Name: Owner's Gora Club
Address: 1320-840 Gora, Hakone-machi, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa Prefecture, 250-0408 Hakone, Ashigarashimo, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, Hakone, Hakone, Hakone, 250-0408, Japan
Rating: 7

Air conditioning

24-hour reception

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Rooms

Coffee/tea for guests

Breakfast

Vending machine

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Free Wi-Fi

Internet

Pets allowed

Pets

Location

At the hotel

Room amenities

Owner's Gora Club

Hakone

child-bed

child-bed-fee

external-private-bathroom

private-bathroom

shared-bathroom

10-beds

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limited-time

lounge

treatment

no-window

bay-view

bosphorus-view

canal-view

city-view

courtyard-view

garden-view

golf-view

harbour-view

inland-view

lake-view

land-view

mountain-view

ocean-front

ocean-view

oceanside

panoramic-view

park-view

partial-ocean-view

partial-sea-view

partial-view

pool-view

river-view

sea-front

sea-view

street-view

sunrise-view

sunset-view

water-view

with-view

annex

basement

main-building

1-bedroom

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not-guaranteed

wired-internet-access

smoking

sauna

duplex

safe

mini-bar

breakfast-for-1

breakfast-for-2

pets-allowed

wi-fi

kitchen

What can I say - Owner's Gora Club (or Hostel Owner's Gora, however we would like to call it). Has a special place in my heart. While the exterior of the building did make my heart jump a little bit, I can assure you after staying here for three nights that any worries to be had are unfounded.

This place is in a pretty prime location in terms of exploring Hakone. From Gora station, take the cable car up to the "Naka-Gora" station. If you're facing uphill, turn RIGHT; do not turn left or you will have a very hard time getting back to the correct side of the road. After getting off and going right, the hostel is a less-than-five-minute walk down. You will see a spray-painted "Owner's Club" sign. 

As for the property itself, the rooms really are huge and, fortunately, have their own private toilet. The rooms are clean, though the bathroom had a bit of a musty smell to it. Nothing critical, though. Otherwise, everything you needed was there. In terms of the bath, I will echo everyone else in saying that it was a little worn-out looking. However, this did not stop me from enjoying it thoroughly. 

The Wi-Fi, I can attest, does not work anywhere other than the common room. This is fine, but be aware that they start turning off lights as early as 8-9 pm. 

Lastly, the food. This is where the staff shone for me. The staff quickly picked up on things I wasn't too fond of (egg custard, snail) and replaced it with things they thought I would like (chicken katsu) and even asked me what I loved to eat. When I told them I loved tofu, they gave me some amazing tofu for dinner! I had full board, which included breakfast and dinner each day. While I had to make sure that I was awake by 8 am for breakfast and back by 6 pm for dinner, I didn't find this to be difficult as there is nothing really going on in Hakone before/after that time. 

Overall, I greatly enjoyed the location, facilities, and service of this place and felt it was perfect for a solo traveler.

Simple but memorable accommodation (plus huge rooms!)

We recently spent 2 nights half board here and had an enjoyable stay. Don't be put off by the exterior appearance of the building. The owner was extremely friendly and made us feel very welcome, he gave us free sake after dinner and a leaving gift of spa minerals & juice.  The shared onsen bathrooms (gender separated) were a little tired around the edges but adequate. There was a large dressing area with hair dryers.  The best way to reach it is by getting off the tram (referred to as cable car) at Naka-Gora and then walk 5 minutes east along the road, you will see the name painted on the side of the building as you approach it. The walk to Gora main station is about 10 minutes but up a massive hill so not advisable with luggage, fine the rest of the time though. Note that you cannot check-in or drop baggage prior to 3pm. We had half board and the food was excellent. There are a couple of options for food and a convenience store in Gora but it gets quiet early as most people eat at their accommodation. Our room was great, one room for storage / baggage and another with futon beds, table/chairs, tv, water boiler. The real plus was the fantastic view from the floor to ceiling sliding doors. Our advice would be to get the 2 day free pass for transport as it can be used on the tram (cable car) and the rope way as well as buses, trains and the tourist boat, all of which we used. Note the tram is 410 yen per ride and so the cost of the pass is easily recuperated. 

Lovely host in simple Japanese guesthouse

First of all, this place is not too difficult to find. If you come from gora station, alight at naka-gora station(right door). Then, walk straight for around 5 minutes. The road is quite quiet, which may make things uncertain. Not to worry. Firstly you will see a beauty parlour/salon on the left on your way and shortly you will see the hostel(with red roof) on the right. Then it was reviewed that the staffs have problem communication in English. Even though I could speak Japanese, the staffs still attempted to talk to me in simple English previously and I feel that their English is good enough to service you. However, you have to speak slowly, word by word to them. My suggestion is to try their breakfast and dinner because it is traditional Japanese style... Several dishes with rice and miso soup. If you aren't choosing to eat the dinner or breakfast from the hostel, you will have problem finding food because there aren't restaurants nearby and the hostel sells snacks at a steep price at around USD 1.50. Don't forget to try the onsen as well...

Nice food and onsen

Do not expect luxury at this hotel, but do expect good service and decent food. 
I travel with my dog and this hotel has two rooms available that allow you to stay when with your dog.
Like many of the messages say, the owner is funny and accommodating. The rooms are simple and in traditional Japanese style. Our room had I shared toilet and sink in the hallway, but they were shared by two rooms only. The baths are a little run-down, but it has wonderful hot spring water and I found it quite suitable considering the price you pay.
I will definitely stay there again the next time I go to that area.

A Basic Hotel Okay When With Your Dog

This is the most ugly building around this area. 20 minutes walking from the Gora station. I saw many decent hotels on the way to the this hostel and I asked myself how could I choose the worst one. The room is spacious and the comforters are warm. However, the furniture and the facility are in very old style. There are a lot of broken stuff which is not allowed to use: the door to the balcony, one of the only two basins on that floor, etc. The internet is not working upstairs. You can only use the wifi in the lobby. When the guests were working in the lobby (at night), the waiter would still turn off most of the light there when he left. I don't see the owner is nice. He charges ￥500 for keeping luggage after 3 pm. When we were back at 2:20 pm, we saw our luggage at the gate of the lobby and nobody was watching it. We felt that our belongings were thrown out. BTW, do not book it using an English website. We booked it through Agoda.com and spent $92 for each night (no breakfast or dinner included). A Japanese gentleman told us that he spent $30 with both breakfast and dinner included. All in all, this is a very unpleasant experience for us:(

Owner's Gora Club

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