Shou Sugi Ban House

"I had such an amazing experience. The grounds are stunning. The staff is attentive and friendly. My body felt great after the hydro circuit-steam room, dry sauna, infrared sauna, cold plunge-took a few tries to get up to my neck! Had a PERFECT massage with Wayne."

"Please think twice to spend time and money on this getaway. The exclusivity build through marketing materials is not lived upto customer experience. I visited this place early April which is start of the peak season for such venues. 1.The marketing material slaps in all awards to build credibility and when and how to settle bills but details effecting customer experience are ignored eg.that one can order an omellete at the side if the breakfast is missing all the stuff shown in pictures. 2. Approachability, the road side of this property is very busy and at night one easily misses the entrance. The signage is poor and not well lit. 2 stars there. 3.The food is good when you order the dinner assemble they have listed but the menu is determined by which chef and ingredients are available on a given day. 4. There is little flavor of real Japanese culture except in books and accessories sprinkled all over, I speak after visiting Japan over 30 times. 5. The staff is extremely courteous but cannot make up for the gross mismanagement at a higher level. 6. The staff seems to be seasonal hires. 7. I was shocked to find that there was a walkway next to the studio open glass bedroom wall displayed in pictures, everyone passing can see your room even without wishing. The place is good for photo shoot and a good massage experience if you are lucky to get a good masseur. Customer experience depends on the time of year you visit if they get business during the time of your visit then you might be lucky to get part of the hype displayed in the marketing materials. The place is developed for good visuals."

"My wife and I booked a stay for a romantic weekend over the winter. The architecture and grounds were beautiful. We also reserved dinner which was an incredibly memorable, delicious meal. Breakfast was simple, not abundant but delicious. These were the positives. Overall, we were left disappointed - for the whopping price tag the service left much to be desired. Some examples: In advance of our stay, it was very difficult to get a hold of the staff by phone. Once there, we had to rush to our room to make a work call but afterward we never got an overview of the property/activities/offerings or how to enter the grounds after the spa closed or when check out was. Several times, we were halfheartedly asked if we needed our bags moved and just not engaged regarding how our stay was going because we would’ve given this feedback in real time. Every service, including hot tub access, came with a surcharge, which should’ve been folded in with the price. Additionally, our fire place was broken, our dinner time change/birthday gesture was nearly forgotten, and the hydrotherapy wasn’t clean/lit for the one hour designated for communal use. Some shoutouts to the very nice esthetician who returned my jewelry left behind and the chef/Pilates instructor. If you’re planning a stay, make sure to ensure you have a king room - some are queen/king, are equally priced and seem to be assigned arbitrarily."

"Unfortunately, I am unable to recommend this place despite its many positive reviews. My party of six ladies wanted to visit the facility over Presidents’ Day weekend and a month in advance, one member of our party Took on the task of trying to contact them. She was given the runaround egregiously. With many excuses for why she was unable to reach the coordinator for day experiences. “She’s out to lunch, she’s busy, she’s unavailable, etc. etc. etc.” Eventually, frustrated, my friend was about to throw up her hands and I offered to take over. Unsurprisingly, I had the same experience. My assistant offered to help, and she was able to reach someone on the team. I was promptly sent an onerous questionnaire, asking about our budget and, interestingly, why we’re interested in s Shou Sugi Ban House. It came off like a screening questionnaire and an opportunity for their staff to decide whether we fit the profile of the client that they serve. They came back with a disappointing package, including a yoga class (we never asked about yoga) a sound experience (sounds like a waste of time) and a rice lunch. No massage services whatsoever. In other words, for such an “intimate” experience, there was no attempt whatsoever to discuss our hopes for the day. When asked about this, they responded “ At this time we are not able to accommodate spa experiences.” So we will head to Montauk at Gurney’s spa to celebrate our friend’s birthday. I’m sure SSBH is a beautiful facility. But nothing can justify the egregiousness of such neglectful customer service. SSBH, do BETTER. If you want to profile your clients, do that and try to live with yourselves as best you can. But don’t waste a month of our time in the process."