“LOOF Sakanoie” (るうふ 坂之家), a kominka (restored old Japanese house) inn in Ashigawa-cho, Fuefuki City, Yamanashi Prefecture, is a whole-house rental that takes one group per day. Its official site lists the rate as from ¥12,760 per person (tax included) for four guests staying one night room-only. It accommodates 2 to 6 guests, and stays are built around “Showa nostalgia” — dinner around the irori sunken hearth and listening to Showa-era kayokyoku (Japanese pop) records. This article sets out the rate guide, capacity, access and booking method using only information published on the official site (as of September 2026).
- — The published rate is from ¥12,760 per person (tax included) for four guests, one night, room-only, plus a separate service charge. The per-person price rises with two guests, so compare total prices with your party size and dates entered (as of September 2026).
- — A whole-house rental for one group per day, 2–6 guests. Two bedrooms (four double beds in total plus two futon sets), and baby gear makes it easy for families with infants.
- — The stay centres on an irori skewer-grill dinner and 50 Showa kayokyoku LP records. Access is mainly by car; from Kawaguchiko Station or Isawa-Onsen Station it is about 30 minutes by taxi.
What kind of inn is Sakanoie? — A kominka whole-house rental dating from 1972
Sakanoie stands in a mountain hamlet along the Ashigawa River, between Lake Kawaguchi and the Kofu Basin. The official site reads “Ashigawa Since 1972”: the building, dating from 1972 (Showa 47) and now over 50 years old, is used as a whole-house rental inn. The concept is “a nostalgic journey, gentle with the sound of the river.” Inside are a dining area with an irori table, 50 Showa kayokyoku LP records with liner commentary, and retro game consoles. To the sound of the Ashigawa flowing right beside the house, guests can enjoy the village through the seasons — daffodils and wild cherry blossoms in spring, fireflies in summer, autumn leaves in fall.
Because it takes only one group per day, you will not run into other guests during your stay. With room for 2 to 6 guests, it suits everything from a couple’s anniversary to a three-generation family trip or a group of friends. Baby gear such as a toilet seat adapter and a high-low chair is provided, making it easy to use with infants. Whole-house rentals like this are becoming the leading format among recent new openings, and we look at choosing them by self-catering facilities and suitability for multi-night stays in Vacation Rentals Lead Japan’s 2026 Hotel Supply.
Rates, capacity and facilities — the officially published basics
| Item | Details (published on the official site, as of September 2026) |
|---|---|
| Rate | From ¥12,760 per person (tax included) for four guests, one night, room-only, plus a separate service charge. Varies by season; check actual prices on the official booking calendar |
| Capacity | 6 guests (available from 2 guests; larger parties by consultation) |
| Bedrooms | Bedroom 1: two double beds / Bedroom 2: two double beds + two futon sets (laid out according to party size) |
| Check-in / check-out | Check-in 3 p.m. / check-out 11 a.m. Online check-in and check-out on an iPad in the house, with no staff contact |
| Bath | Unit bath and shower |
| Main facilities | Irori table, 50 Showa kayokyoku LP records (with commentary), retro items such as a Famicom and board games, pellet stove, air conditioning |
| Baby gear | Toilet seat adapter, high-low chair, baby bath, diaper bin |
| Kitchen | Rice cooker, refrigerator, microwave, gas stove, knives and cutting board, tableware, wine opener, etc. Seasonings: salt, pepper, soy sauce, oil |
| Amenities | Bath towels, face towels, hair dryer, toothbrushes, loungewear, shampoo, conditioner, body soap, etc. |
Note that the published “from ¥12,760 per person” is the room-only rate for four guests. A whole-house rental divides a total price by the number of guests, so with two guests the per-person price goes up. Meals are not included in the room charge either; dinner and breakfast come as separately selected plans. Since the total depends on “party size × season × meals or not,” the reliable approach is to enter your dates and check the booking calendar.
Irori cooking and records — how to spend a stay at Sakanoie
The star of the meal plans is the irori. Dinner is an irori kushiyaki (skewer grill) where guests grill seasonal ingredients themselves; the official menu lists Koshu wine beef and Fujizakura pork baked in foil, seasonal seafood, seasonal vegetables, and seasonal takikomi rice cooked in a clay pot. Skewering the fish and cooking rice in a donabe pot are designed as part of the experience — the kind of extra effort only an old house invites. Breakfast is a Japanese meal of salmon and seasonal vegetables steamed in a seiro basket, with freshly cooked rice and miso soup. Every plan includes a set drink, and there is a children’s menu (a hamburger steak, for example) for small kids. The inn also sells the Yamanashi wine “LEGARE,” which pairs with the irori cooking. How demand and prices behave in wine country in autumn — Koshu at harvest time included — is summarised region by region in Japan Wine Region Hotels 2026.
After dinner, drop the needle on a Showa kayokyoku record and play nostalgic games with a melon soda in hand — that is the “time spent doing nothing” the official site describes. Rather than TV-style entertainment, the product is the pace of time in an old house itself: the hearth, the records and the sound of the river. Kominka whole-house rentals chosen “for the building and the experience” are spreading nationwide; in the Iya valley in Tokushima, for example, there are whole-house rentals such as a thatched-roof house of more than 300 years restored for guests (see this comparison of four whole-house rentals and small inns in Iya, wabistay, in Japanese).
Access — mainly by car, about 30 minutes by taxi from the station
The address is 107 Nakaashigawa, Ashigawa-cho, Fuefuki City, Yamanashi Prefecture. As it sits in a mountain hamlet, the car is the main way to get there. According to the official guide, the nearest exits on the Chuo Expressway are Ichinomiya-Misaka IC, Kawaguchiko IC or Kofu-Minami IC, each about 30 minutes from the inn. There is a parking lot, and the official site has a page guiding the walking route from the parking lot to the house.
