News Release
Video Released Showing Interior of Hakone Gora Karaku, Ahead of Opening on October 2, 2020
- A complete introduction of an accommodation with an amazing view extending to the Hakone mountains and Sagami Bay and where guests can indulge to their hearts’ content -
Sep 17, 2020
TOKYO, Japan - September 17, 2020 - ORIX Real Estate Corporation (“ORIX Real Estate”) announced that it has released a video introducing the interior of the new onsen hotel Hakone Gora Karaku—the second onsen hotel developed and operated by ORIX Real Estate—ahead of its opening on October 2, 2020*1.
URL：https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nKAfid8eaI 
Hakone Gora Karaku’s concept is to be an accommodation where guests can indulge to their hearts’ content. With some of the best views of Gora showing the daimonji bonfires and Sagami Bay, the onsen hotel makes use of the outstanding natural environment in which it is located. The video introduces open spaces where one can feel close to nature, such as the 70 deluxe rooms which all have open-air hot spring baths; terraces with refreshing greenery and gentle murmuring of the stream, the guest lounge, and other communal spaces; and open-air scenic baths which are some of the largest*2 in Gora.
General Manager Naruo Fujii made the following comment about Hakone Gora Karaku’s opening.
“ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS will have a new onsen hotel. First, we are thorough in implementing hygiene and other measures based on our Cleanliness Policy*3 when welcoming our guests so that they can enjoy their trips with peace of mind. At Hakone Gora Karaku, we offer baths of varying styles to let guests fully enjoy the renowned hot springs of Hakone. They have been carefully designed to blend seamlessly with the scenery. Please experience Hakone’s four seasons and spend that special time relaxing to your heart’s content. At this new onsen hotel, we will strive to communicate the charms of the region and provide experiences that remain in guests’ heart .”
Going forward, ORIX Real Estate will continue to develop facilities that match the needs and lifestyles of customers and contribute toward the further invigoration of regional areas.
*1 Please refer to the news release “A New Onsen Hotel of ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS: Hakone Gora KARAKU to Open on October 2, 2020” dated July 1, 2020.
*2 ORIX Real Estate Research.
*3 Guidelines such as hygiene management and service policies based on them so that all customers can use them safely and securely.
Features and Overview of Hakone Gora Karaku
1. Concept
“An amazing view extending to the Hakone mountains and Sagami Bay—guests can indulge to their hearts’ content at this onsen hotel.”
Hakone Gora Karaku offers lodging surrounded by an outstanding natural environment where guests can relax and enjoy hot spring baths. Within the onsen hotel, spacial beauty rooted in Japan’s traditions is expressed using wood, rocks, bamboo, and other objects.
2. Hot Springs
(1) Open-air scenic baths
“Sokai” and “Myojo”—which are some of the best open-air scenic baths in Gora—are located on the top floor, offering views of the daimonji bonfires and Sagami Bay. At Sokai, a white color tone is used such as for the bath to bring out the clearness of the hot spring water. The open-air bath is decorated with water basins, giving it a sense of open space, and making it blend ever more seamlessly with the scenery. Myojo offers a breathtaking view of Mount Myojogatake, commonly called Daimonjiyama, and allows guests to enjoy views that change with the seasons.
| Opening hours | 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.; 3 p.m. to 12 midnight (alternating schedule between men and women) |
|---|---|
| Facilities | Sokai—One open-air bath, one indoor bath, one cold bath, and one steam bath Myojo—One open-air bath, one indoor bath, one cold bath, and one dry sauna |
(2) Private rental baths
Reservable baths with garden views can also be used as places to relax, such as cooling off outdoors while taking a bath. At night, the gardens are given a magical look through the use of illumination. There are three baths to choose from: “Iwa-no-yu” that is made of rocks gathered in Gora to express the immense power of nature; “Hinoki-no-yu” that is filled with the aroma of cedar; and “Silk-no-yu” that envelops guests in white micro-bubbles.
*“Silk-no-yu” is not a hot spring bath.
| Opening hours | 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.; 3 p.m. to 12 midnight (by reservation) |
|---|---|
| Fee | 5,000 yen per hour (including taxes) |
3. Guest Rooms
All 70 guest rooms are deluxe rooms with open-air hot spring baths with refined layouts. For example, natural color tones that blend with the natural scenery rich in green are used across all rooms, and rooms come with furniture designed based on room type. Comfort is further pursued by not only offering original mattresses developed jointly by Serta and Hakone Gora Karaku but also glass sound speakers and beauty appliances.
Hakone Gora Karaku also has a universal room that takes into consideration the lines of movement of elderly guests and wheelchair users. The entrance uses a sliding door and there are other features such as a space for getting on and off wheelchairs at the guest room’s open-air hot spring bath.
4. Restaurants
(1) Restaurant “Mutsuki”
At “Mutsuki,” guests can enjoy dishes based on traditional Japanese kaiseki cuisine made using seasonal ingredients specially selected from all over Japan. Dinner comprises eight dishes, starting with a seasonal appetizer that changes monthly and including beautiful jelly desserts made by a pastry chef. The main dish is fish and meat offered in a “prefix” style, where guests can choose two out of six items. Breakfast is fluffy white rice that has been steamed in a claypot and side dishes made with the head chef’s special attention.
(2) Teppanyaki restaurant “Tomura”
At “Tomura,” guests can enjoy grilled cuisine courses that use specially selected branded beef and filled with seafood harvested from Sagami Bay and Suruga Bay. For dinner, a course of eight dishes is prepared by skilled chefs at the large hot plate counter in the center so as to bring out the flavor of each ingredient. The restaurant has around 70 types of wine which are recommended by a sommelier based on the preferences of guests. Breakfast is made using ingredients—such as eggs, bacon, vegetables, and milk—obtained from throughout Japan. Guests may choose omelettes or galette made using a hot plate as the main dish.
