湯田上温泉 ホテル小柳

Service is quite appalling at this hotel. The facilities are okay - room is beautiful but the common areas are cold. Staff at the reception seems more interested in telling you how much stuff would cost and want you to spend more. The worst is the food. Booked 2 months in advance and mentioned that I have allergies. Came to dinner and they didnt even address it so when I asked them about it they said they are not able to do anything about it and I have to just take the risk myself. I thought at the very least they could have informed me in advance but nope and also no apologies given. Staff was extremely unapologetic throughout dinner when we asked for water which they had forgotten to serve as well and made it seem like it was a privilege to receive. Absolutely must avoid.

Nice and lovely hotel with baby friendly. Staff are nice as we arrived so late on the first day and still helped us to move all the suitcases into our room. Breakfast is good and you can enjoy different Niigata food there. There is indoor and outdoor onsen there. But the outdoor only is only opened until 10pm. But it will take around 30-40 mins to Niigata town centra by driving. I will recommend you if you are with kids and also do driving for your trip in Niigata.

This was my second stay at this hotel/inn. The service is always good and the food is good. I like their open air bath by the main public bath. It is an infinity bath the view of the Niigata Plain is quite nice. They have a nice set of audio equipment on the first floor and they will play an LP or two if you request.

We were traveling with my family in group of 7 people with 2 small kids. Delicious dinner, large tatami rooms. We noticed and appreciate kids friendly environment, many small details like kids toilet seats, games, drawing in main lobby, animals, fish, games and drawings in front of Onsen bath. The bath was great with spectacular infinite outside pool. Dinner served in private tatami room was great, plenty of food with some unique dishes that other hotels do not serve (e.g. whole grilled fish). Only negative was that in our room we felt smoke from cigarettes (but not very strong).

-The good: The hotel seems modern and new. The lobby is spacious and very clean. The view from the window is good as it gives a parcial panoramic view of Niigata city. -The bad: The onsen was very mediocre. It was relatively small and had no distinct design. There was no cold bath and saunas only operated in busy hours. The food was very average, nothing really stood out.