Our family had the pleasure of staying at Kumanote - mountain bear for 6 nights in Jan 2018. From the outset of booking our accommodation in August, Chris was extremely... read more helpful in his suggestions and tips for our stay, right down to where to hire ski gear from, restaurant bookings, delivery of luggage & booking transfers.
We were welcomed warmly into our apartment and shown around town. During our stay we did not want for anything. Chris and Jackie were always available to assist with anything we required, at anytime.
The beds were extremely comfortable (a particular highlight for us all after a big day on the slopes), and the in house drying room was a god send. Being located across from a lovely onsen was great to.
We were lucky enough to stay for the fire festival and Chris gave us much insight into where to watch and explain the details.
Thank Chris, we loved our stay and hope to enjoy your hospitality some time soon.

  Great place at a great location. Right outside a public onsen, close to all the restaurants and yet, quiet and peaceful. Thought that the photos of the lodge didn’t do... read more it justice, when we walked through the doors, we were in awe of the place. Clean and cosy!

The real value of the place however is the host himself. Very helpful with settling us into the place as well as introducing us to all the local joints and attractions during and prior to the trip.

  We were a group of 8 staying in early Feb 2020, and Chris’ space was perfect for us. It was well stocked with games, communal space to hang, and kitchenware... read more to cook. We had a great time. There were maps around, solid wifi for those of us that needed to get work done, and convenient onsen soap baskets provided for those of us who wanted to step across to the public bathhouse. Chris helped with getting dinner reservations for us as it’s near impossible to find space or such a big group at dinner time. We were especially thankful for the help with driving our bags to the bus station as it was icy going up the road. If you’re not driving fresh groceries are hard to come by tho, so we’d recommend stocking up in Nagano / Iiyama on your way in - the house is definitely equipped for some spectacular home cooked meals. Winterland, which Chris co-owns, is a great place for gyoza and discovering some new beers, and we definitely enjoyed the okonomiyaki just down the street. We found the walk to the slopes a fairly good warmup (steep uphills and icy!) but Olive rental at the Hikage gondola area let us store our snowboards on the mountain so that made it that much easier. Highly recommended if you’re looking to rent basic boards and gear. Bathrooms were great - spacious, dry and comfortable. Dry room was excellent - all our stuff was dry by the time we headed out Everyday. Thanks for the great stay, Chris!