Reviews from guests who stayed at this hotel, shared by our hotel supplier. Score based on the latest 20 reviews.
Laurent
Australia · Couple · October 2026
“Wonderful hosts, delicious food”
+The property was clean and spacious. The food was delicious, including our lunchboxes. We were walking the Shin Etsu trail. Everyday, Sato and Hiro dropped us off at the start of the walk and picked us up in the evening. They even helped us map our next walking days, took our luggage to the next guesthouse and all this at no extra cost. We had a truly wonderful time.
James
United States · Solo · May 2026
“Great place for serious hiking”
+Our hosts were a delightful couple who worked hard to make our stay enjoyable. They picked us up from the train station and also on the day we went hiking showed us where to go, provided maps, dropped us off at the trail head and picked us up at the end. One evening when we had not bought food for dinner beforehand she cooked us a fabulous dinner. The countryside is gorgeous.
−Not that we didn’t like this, but visitors should be aware that this area is for skiers in the winter and hikers during other times. After the ski season visitors drop off and many hotels close so there is not much in the way of eating options. We bought food in town to have for dinner most nights. There is a bus that services the area with the town of Iiyama. Pay attention to the bus schedule.
Linfang
Australia · Solo · February 2026
“Simple but sufficient for slopes”
+Sato San are super friendly and very helpful towards the guests, the food is great. Very simple but comfortable stay
Sketchylanding
Australia · Solo · February 2026
“Great budget pic for Madarao”
+The hosts were great. Very kind and helpful. Drove us up to the slopes and picked us up every day. Breakfasts were really nice and the few times we had dinner there it was excellent. It's a simple Japanese pension so if you keep your expectations in line with that you will be happy
−Shared bathroom was somewhat limited for the size of the place but not really a problem. Maybe could have done with a bigger common area but I'm nit-picking. What's key is the hosts and they exhibited typical Japanese kindness
Evan
Australia · Couple · January 2026
“Great stay ,great food and even better service”
+Every day the hosts went out of their way to make my stay as easy and enjoyable . Cannot emphasize how important this is. The food is great and plenty.
−Nothing, I stayed for 2 weeks and I highly recommend staying with pension pure
Evan
Australia · Solo · January 2026
“Great food and hosts”
+The owners are really nice people and they are very friendly and helpful
−The 10:30 curfew is a little too early.
Nan
New Zealand · Solo · January 2026
+The dinners are so amazing. Suggestion to other future guests: Don't waste your time to wonder around, booking other restaurants for your dinners. Foods in Pension Pure are just absolutely great! Don't worry about the walk distance to the ski area, as the friendly host would drop off and pick up you, three different time slots, in the morning and afternoon each to make it super easy. Discounted lift passes are available for purchase, directly from mama and papa, which covers the whole maintain (both Madarao & Tangram sides). Drying room is availablD to store and dry all gears. Good price rental gears can be hired from them too, making the Snowbaording/skiing hassles free.
Nick
Australia · Family · January 2026
+Pension Pur is a dated Japanese ryokan. The owners are very nice people who also provide a very nice dinner for an extra cost. The location is an easy 10 minute walk from the lifts and the owners will drive you there and pick you up which is fantastic.
−The rooms are very dated and small which is not uncommon in Japan. It really needs some new linen and bedding and the heating in one of the rooms we rented didn’t really work. Unfortunately the septic system seems to go through most of building and has a very strong smell.
Caetano
Australia · Couple · January 2026
“Super helpful friendly and warm accommodation”
+Positives: 1. The hosts/owners are very kind and helpful at all times and for everything!!! 2. the daily pick and drop of at the ski slope is wonderful!! They drop at 8:30/9/9:30am and pick up at 3:30/4/4:30pm. They also picked up and dropped off on our arrival and departure. (And they very kindly did two extra pick ups just for us when we did day trips to Nozawa Onsen to ski there - without us even asking!!). 3. They will drop you off at any restaurant you want at night. However, to get home you must walk 10-15 minutes from the bars (including a hill) to the accommodation. It is manageable but we never had icy road conditions. NOTE: the location of the accommodation on Booking.com is not accurate (must be a mistake) so please check the address in maps for correct location. 4. They offer daily breakfast for $20 (AUD) per person and dinner for $30 per person. One of the previous reviews commented on the food being the best they had anywhere in Japan. I thought this was an exaggeration UNTIL I had her meals. They were OUTSTANDING!!!!! And for us too, the best food we have ever eaten in all of our four Japan trips combined. Each dinner had salad, 2-3 entrees, main, soup, sides (additi
−These are not negatives but just things to know. 1. Rooms are small with no storage. 2. Bathrooms and public bath is nice and comfortable but small. They do the job though. 3. The accommodation is older and the bed was a little uncomfortable for myself with a bad back.
Lauren
Australia · Group of friends · January 2026
“Highly Recommend this stay, particularly for the wonderful hosts.”
+My six friends and I had the best time staying at Pension Pure, we were able to organise ski passes and skis with them at an incredible price. We were also able to purchase an amazing breakfast and be transported to and from the Maganao Ski Resort which is a walkable distance when not in ski boots. Transport to other ski resorts like Nozawa Onsen for the day is also very easy and affordable via bus (takes about an hour for transport). The rooms and bathrooms and communal areas were all very clean and comfortable. But the highlight of our stay were our hosts Mamason and Papason that were very helpful and friendly ensuring we had the best time with recommendations such as a local Onsen.