Tohoku 2015, 2016 東北の旅 - Oirase Keiryu Hotel 奥入瀬渓流ホテル

Stayed 14.10.2015 (Wed)
Booked through hotel's website.
One night stay with half board = 28,500 yen/pax + 150 yen/pax bathing tax
- Half board: Kaiseki course for dinner and buffet for breakfast

Stayed 20.05.2016 (Fri)
Booked through hotel's website.
One night stay with half board = 19,000 yen
- Half board: Buffet for both dinner and breakfast





Visited Oirase Keiryu 奥入瀬渓流 on both trips to Tohoku region (with family in Oct 2015 and went solo on May 2016) and stayed at Oirase Keiryu Hotel 奥入瀬渓流ホテル on both occasions because of its proximity to this nature reserve. Oirase Keiryu Hotel is part of Hoshino Resort Group, which manages the luxurious Hoshinoya (星のや) brand, which has establishments outside of Japan such as Taiwan (Gu Guan) and Bali, and Kai (界) brand, which comprises of hot spring ryokan. Overall, I rate Oirase Keiryu Hotel excellent in all aspects that I can think of and will highly recommend this hotel to those who plan to stay over at Oirase Keiryu.

Board the Yu Yu Keiryu Shuttle Bus at the entrance of west building.

Convenient. There is a 14 km long nature trail, that runs alongside Oirase Keiryu, from the hotel to Lake Towada, and it takes approximately 5 hours to just complete one way. Found out that Oirase Keiryu Hotel operates a regular complimentary shuttle bus service (Yu Yu Keiryu Shuttle 悠遊渓流シャトル), which starts as early as 6.00 am, ferrying guests between the hotel and Kumoi no taki 雲井の滝 (Kumoi Waterfall), which is located around the halfway mark of the nature trail. On my second visit, I explored Oirase Keiryu with the help of this convenient bus service as well as JR Bus Tohoku, since the bus fees were covered by the nationwide Japan Rail Pass (I purchased a 14 day pass for my trip).

Sharing below my itinerary which combined the usage of both bus services:
- Hotel > Kumoi no taki, by Yu Yu Keiryu Shuttle
- Kumoi no taki > Choshi otaki 銚子大滝, by walking (~2 hours)
- Choshi otaki > Kumoi no taki, by JR Bus Tohoku Oirase-go おいらせ号 / Mizumi-go みずうみ号
- Kumoi no taki > Sanmidare no nagare 三乱の流れ, by walking (~1.5 hours)
- Sanmidare no nagare > hotel, by Yu Yu Keiryu shuttle

[Oct 2015] Hotel decorated by autumn foliage backdrop.  

[Oct 2015] Come up close to Oirase Keiryu at Keiryu Terrace.

[May 2016] Same spot at Keiryu Terrace, but different season.

More activities. The hotel also has an activity center which organises a variety of activities. Differing from season to season, the activities include guided tour of Oirase Keiryu, discovering the miniature world of mosses along walking trail between Kumoi no taki and Shirogane no nagare (Moses Trail 苔さんぽ) with a magnifying glass, or enjoying a cup of coffee just beside one of the rapids, Shirogane no nagare 白銀の流れ, early in the morning (Keiryu Morning Cafe 渓流モーニングカフェ). Do take note that some of these activities come with additional fee. During my first trip here with my parents, we signed up for a autumn trekking course in which the guide brought us to two recommended viewing spots to admire Hakkoda mountain range 八甲田山 as well as two out of Tsuta seven swamps 蔦七沼 (Kagaminuma 鏡沼 and Tsutanuma 蔦沼). Some of these activities can be really popular (for example, Keiryu Morning Cafe, which was free-of-charge, was over-subscribed during both of my stays with the hotel), therefore it is advisable to book your desired activities as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

[Oct 2015] Visited the lounge twice. First time was to savour their exquisite apple desserts and French press coffee in the afternoon after checking into the hotel. Second time was to drink a cup of hot chocolate before turning in for the night.  

Room and facilities. The hotel is made up east and west buildings. The main entrance and lobby is located on the second floor of the east building, while the activity desk is located on the second floor of the west building, and both blocks are connected by a passageway on the same floor. There is a shop just beside the lobby, making it convenient for guests to purchase local souvenirs such as food and handicrafts to bring back home with. On my previous visits, the lounge in the east building was a cafe serving apple inspired desserts in the day and a bar at night. Coincidentally, I was assigned to a room located in the east building on both occasions. When I stayed at the hotel with my parents in Oct 2015, we had the modern room (44 m2), which came with two single beds and a sofa bed. On the second occasion in May 2016, I slept in a twin room (28 m2) as the hotel did not have rooms with only one single bed. There is a spa corner located in the east building. On my second stay with the hotel, I indulged in a 30 minutes foot message for the very first time in Japan, to soothe the muscle ache from the hiking carried out in the day.

