Hotel Kunimi Gotemba

A 5-minute walk from Gotemba Station, easy for families traveling by train

Hotel Kunimi Gotemba is a 74-room business hotel about a 5-minute walk from Gotemba Station on the JR Gotemba Line. You can base yourself at Gotemba Station, where the free shuttle bus to the Gotemba Premium Outlets departs, and buses toward Hakone and the Fuji Five Lakes are easy to connect to, so the location suits family trips without a car. If you do drive, parking is free for one car per room (a second car is charged, and when the lot is full, guests are directed to paid parking nearby). The Rakuten Travel rating is 4.10 out of 5 (711 reviews).

The buffet breakfast is free for staying guests, freshly baked bread included

The hotel's biggest draw is the buffet breakfast, included free for every staying guest. It is served in the first-floor restaurant from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m., with a Japanese-and-Western buffet menu and freshly baked bread. Not having to hunt around the station for your child's breakfast is a practical win for families. From 3 p.m. to 8 p.m., the self-service cafe in the first-floor restaurant (coffee and tea) is also free to use, and a welcome drink is offered as well - just right for a breather after check-in or a cup once the children are asleep.

Separate communal baths for men and women, room to stretch out

The hotel has separate communal baths for men and women, filled with artificial hot spring water, in addition to the bathtub in your room, where you can stretch out your legs. A communal bath at business-hotel prices is a rare find around Gotemba Station. After the bath, you can have the free mineral water from the room refrigerator and go straight to bed. On accessibility, the hotel is wheelchair accessible, lends wheelchairs, and has a wheelchair-accessible toilet.

Rooms have semi-double beds, and children ages 0-6 co-sleep free

There are two room types: single rooms (12 sq m, with a 120 cm semi-double bed) and twin rooms (17 sq m, with two 120 cm semi-double beds), and every room has a Simmons mattress. There are no extra beds and no Japanese-style tatami rooms, so families essentially co-sleep with their child on a 120 cm-wide bed. Children ages 0 to 6 co-sleep free of charge, and children ages 7 and over pay the same rate as adults (per the accommodation policy listed on online travel agency sites). With one baby or toddler, you can book a plan such as a couples plan for 2 adults plus a co-sleeping child, but with elementary school children or two children, plan on splitting into separate rooms, such as two twins. Items available to borrow include a humidifier, thermometer, ice pillow and blanket - reassuring to have if a child runs a fever away from home (quantities are limited).

Planning a stay with children

Check-in is from 3 p.m. to midnight, and checkout is at 10 a.m. Late checkout until 12 noon costs 2,200 yen, and early check-in from 1 p.m. is also available for 2,200 yen, so you can stretch your stay around a child's nap or to avoid traffic on the way home. There is a coin laundry as well (washing machine 300 yen, dryer 100 yen per 30 minutes), which makes consecutive nights workable. It is a hotel that suits a simple, dependable approach: stay affordably by Gotemba Station, eat a solid breakfast, then head out sightseeing.