The staff were wonderfully friendly and helpful.
Unfortunately the 1 day/2 nights we spent here were rainy days. Our canoe experience was cancelled of course. And after half a days time, we felt very restless and a bit trapped. The compound overall is quite small. We thought we could take a hike in the drizzle but there were not any paths through the trees, as advertised on their map. We walked up and down the compound (a lot of stairs) to find a trail but the trails were either blocked off (due to rain) or non-existent. No trails were clearly marked.
To get in and out of the compound you need to ask the staff to drive you a short distance to a lower parking lot area, where then you would have to call a cab to go "into town". Given that we were there for a such a short time and had a scheduled dinner and 1 mid-day activity (the smoking workship), it didn't make sense for us to make the trek out of the compound.
The smoking workshop was not so much of a "workshop" but a quick 15 min. demonstration of woodchips, tabletop smoker, with a charcuterie board. It left much to be desired.
The in-room shabu shabu and sukiyaki was delicious and the highlight of our stay. I do wish however, the vegetable pairings were different for the two meals but I understand that it's local ingredients. Eating on the balcony under the heated blanket was also the most unique experience of Hoshinoya.
We also never got to see Mt. Fuji due to the weather.