By train, it is about 30 minutes by taxi from Kawaguchiko Station on the Fujikyu Line or Isawa-Onsen Station on the JR Chuo Main Line. The official site lists taxi companies for both the Kawaguchiko side and the Isawa Onsen side, so booking a taxi in advance is reassuring. From Tokyo, a rough guide is “Chuo Expressway to Isawa Onsen or Kawaguchiko, then a 30-minute taxi ride” — a location that rewards staying the night rather than a day trip.
How to book — via the booking calendar on the official site
Bookings are made on the booking page of the official site (loof-inn.com) by entering dates and party size. The official site says it offers “the best deals,” and meal plans can be selected there too. Because rates vary by season, the quickest way to see current prices and availability is the official booking calendar. As a one-group-per-day whole-house rental, weekends and holidays tend to fill early, so secure your dates as soon as they are set.
If you are torn between other LOOF houses
LOOF, which operates Sakanoie, is a brand running kominka whole-house rentals in Yamanashi and Chiba, with a different theme for each house. Also in Yamanashi Prefecture is “Kyonoie” (峡之家), an inn known for its spring water with a hinoki cypress open-air bath, and in October 2025 “Hyounoie” (漂之家) opened in Nanbu-cho, Minamikoma District. The way to choose among LOOF houses is by experience theme: Sakanoie for Showa retro and the irori, Kyonoie for the open-air bath and spring water. Across the brand there are 14 houses in total — nine in Yamanashi and five in Chiba — so comparing capacity and rates side by side on the official site is a quick way to narrow down the choice.
Explore further
For detailed comparisons of specific inns, these articles go deeper.
From Iya and Oboke to Oku-Iya — four whole-house rentals and small inns of ten rooms or fewer hidden in the valley of the vine bridge (wabistay, in Japanese)
Compares four properties by price guide and architectural highlights, including Chiiori (篪庵), a whole-house rental in a restored thatched house over 300 years old, and Tougenkyo Iya no Yamazato (桃源郷 祖谷の山里), which rents out thatched kominka one house at a time in the Ochiai hamlet, a nationally designated Important Preservation District for Groups of Traditional Buildings. A yardstick for finding “kominka whole-house rentals” like Sakanoie across Japan.
Isawa and Katsunuma in Koshu: five gourmet inns that bring the vineyard harvest to the table (yadolist, in Japanese)
From around Fuefuki City, home to Isawa Onsen — Sakanoie’s nearest station — it introduces five food-focused inns, including Fuefukigawa Onsen Bettei Zabou (笛吹川温泉 別邸 坐忘), which pairs tea-ceremony-inspired kaiseki with Koshu wine, and Isawa Meitokan Itoyanagi (石和名湯館 糸柳), founded as a restaurant in 1879. Useful for the nights before or after, or for comparing with onsen ryokan.
Frequently asked questions
Q. How much does Sakanoie cost?
The official published rate is from ¥12,760 per person (tax included) for four guests staying one night room-only, plus a service charge that varies by party size and season. With two guests the per-person price rises, and meal plans are charged separately. Check the total on the official booking calendar by entering your dates and party size (as of September 2026).
Q. How many people can stay?
The house takes 2 to 6 guests. There are two bedrooms: Bedroom 1 has two double beds, and Bedroom 2 has two double beds plus two futon sets (laid out according to party size). Parties larger than the capacity should consult the inn.
Q. What about meals?
Besides the room-only plan, there are plans that include an irori kushiyaki dinner — seasonal ingredients grilled over charcoal at the sunken hearth — and a Japanese breakfast steamed in a seiro basket. Every plan includes a set drink, and a children’s menu is available for small kids. The kitchen has a rice cooker, refrigerator, microwave and gas stove.
Q. Can we stay with a baby?
Baby gear is provided — a toilet seat adapter, a high-low chair, a baby bath and a diaper bin — and there is a tatami room where futons are laid out. As a one-group-per-day private rental, you won’t need to worry about disturbing other guests.
Q. What are the check-in and check-out times?
Check-in is at 3 p.m. and check-out at 11 a.m. Both are handled on an iPad in the house, with no staff contact.
Q. When do cancellation fees apply?
According to the official site, the fee is 20% of the room charge from 14 days before, 50% from 10 days before, 75% from 7 days before, and 100% on the day or for no-shows. Terms may differ by plan, so check when you book.
Methodology and sources
■ Data sources
Rates, capacity, bedrooms, facilities, meals, access, check-in/check-out and cancellation fees are based on the “Sakanoie” page of the official LOOF kominka inn website (checked by the HotelBank Editorial Team on September 19, 2026). Statements about Kyonoie and Hyounoie in the same series are based on each house’s page on the official site and on previously published HotelBank articles.
■ Calculation assumptions
The rate is the lower bound of the officially listed “room charge per person (four guests, one night, room-only)” and excludes the service charge, meals and options. This article does not estimate total prices; variation by party size and date assumes confirmation on the official booking calendar. The building’s age is approximated from the official “Ashigawa Since 1972” wording.
■ Limitations and caveats
Room charges, service charges, plans, facilities and menus change with the season and ingredient availability. Travel times are the official guide’s estimates and vary with road conditions and season. This article reflects information published on the official site as of September 2026; check the latest details on the official site before booking.
■ References
- LOOF kominka inns official site: “Sakanoie” (in Japanese)
- LOOF kominka inns official site: property list (in Japanese)
- LOOF kominka inns official site: “Kyonoie” (in Japanese)
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