First of all, we learned a lesson regarding booking in advance. Afterall, we stayed during cherry blossom season, and we were simply too late to make a booking. The other hotels available were too far away, and we wanted to experience a ryokan (which is "mandatory" when going to Japan :)), so we picked this. And - it was quite nice to arrive there compared to the previous hotel which was rather awful. The room was nice. The storage shelves with sliding doors was smart so we could stow away our baggage. The first time experience of sleeping on futons was alright, but it got too stiff after a couple nights. But the nook/room area (a wannabe "porch" that was never finished?) overlooking the fish pond was too small to maneuver around comfortably (using the sink and fridge, hanging up towels to dry). And the service was like, hi, this is your room, thanks, have a nice day. I mean, this is a small hotel and the staff could do a little more to make the guests feel welcome. It didn't feel personal. The common baths were nice and clean, though. As for the area, there was a pretty good cafe a short walk away that solved the breakfast problem. The nearest railway station was a 10 minute walk, and the university hospital across the street houses a post office. Also, there is a nice little souvenir shop maybe 15-20 minutes walk away that I personally think has pretty much all the souvenirs a tourist in Japan needs.