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ZEN Hostel

2.0 star property

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January 2025

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Basic Shared Dormitory, Mixed Dorm | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Reviews

8.6 out of 10

Excellent

Popular amenities

  • Laundry
  • Air conditioning
  • Free WiFi
  • Parking included

Explore the area

Map
3031 Hirao, Shimotakai-gun, Nagano, Yamanouchi, 3840401
  • Yudanaka Hot Spring
    3 min walk
  • Shibu
    7 min walk
  • Shiga Kogen Ski Area
    9 min walk

Room options

View all photos for Basic Shared Dormitory, Mixed Dorm

Basic Shared Dormitory, Mixed Dorm | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Basic Shared Dormitory, Mixed Dorm

  • 2 sq m
  • Sleeps 1
  • 1 Single Bed

View all photos for Basic Suite, Japanese Futon

Basic Suite, Japanese Futon | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Basic Suite, Japanese Futon

  • 40 sq m
  • Sleeps 6
  • 1 Single Futon

View all photos for Basic Twin Room, Japanese Futon

Basic Twin Room, Japanese Futon | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Basic Twin Room, Japanese Futon

  • 10 sq m
  • Sleeps 2
  • 1 Single Futon

View all photos for Basic Quadruple Room, Japanese Futon

Basic Quadruple Room, Japanese Futon | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Basic Quadruple Room, Japanese Futon

  • 20 sq m
  • Sleeps 4
  • 1 Single Futon

View all photos for Basic Triple Room, Japanese Futon

Basic Triple Room, Japanese Futon | 1 bedroom, free WiFi, bed sheets

Basic Triple Room, Japanese Futon

  • 12 sq m
  • Sleeps 3
  • 1 Single Futon

Similar properties

Exterior

Hotel&Resort Yamanouchi Hills

Parking included
Free WiFi
Air conditioning
Laundry
3.9 out of 5, Good, (12)
The price is CHF 140
for 1 night
includes taxes & fees
11 Dec - 12 Dec
Hotel&Resort Yamanouchi Hills

About this property

ZEN Hostel

Hostel with free parking, a short walk to Shiga Kogen Ski Area
A microwave in a common area, a fridge in a common area and laundry facilities are available at this hostel. Free WiFi in public areas and free self parking are also provided. Other amenities include a garden and multilingual staff. Bathrooms are shared and housekeeping is not available.
ZEN Hostel offers 5 accommodations with air conditioning. This Yamanouchi hostel provides complimentary wireless Internet access. Guests have access to shared bathrooms. Bathrooms include a shower.
During your stay at ZEN Hostel, you're just a quick walk from Shiga Kogen Ski Area. You'll find features such as free WiFi in public areas and free self-parking, plus laundry facilities.
  • Free WiFi
  • Free self-parking
  • Amenities include laundry facilities, multilingual staff and a shared microwave
  • Just a 3-minute walk from Yudanaka Hot Spring and 9 minutes on foot from Shiga Kogen Ski Area
As a guest of ZEN Hostel, you'll find multilingual staff, a garden, and laundry facilities. WiFi is free in public spaces. ZEN Hostel also features a microwave in a common area and a fridge in a common area. Limited free parking is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Smoking is allowed in designated areas at this Yamanouchi hostel.

Languages

English, Japanese

Property amenities

Internet

  • Available in all rooms: Free WiFi
  • Available in some public areas: Free WiFi

Parking and transport

  • Free self parking on site
  • Limited on-site parking

Family friendly

  • Laundry facilities
  • Separate bedroom

Conveniences

  • Laundry facilities
  • Limited-hour front desk
  • Shared microwave
  • Shared refrigerator

Guest services

  • Multilingual staff
  • No housekeeping service

Outdoors

  • Garden

More

  • Designated smoking areas

Room amenities

Bedroom

  • Bedsheets provided

Bathroom

  • Shared bathroom
  • Shower
  • Towels provided

More

  • Air conditioning
  • Heating

Policies

Check-in

Check-in start time: 3 PM; check-in end time: 10 PM
Minimum check-in age - 18

Check-out

Check-out before 10 AM
Contactless check-out

Special check-in instructions

The front desk is open daily from 3 PM - 10 PM
Front desk staffed during limited hours
This property doesn't offer after-hours check-in

Access methods

Front desk (limited hours)

Pets

  • No pets allowed

Children and extra beds

  • Children are welcome.
  • Rollaway/extra beds are not available.
  • Cots (infant beds) are not available.

