Minshuku Sazanami

A small family-run minshuku on the shore of Lake Saiko

Minshuku Sazanami is an inn with 5 rooms, all Japanese-style tatami rooms, in the minshuku village of Neba on the western shore of Lake Saiko, one of the Fuji Five Lakes. It can accommodate about 25 guests and welcomes a wide range of visitors, from families and couples to clubs and sports training camps. Lake Saiko is a 5-minute walk away, with fishing spots close by. Ringed by Mount Fuji, the Aokigahara forest and the surrounding mountains, Lake Saiko is the most richly natural area of the Fuji Five Lakes, and it is a well-loved base for hiking, nature walks and photography.

Family-friendly rates and tatami rooms

Rates are the same in every season, with separate prices for adults (junior high school age and over), elementary school children and young children aged 4 and over. Clearly published children's rates are a sign of an inn that genuinely welcomes families. Because every room is a Japanese-style tatami room, you can put a baby who is rolling over or crawling down on the tatami, and co-sleeping is easy to arrange. No age restrictions are listed, so children from babies to elementary school age can stay together. Check-in is from 2 p.m. and checkout is at 10:30 a.m., leaving plenty of time.

A family bath in either of two bathrooms

There are 2 bathrooms, and both are used privately, one group at a time. At check-in you talk through which one you will use and when, so you can take your time bathing with your children without worrying about other guests. They are available from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. This is a family bath with heated water rather than onsen water; if you would like an onsen, the inn can point you to a day-use onsen about 5 minutes away by car.

Home cooking and barbecues

Dinner is a homey spread of dishes such as the inn's big Uma-Deka Hamburg steak, salt-grilled rainbow trout, Koshu's famous horse-meat sashimi, oden-style simmered dishes and tempura of wild mountain vegetables; the menu changes with the season. Breakfast brings home-style favorites including hash browns, grilled fish and dried strips of daikon radish. If you are setting off early for fishing or a hike, you can ask when you book to have your breakfast made into a boxed meal instead. There are 2 covered barbecue grills and the equipment you need, so you can enjoy a barbecue empty-handed.

Access and the surrounding area

By car it is about 16 km and 22 minutes from the Kawaguchiko IC on the Chuo Expressway. By train and bus, take the Saiko loop bus (Green Line) or the bus bound for Saiko Minshuku from Kawaguchiko Station on the Fujikyuko Line, get off at Neba Minshuku-mura and walk about 3 to 5 minutes. Nearby are Saiko Iyashi-no-Sato, a recreated thatched-roof village, a 5-minute walk away, and Yacho no Mori Park, a 10-minute walk away, where children can experience the nature of the countryside and life as it used to be lived. Please note that there is no communal bath or onsen at the inn, and no baby or toddler equipment such as cribs or diaper supplies is listed, so it is best to bring what you need with you.