. The Garden-Side S Type has adjoining ten-tatami and 4.5-tatami rooms, while the Garden-Side A Type provides a single ten-tatami layout.

The Mountain-Side B Type is a ten-tatami standard room. The Mountain-Side G Type combines ten-tatami and 4.5-tatami spaces when you want more room without selecting a garden-facing category.

The three-room K Type faces the garden and combines eight-tatami, eight-tatami, and five-tatami rooms. The three-room O Type has the same generous layout in a fully Japanese setting. Both give you separate spaces for conversation, dining, and sleeping.

Every room includes Wi-Fi, a television, telephone, refrigerator, tea set, air purifier, washlet toilet, hairdryer, towels, yukata, slippers, and toiletries.

Dining

Dinner follows a seasonal Japanese kaiseki format that allows fresh ingredients to remain at the centre of each dish. Courses change through the year and are presented with careful attention to colour, texture, and serving temperature.

Depending on your plan and the season, dinner may include wagyu sirloin steak, fatty tuna steak, Fujizakura pork in a sesame hot pot, carpaccio, tempura, and ten-grain rice cooked in an individual pot. Additional dishes may include a sashimi platter, wagyu steak, or shabu-shabu.

Dinner is normally served between 18:00 and 21:00. Your dining location depends on your plan, with options that may include DINING YUKI, a private dining room, or a meal in your room.

DINING YUKI combines Japanese cuisine with decorative botanical artwork. Ken’s Club has counter seating and works as both a dining space and an evening bar.

Wine is an important part of the experience. Limited-label bottles from Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Tuscany sit alongside other carefully selected choices. After purchasing a bottle, you can enjoy it with dinner, in your room, or in the lobby.

Breakfast is a Japanese set meal served in the dining area between 7:30 and 9:30. The meal includes Yamanashi-style hoto, giving you the chance to try the prefecture’s broad noodles in a warm, comforting broth.

Onsen and Wellness

Hotel Sekifu draws natural water from its own Sekifu Hot Spring source. The water is classified as a simple alkaline spring and has a soft, smooth feel against the skin.

The shared bathing areas include spacious indoor baths with large windows and separate open-air baths for men and women. Natural light fills the indoor areas during the day, while the outdoor baths bring you closer to the garden and seasonal air.

The shared baths normally open from 15:00 until midnight and again from 5:00 until 9:00. The water is heated and maintained through a combined overflow and circulation system, so the shared baths are not completely untreated, continuously flowing baths.

Traditional bathing indications include muscle and joint discomfort, neuralgia, stiff shoulders, bruises, sprains, sensitivity to cold, fatigue, and recovery after illness.

Selected M Floor rooms give you your own natural hot spring bath. You can choose an exclusive private bath, a semi-open-air bath, or a family-sized bath, depending on the room category. These bathing spaces belong to the room and remain available throughout your stay.

ReFa shower heads and hairdryers are provided in both shared bathing areas. The women’s side also includes ReFa straightening and curling irons. There is no sauna or separately reservable private bath for standard room stays.

Guests with Tattoos

If you have tattoos, do not use the shared indoor baths, open-air baths, or communal changing areas.

For private natural hot spring bathing, choose a Garden-Side M Type with Private Bath, an M Type with Semi-Open-Air Bath, an M Suite with Family Bath, or an M Suite with Semi-Open-Air Bath. These baths belong exclusively to your room.

A private bath cannot be reserved separately after arrival, so select a room with its own onsen when booking.

Facilities

The lobby creates a dramatic first impression with polished marble, rich carpets, and chandeliers. One chandelier takes its design from wine being poured into a glass. You can sit here with a bottle purchased during your stay and enjoy the decorative surroundings at your own pace.

The Japanese garden gives you a quieter contrast to the lobby. Paths lead around the pond, waterfall, trees, and rock arrangements. Food for the koi and waterfowl makes the garden especially enjoyable when you are travelling with children.

DINING YUKI provides the main setting for seasonal Japanese cuisine. Ken’s Club adds a more intimate counter and bar atmosphere for drinks and conversation.

Yuufuuden supports large celebrations, meetings, and organised gatherings. Kippuutei contains seven smaller private rooms decorated with floral themes, stained glass, patterned carpets, and Japanese artwork.

Activities

Spend time exploring the Japanese garden and feeding the koi and waterfowl. The sound of the waterfall and the movement of the fish make this more than a decorative space between the accommodation wings.

Look for William Morris’s Strawberry Thief pattern as you move through the M Floor and dining areas. The design appears subtly in several places rather than covering every surface.

Magic performances take place on selected dates. There is no permanent show schedule, so performances depend on the availability of the visiting magician and the arrangements for that day.

Yamanashi’s wine culture begins close to the property. Monde Winery is beside Hotel Sekifu, while Mars Yamanashi Winery can also be reached from the Isawa area. A local winery walking route lets you combine wine tasting with historic sights around the town.

Seasonal fruit picking gives you another way to experience Fuefuki. Peach picking normally begins in early summer, followed by grape picking from midsummer into autumn. Opening dates depend on the crop and weather each year.

Additional Features

Check-in begins at 15:00, with final arrival by 19:00. Check-out is by 10:00. Every room is non-smoking, and Wi-Fi is available throughout the accommodation areas.

Isawa-Onsen Station is around ten minutes away on foot. A complimentary shuttle takes approximately five minutes and must be arranged in advance.

Complimentary parking is available for up to 50 vehicles without an advance parking reservation.