Payment types at the property

Important information

You need to know

This property is managed by a professional host. The provision of housing is linked to their trade, business or profession.
Extra-person charges may apply and vary depending on property policy
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card, debit card or cash deposit may be required at check-in for incidental charges
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges; special requests cannot be guaranteed
This property accepts credit cards
The front desk at this property is open daily from 3 PM - 10 PM.
This property doesn't offer after-hours check-in. Front desk staff will greet guests on arrival.

We should mention

  • As required by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, all international visitors must submit their passport number and nationality when registering at any lodging facility (inns, hotels, motels etc). Also, it's required that lodging proprietors photocopy the passports of all registering guests and keep the photocopy on file.

Property is also known as

ZEN Hostel Yamanouchi
ZEN Yamanouchi
ZEN Hostel Yamanouchi
ZEN Hostel Hostel/Backpacker accommodation
ZEN Hostel Hostel/Backpacker accommodation Yamanouchi

ZEN Hostel Reviews

Reviews

8.6

Excellent

Rating 10 - Excellent. 24 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 16 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 6 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 2 out of 48 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 0 out of 48 reviews" "

8.6/10

Cleanliness

8.8/10

Staff & service

10/10

Amenities

8.2/10

Property conditions & facilities

10/10

Eco-friendliness

Reviews

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Very chill, run by nice people
Stayed 1 night in Jan 2020

8/10 Good

Fook Wai

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2019

10/10 Excellent

Lorena

Travelled with family
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Enjoyed our stay at Zen hostel. The staff was attentive and helpful in planning activities.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2019

8/10 Good

Jon

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Nice on a budget
Cheap, clean, friendly staff, lots of trust, good breakfast
Stayed 1 night in May 2019

10/10 Excellent

luis

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great value and attention to details from the hist
It was a great stay! Everything that you could need was provided! Very friendly environment both the staff and the guest! Special Kudos to Maya who manages the hostel very professionally and welcoming. She provided very useful information as well as the gentleman that was also there!
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2019

10/10 Excellent

holly

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great place to stay in Yamanouchi!
Zen Hostel is in a neat, old, traditional Japanese building. The lounge overlooks a pretty Japanese garden which can be viewed through the giant windows making it seem like you are outside. The walls throughout the hostel are adorned with nice photos from around the world. The floor in my private room was covered by beautiful tatami mats on which a futon is placed for sleeping. The futon was a little thin for sleeping on my side (boney hips) but was otherwise comfortable. Everything is clean. The heaters provided kept the room as toasty as I needed but the common spaces are pretty cold so bring warm jammies in the winter for the trip to the restroom. I don't consider this a negative for this hostel as I found it is normal for there to be cold common spaces in places in the low budget range (I wouldn't know about the fancy hotels in Japan). The staff were super nice and speak English. The breakfast options were yummy and reasonable at 600 yen. The dinner menu is limited but my curry was good. The location is perfect, just 5 minutes walk to the bus and train station and close to all restaurants. I definitely recommend this place!
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2019

8/10 Good

Nelson, Kuala Lumpur

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Clean hotel, but wifi is slow and too far from metro or JR station
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2018

10/10 Excellent

Kevin

Amazing, non expensive and clean place.
Stayed 2 nights in Nov 2018

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Not bad but expensive for what you get
We stayed at a "private" twin room and once our door was opened by someone while we were away, and another time while we were still inside someone came into our room even though it was locked! It was a mistake but I couldn't recommend the private room if you are concerned about someone entering the room. Furthermore my girlfriend didn't think the room was that clean, personally I thought it was average. Service was nice and it's not far from station. However this area doesn't have many stores or restaurants that are open. I chose to come here because my girlfriend lives close by, but hotels in Nagano city are much cheaper and cleaner if you book in advance. Unfortunately my girlfriend was a bit picky and didn't want to travel to Nagano so I ended up paying more money for less. If you have the choice, stay at a hotel in Nagano city or choose this if you want to be close by some specific tourist attraction.
Stayed 2 nights in Oct 2018

10/10 Excellent

ANDY, Tokyo

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
個室に泊まりましたが、旅館のような部屋に泊まることができくつろげました。 また、近くの有名温泉旅館と提携していて、追加料金で温泉に入れる仕組みがあり、助かりました。
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2018

8/10 Good

adam

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Town stay for snow monkey trip
Convenient for snow monkeys and nice nearby onsen. Employees very kind made nice breakfast and drove us to the station

