Wanted to start by saying thank you so much for such a fantastic resource. I have spent the last few hours reading this thread and I am so inspired to explore more ryokan's on subsequent trips. For our upcoming trip we are visiting the Mount Fuji area for 4 days (including travel from Osaka on day 1 and travel to Tokyo on day 4) / 3 nights in September. We plan to rent a car and are keen to explore the area as we have not visited previously. On one of the days of the trip my husband will be attending a car race at Mount Fuji Speedway and I will be staying at the accomodation we land on, which initially triggered my exploration of a ryokan.

I have considered Ubaya but don't like that the private baths are not natural spring water, so that kind of leaves Fufu Kawaguchiko, which looks great but not very traditional. For those that are familiar with the area would I be silly to consider staying in Hakone over the Five Lakes area for a more traditional ryokan experience? Or is Fufu Kawaguchiko as great as the reviews say and I get the bonus of Mount Fuji views? Does anyone know when Fufu Kawaguchiko traditionally open rooms to book, looks like you can only book through June.

Would also be keen for any other ryokans near Mount Fuji or Hakone. Also keen to hear recent reviews of Gora Kadan as there seems to be a lot of negative reviews round the condition of the ryokan.