Hotel Villa Kunisaki

First, when I arrived a little after 3:00 p.m., there was no one at the front desk. When someone finally came out from the back, he wasn’t in a suit or uniform—just an older man in casual clothes. This Hotel is located in a rural area at the easternmost tip of the Kunisaki Peninsula in Oita Prefecture, but since “Villa” is part of the name, I expected something more upscale and was disappointed. Also, my ocean-view Room was on the second floor, which was extremely disappointing. An ocean-view Room on the second floor is unusual—especially since the Hotel is on flat land, not on a cliff. At night, the white lights on the sea side of the courtyard and the green pathway lights were so bright that I couldn’t see any stars. Then they turned off at 10:00 p.m., and it became completely dark instead. Until 10:00 p.m., this Hotel isn’t suitable for stargazing. For reference, this is a five-story Hotel, and my Room was a twin ocean-view Room on the second floor. One entire wall (from about knee height upward) was all windows (they do not open). The large public bath is on the fifth floor. I felt that if they had placed it on the first floor and made the fifth floor into suites instead, they could have used their Rooms more effectively. Additional notes: What surprised me most was that my Room did not have an auto-lock door. When I went to use the large public bath on the fifth floor, I almost left without locking it. It’s been decades since I stayed in a Room without auto-locking doors. Do they have many elderly guests who often ask staff to unlock their doors? Also, although it said “sanitized” slippers were provided in my Room, at the large public bath I couldn’t tell which slippers were mine versus someone else’s, which felt unpleasant. Finally—and most surprisingly—my smartphone sometimes had no signal inside my Room for no clear reason! Maybe because it’s rural? But reception would fluctuate between good and bad even within short periods of time. On a positive note, some of the furnishings were excellent: rattan tables and chairs as well as wooden European-style cabriole-leg tables and chairs looked wonderful. Lastly, while I was changing clothes at 9:00 a.m., housekeeping unlocked my door and opened it with what seemed to be a master key. When I said “I’m still here,” they said nothing—just locked it again with their key and left. Check-out is until 10:00 a.m., so although only part of door opened due to an additional lock chain/deadbolt (which helped), it still shocked me. From how it happened, this seems like something that occurs often; staff training by management appears inadequate. When leaving, I told an older woman at reception (wearing something like a uniform), but she didn’t seem very surprised—so again, it seems common here as well. Are all staff simply local hires through rural employment programs?

I stayed during Golden Week, and when I noted at the time of Reservation that my wife couldn't eat fish, both dinner and breakfast were carefully accommodated, with detailed explanations about the substituted dishes. While many Hotels offering luxurious buffets often face long lines and insufficient replenishment during holidays, we were able to enjoy our stay without any frustration from overcrowding. The cleaning was thorough, and if the bath had been an Onsen, my satisfaction would have been a 5. The staff greeted us politely whenever we passed by, giving the impression of a well-trained Hotel team. Despite all this, the price was very reasonable.