馬籠ふるさと学校／ゲストハウスgaku馬籠

Excellent place to stay during typhoons. The hosts were extremely helpful and fun. We had a great time here!

Beautiful wooden building which was formerly an elementary school. The dorms are in former classrooms and there are still blackboards and other features typical of Japanese schools all around. So cute!

What a surprise ! The hotel is a school, in fact was a school. But the atmosphere is still there. You feel like the kids will enter in few minutes. The place is Super quiet and clean. Staff is very gentle. There is also rooms for couple or family. You don't have to sleep alone if you don't want to. I will do whatever I can to go back there.

Although this hostel is housed in an old school, it is very modern, with pine woos panelling throughout. Very comfortable, clean and well designed. The hostel takes up only part of the huge school building and has a lounge/reception, large kitchen and nice showers and toilet facilities. There are two dormitories, each with several bunk bed capsules and a couple of beds for couples/families behind a curtain. The capsules are large wooden boxes, each with a personal security box, lamp and electrical socket. I found the bed a little warm but very comfortable and had one of the best nights sleep in my whole trip here. The staff are very friendly and helpful, there are lots of flyers and info on attractions and busses in the lounge. The hostel offers a free bus service to a nearby onsen each evening departing at 6:30 or 7:00 with a return bus at 8:30pm. The onsen costs only 500¥ per person and is very nice. The hostel also offers free breakfast in the morning, toast (individually wrapped slices like everything in Japan!), egg and jam, with complimentary coffee and tea available whenever the lounge is open (closes at 10:30pm). One of the more expensive properties we stayed in (we paid about 7,500¥ per person), but maybe due to Golden week. The location is great, beautiful views over the Kiso Valley, 5 minutes from Magome center and the start of the Magome-Tsumago path, and 25 minutes by bus from Nakatsugawa (560¥ per person).

Really good experience. The place is an old school and still has this vibe, however it is perfectly addapted. The kitchen is perfectly equipped and spacious, the rooms are also spacious, well sistributed and nice. The place is perfectly clean and the staff is very helpful ad friendly. They also offer free shutle to the Onsen (around 10min away by car). We took it and was really worth it.