Forest Myth (Mori no Shinwa 森の神話)

River God (Kashin 河神)

Art. The hotel has dedicated spaces for art work displays. There are two large fireplaces, one in each of the buildings. The chimneys of both fireplaces were masterpieces of the late Taro Okamoto 岡本太郎, a Japanese artist known for his abstract and avant-garde paintings and sculptures. The 8.5 m tall bronze chimney in the east building is named Forest Myth (Mori no Shinwa 森の神話) and was completed in April 1991, while the 10 m tall aluminium alloy chimney in the west building is named River God (Kashin 河神) and was completed in April 1996. Both chimneys were inspired by Oirase Keiryu and the latter was a posthumous work of Taro Okamoto (1911 - 1996). The hotel also collaborates with Towada Arts Center 十和田市現代美術館 to put up contemporary artworks in Oirase Art Cube, an art exhibition space located at the ground floor of the east building.

Art Cube.

Hot spring. Previously, there were two communal bathhouses equipped with hot spring pools, one in each building. The hotel has undergone renewal works over the last couple of years and the hot spring facilities have been revamped. There are indoor and outdoor pools in the communal bathhouses which is separated by gender. Guests will be treated to a panoramic view of Oirase Keiryu and the seasonal decoration of the surrounding vegetation, while soaking in the rotenburo (open air bath). In addition to the in-house facilities, the hotel has another open air bath located about 2 km away. Named Yaekokonoe no yu 八重九重の湯, this secluded open air bath overlooks Kokonoe no taki 九重の滝 (Kokonoe Waterfall) and makes one feel close to nature, while soaking in the slightly white hot spring waters that originates from Hakkoda mountain. As this is a mixed gender bath, guests are allowed to use bathing suits that the hotel provides. There are also stipulated time frames blocked out for respective gender (there are more females only sessions as compared to males), so do check out the schedule before hopping onto the shuttle bus, which operates between the hotel and Yaekokonoe no yu, at entrance of the west building. Visited this remote outdoor hot spring during my second stay with the hotel. Missed the only blocked out period catered for males (at 1700 hrs) and had to settle for the mixed gender session at night. Not embarrassing since all of us (there were a few couples and myself at that point of time) wore bathing suits, just like what we would do in swimming pools. Would have preferred to visit it in the daytime to better make out the surrounding scenery that encapsulates this beautiful hot spring spot.

[Oct 2015] The former Restaurant Oirase. 

[Oct 2015] Dinner splendor.

Meals. There are two restaurants in the hotel, one in each building. When I visited the hotel in Oct 2015, I had a kaiseki style dinner in Restaurant Oirase (west building) and buffet breakfast in Restaurant Akayama 紅山 (east building). On my subsequent stay in May 2016, Restaurant Akayama was transformed into Aomori Ringo Kitchen 青森りんごキッチン but remained as buffet style. In recent years, Restaurant Oirase was converted into a full fledged French cuisine restaurant named Sonore ソノール. Personally I am not a big fan of buffet but I am say I was very impressed by the extensive buffet menu offered by Aomori Ringo Kitchen. As the name of the restaurant suggests, many of the dishes incorporate apples, which is the pride of Aomori, as one of their ingredients. For dinner, I had apple tempura, beef steak drizzled with apple sauce, grilled pork served with apple slices, hot from the oven apple pie and apple sherbet. On the following day, I had a couple of glasses of freshly pressed apple juice, fluffy omelette, apple toast, etc for breakfast.

[May 2016] The revamped Aomori Ringo Kitchen where I had both my meals at.

[May 2016] Fully utilising apples in the buffet menu. Top right: Beef steak with apple sauce; Bottom right: Apple pie; Top left: Apple tempura; Bottom left: Grilled pork with apple slices.

[May 2016] Sumptuous breakfast.

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Oirase Keiryu Hotel 奥入瀬渓流ホテル
〒034-0398 青森県十和田市大字奥瀬字栃久保231
+81-176-51-1117
https://www.oirase-keiryuu.jp/

How to get there?

(1) By hotel complimentary pick up service from the following places:
- Hachinohe Station West Exit (1350 hrs) > Oirase Keiryu Hotel (1500 hrs)
- Shin Aomori Station East Exit (1415 hrs) > Oirase Keiryu Hotel (1600 hrs)
- Aomori Station Bus Terminal (1430 hrs) > Oirase Keiryu Hotel (1600 hrs)
- Aomori Airport (1500 hrs) > Oirase Keiryu Hotel (1620 hrs)
Reservation, either via hotel website or by phone call, is required (at least 3 days in advance of check-in date) to utilise this complimentary pick up service.
https://www.oirase-keiryuu.jp/access/

(2) By JR Bus Tohoku and walk.
- From Aomori Station Bus Terminal Bus Stop 11 or Shin Aomori Station East Exit Bus Stop 1, board JR Bus Tohoku Mizumi-go みずうみ号 heading for Hakkoda Ropeway, Oirase Keiryu and Towada-ko. Alight at Yakeyama 焼山 and walk for another 2 minutes to reach the hotel.
- From Hachinohe Station West Exit, board JR Bus Tohoku Oirase-go おいらせ号 heading for Towada-ko. Alight at Yakeyama 焼山 and walk for another 2 minutes to reach the hotel.
Bus schedule: https://www.jrbustohoku.co.jp/route/detail.php?r=80&rc=11