6/10 Okay

ren

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Beware, this is NOT in Shibu Onsen town!
We chose this hostel by mistake. We thought it was in Shibu Onsen since this what we searched for when booking. Our fault!! We were disappointed to learn this place is in neighboring village and can not provide key to the 9 public onsens in Shibu Onsen. The owner didn’t bother explaining where we got it wrong. He pretended he doesn’t know what we are talking about and offered to sell us entry to an Onsen nearby his place where he has a deal. What is the problem helping us understand the situation? This is not the friendliness and hospitality we got accustomed to traveling around Japan. The hostel itself is ok, very basic and abit unhygienic in Japanese standards. It is quite cheap so you get descent value for money.
Stayed 1 night in Apr 2018

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Friendly English speaking staff, good breakfast, private showers, comfy bedding and good location handy for the snow monkeys.
Stayed 2 nights in Dec 2017

10/10 Excellent

CC, Sydney

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice Hostel close to the mountains, friendly staff
Out family of 6 stayed in the self contained suite that had our own toilet and bathroom very comfortably.
Stayed 2 nights in Jun 2017

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Modern comfortable
Our party of 5 stayed in a private room with shared bathroom. The traditional tatami room is nice and the staff are great. They serve good choices of breakfast at their lounge area for a fraction on price. Had their fresh fruit smoothies, matcha latte and roll cakes in the afternoon and they are delicious. Totally recommend this place to all travelers.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Modern meets Japanese simplicity
Great value for a private room which was warm and spacious. It was surprisingly quiet considering the paper walls and doors. The common areas seemed new, modern, and clean. The shared bathroom was clean and the shower booths were great, very private. One of very few places without its own onsen or yukatas but you still get some traditional features like the garden off the lounge area and Japanese style rooms with tatami and futons (Japanese floor mattress). The cafe had good prices for drinks but a limited menu. Breakfast was good but expensive. No amenities in the room, not even tissue. You need to rent towels and bring your bedding down to the laundry bins but it was well worth it to save on the cost.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness
Weekend Adventure
It was a wonderful stay. Coming from a warm environment, the cold rooms were a challenge. The heat in the rooms is kerosene. The heater runs for 3 hours and then beeps, and shuts off. So, if you are a light sleeper, this could be a problem. The showers are located on a separate floor-not with the toilets and it is co-ed, with private shower stalls. The shower area was not heated. With an outside temp of 24 F it was quite cool in the showers. Overall we had a delightful adventurous time, but it does take some grit to keep the smile on. The staff were amazing, helpful, funny and kind. Also most importantly...they speak English :).

10/10 Excellent

Yin Ping

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Helpful and budget
We almost couldn't go there when the local train has stopped because of heavy snow. I called them and got a pick up from them as a service, I saw people taking taxi into the town and it must cost a fortune. So they are willing to help on contingency. The paid access to a nearby hotel's onsen is quite good, in a good timing we were in public bath with nobody else. If you go to nearby ski resort(Ryoo for my case), ask for coupon as the discount is really good compare to the original walk in price.

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Freezing but nice staffs
•Freezing almost everywhere •Hot water stopped in the middle of shower •Coffee was terrible... we ordered 2 and the 2nd one was like brown hot water. We didn't mind if they were free but actually paid ¥350 each •The staffs are nice and friendly

10/10 Excellent

NANCY, US

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Excellent stay-close to Snow Monkeys
The Zen hostel is very close to the Yudanka train station and takes no more than 5 minutes to get to. The hostel is very well laid out and decorated. Our room was clean and provided just what we needed- - place to sleep. The facilities ( bathroom and showers)are very clean. The buikding itself is very historical- but has been updated to be quite modern. Each room has its own heaters. Food served here is quite delicious. The owner was kind enough to give us a lift up to the snow monkeys- which is a huge plus. Just make sure you know your way back down or can catch a taxi cab. Enjoyed our stay very much and would most certainly return!!!

10/10 Excellent

Hon Nam

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Super friendly host.
It is a very new hostel. Bright, comfortable, modern. Owner has tastefully decorated the hostel. He speaks good English, friendly and helpful. Price is very reasonable. Best hostel that I have stayed so far.

8/10 Good

YUKAKO

Stayed 1 night in May 2023

10/10 Excellent

DAISUKE

Travelled with group
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Stayed 1 night in Feb 2023

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Travelled with group
Disliked: Cleanliness
Stayed 1 night in Jul 2020

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, amenities, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 1 night in Nov 2019