Saizenin

Recent Reviews: 119

• User:Gemind

  Trip type: Family

  Expensive stay, beautiful property, decent location

  11 Nov 2025

  Saizen-in hotel is a 5 minute walk from the nearest bus stop and you can cut across through the Golden Hall complex grounds. The temple hotel has a beautiful garden within the complex. And the staff were quite nice and friendly. We opted for the room with a private bath and toilet and that made this our most expensive stay in Japan. The room was nice and they provided decent mattress to sleep on the floor but the washroom and toilet were quite tiny, in fact the shared washrooms were a lot bigger! Breakfast and dinner was included and was just about okay. The religious ceremony in the morning was quite enchanting. But this was easily the most expensive stay and poor value for money. In fact, given the time, effort and costs to come to Koyasan, I would admit that the experience was disappointing and I would have preferred not to have come. The only interesting experience in Koyasan was the Okunoin cemetery, nestled in a beautifully wooded forest.

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• User:Kendra B

  Trip type: Couples

  Great, would definitely stay here again

  20 Nov 2024

  We stayed at this monastery in Koyasan and it was great. We slept in a traditional on the ground mattresses and they brought us a great vegetarian dinner in our room. We also took part in the meditation class they offered which was very fun and extremely interesting - we learned so much about the history of KOyasan and Shinto buddism.We also attended the morning ceremony prior to breakfast which was great and interesting.The breakfast was one of the best we has the whole trip - rice and miso and silken tofu! Would definitely stay here again

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• User:Laurenscapin

  Trip type: Couples

  Once in a lifetime experience

  01 Feb 2024

  Our experience at Saizen-In was indescribable. It was romantic, yet adventurous. Even though the temple itself was very cold, our room was extremely cozy. I was surprised by the comfort of our stay. The monks were all very polite and welcoming. The food was even better! I highly recommend including both breakfast and dinner in your reservation.

• User:markocean22

  Trip type: Couples

  A true temple stay

  16 Nov 2023

  We stayed at this temple for one night and it was worth it. You have a vegan breakfast and dinner cooked for you whilst you stay in a traditional Japanese style room.Location wise, it was perfect for us. The cemetery is about a 20-25 minute walk which isn’t too bad as you explore the area anyway.The monks were very welcoming and I had a fun conversation with one about football (they love Tomiyasu and Mitoma). They spoke English very well and I could communicate easily, even one monk who couldn’t speak much English just pulled out his phone and used translator to speak.In the morning, you’re invited to join their morning prayers which is a unique experience. It’s about 30 minutes long and certainly something you don’t want to miss.Some things to be aware of is, for us, we had the option of having dinner served at either 5 or 5:30pm.Dinner for the most part was tasty and delicious. I’m open minded and willing to try things I wouldn’t normally have - but I can imagine picky eaters not enjoying some of the dishes. Also, curfew is around 9pm. They literally shut the temple doors. So be careful about doing night tours of the cemetery that start at 7.(We went on our own accord as it was dark by 5pm anyway)

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• User:fordiie

  Trip type: Friends getaway

  An experience not to be missed

  15 Sept 2023

  This is truly an amazing experience, we slept on comfy futon beds on tatami mats and shared the bathroom amenities with other guests which wasn’t a problem as there were plenty. The onsen in the ladies shower room was lovely and relaxing. At 7am we attended morning devotions with the monks and afterwards were served a vegan breakfast. As we had not booked for dinner we brought our own vegetarian food with us as we were advised that eating places closed early and the temple gate was closed at 9pm. We bought the Koyasan World Heritage Ticket which covers the rail round trip from Nankai Namba and two days of free rides on the local Koyasan hop on hop off bus. An experience not to be missed.

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