5. Communal Spaces
Hakone Gora KARAKU offers a lobby lounge, guest lounge, and terraces where guests are free to come and go during their stays.
At the lobby lounge, food and drinks are served to welcome guests. Guests can take their time to complete the check-in process using tablet devices while seated in a sofa. Located with the lobby lounge is a shop and gallery that sell yosegi-zaiku woodenware, pottery, original teas and confectionery, amenities, and other merchandise.
The guest lounge “AWAI” has a “free-flow” time in the mornings and evenings when guests can enjoy drinks, finger food, and desserts free of charge. It becomes a bar at night, offering wine, champagne, snacks, and other items. In addition, AWAI offers access to the Forest Terrace, and guests can spend their time at the terrace with a drink in hand.
6. Cleanliness Policy
ORIX Real Estate and ORIX Hotel Management Corporation have formulated and implemented an independent Cleanliness Policy (“‘With COVID-19’ Operation and Service Policies”) so that all guests can use the facilities safely and with peace of mind.
Examples of measures
(1) Appointment of staff in charge of promoting hygiene management
The staff member in charge of promoting hygiene management strives to establish a system that welcomes guests in perfect conditions, checking the state of compliance with these guidelines and the facility’s operation manual as well as seeking to ensure thorough awareness among employees.
(2) “Clean Stay” room stickers
“Clean Stay” room stickers are signs guaranteeing that, in addition to cleaning and disinfecting guest rooms based on the guidelines, areas that are frequently touched by guests have been wiped down carefully with special cleaning agents and the like. They are placed on doors after guest rooms have been cleaned to guarantee the room’s state of hygiene management.
(3) Introduction of system to avoid crowds
A system to avoid crowds has been introduced that allows guests to check the state of congestion at public baths and the guest lounge while in their rooms.
Cleanliness Policy posted on the official website of ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS (Japanese only)
https://www.orixhotelsandresorts.com/info/2020/09/16/3604/
7. Facility Overview
| Address | 1300-8 Gora, Hakone-machi, Ashigarashimo-gun, Kanagawa, Japan |
|---|---|
| Site area | 7,200.43m2 |
| Total floor area | 10,252.34m2 |
| Number of buildings | 4 buildings in total: 2 buildings with 3 above-ground and 2 underground stories; 1 building with 2 above-ground and 1 underground story; and 1 building with 4 above-ground and 1 underground story |
| Number of guest rooms | The East and West Wings house a total of 70 guest rooms in Western and Japanese styles |
| Hot springs | Sokai and Myojo open-air baths with splendid views; Hinoki-no-yu and Iwa-no-yu private rental baths; each guest room is equipped with its own open-air bath |
| Dining facilities | Restaurant Mutsuki, Teppanyaki restaurant Tomura |
| Spa | Gora Spa AIOI (operated by The Day Spa Co., Ltd.) |
| Communal spaces | Guest lounge AWAI, Water Terrace, Forest Terrace |
| Design company | Irie Miyake Architects & Engineers |
| Construction company | Fujita Corporation |
| Opening date | October 2, 2020 |
| Website | https://www.gora-karaku.jp/ |
8.Overview of the ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS Brand
ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS is an onsen hotel and hotel operating business brand. It is responsible for 12 ORIX Real Estate facilities in Japan whose operation has not been entrusted to other companies.
The brand concept is “a location to which customers wish to return.” ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS seeks to become a brand that caters in a refreshing manner to the diverse needs of its customers and even, at times, satisfies desires they did not know they had. https://www.orixhotelsandresorts.com/
(1) List of Accommodation Facilities
(2) Overview of the Brand’s Business Categories
ORIX HOTELS & RESORTS divides the facilities it operates into four different categories. It proposes trips suited to a variety of different usage scenarios, such as when traveling alone, with friends or family, and the purpose and style of travel. Hakone Gora KARAKU belongs to the hot spring ryokan category.
Brand Categories:
Contact Information:
ORIX Corporation
Corporate Planning Department
Tel: +81-3-3435-3121
About ORIX:
ORIX Corporation (TSE: 8591; NYSE: IX) is a financial services group which provides innovative products and services to its customers by constantly pursuing new businesses.
Established in 1964, from its start in the leasing business, ORIX has advanced into neighboring fields and at present has expanded into lending, investment, life insurance, banking, asset management, automobile related, real estate and environment and energy related businesses. Since entering Hong Kong in 1971, ORIX has spread its businesses globally by establishing locations in 37 countries and regions across the world.
Going forward, ORIX intends to utilize its strengths and expertise, which generate new value, to establish an independent ORIX business model that continues to evolve perpetually. In this way, ORIX will engage in business activities that instill vitality in its companies and workforce, and thereby contribute to society. For more details, please visit our website: https://www.orix.co.jp/grp/en/
(As of March 31, 2020)
Caution Concerning Forward Looking Statements:
These documents May contain forward-looking statements about expected future events and financial results that involve risks and uncertainties. Such statements are based on our current expectations and are subject to uncertainties and risks that could cause actual results that differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause such a difference include, but are not limited to, those described under “Risk Factors” in the Company’s annual report on Form 20-F filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and under “(4) Risk Factors” of the “1. Summary of Consolidated Financial Results” of the “Consolidated Financial Results April 1, 2019 – March 31, 2020.”
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