Kagaya Bettei Matsunomidori

We had fond memories of our first stay at Ka***a Bettei Matsunomidori, so we decided last week to pay another visit to find out if we would be as charmed as we were last time, or if some of our recent stays at Japan's top ryokans will have bumped this ryokan down in the pecking order. I'm happy to say that our experience was excellent, although we were more acutely aware of few of the flaws that we overlooked during our initial sojourn to this ryokan. Ka***a Bettei Matsunomidori was established in 2015 as an annex to the famous and respected Ka***a. The Ka***a group owns and operates several massive properties in the Wakura Onsen area, including Ka***a, Aenokaze and Niji to Umi, all of which are massive, big box properties with a wide array of facilities and activities that is perfect for families and large tour groups. For more discerning travelers, however, the 31-room Matsunomidori stands apart as the luxury option among Ka***a group's portfolio, along with a price to match. We first stayed in 2016, so Matsunomidori was new, fresh and stylish, and we were enamored with the design, refined cuisine, polished service, the massive and interesting public areas and the enchanting view of the garden and ocean. Most of what we remember still hold true, although we were more acutely aware of some of the shortcomings that our younger selves probably overlooked the first time around. First off, 31 rooms for a luxury ryokan is on the large side. Many of the very top properties have less than 20 rooms, with several of them having rooms in the single digits. This resulted in a slightly less intimate and bespoke experience than we've recently become accustomed to. On the flip side, the public areas are comparatively massive, with incredible displays and exhibits of traditional and modern art. Most notably, there is a Wajima Nuri lacquerware (輪島塗) exhibit by famed craftsman Kado Isaburo, with his works prominently displayed througout every nook and cranny of the common areas. Also, the garden is photogenic, is fronted by a historic tea house called Tokuryoan (book early for the wonderful tea ceremony experience in Tokuryoan), and offers stupendous views of the ocean as well as Noto Island. In the lounge area, Matsunomidori offers coffee, tea and snacks throughout the day, free of charge, including a delicious Japanese sweet called Manju (among other offerings.) Overall, the scale and quality of the facilities (including the gift shop) is top notch. The quality further extends to the room as well, for the most part. We stayed in the highest category room - Special Room with Open-Air Bath, which is an expansive 140m² in size, has a living room, a Japanese tatami-matted room as well as a separate and massive bedroom, which also has its own sitting area. Aside from the tatami room, the Suite was unusual in being carpeted and in having Western-style furnishings (couch, table/chairs and beds rather than futons.) While everything was in tip top shape and it was