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The NEST Biwako in Makino, Japan, is a sea...
December 16, 2023 open
Glamping is a popular way to experience the outdoors in comfort and luxury. Since the Corona disaster brought it to the attention of the public, it has become completely established as a new camping style. In the midst of this glamping boom, a Leaf writer took her children to stay with her family at NEST Lake Biwa (Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture), which opened in December 2023!
What kind of things can you do in a villa for rent with an indoor pool, private sauna, and even a guest room hot spring? Here is a full report with photos taken with a smartphone camera. There are also special offers available to reduce the room rate, so check it out until the end.
[NEST Lake Biwa] is a glamping facility that was created based on the philosophy of wanting people to experience nature, and aims to be somewhere in between a luxury hotel and camping in the great outdoors. The bedrooms, dining room with kitchen for BBQ, and sauna are located facing the indoor pool, so you can enjoy a resort-like atmosphere in any of the rooms.
Located in Makino Town, Takashima City, Shiga Prefecture. It is about an hour and a half drive from Kyoto Station, an area full of greenery surrounded by Lake Biwa and mountains.
Nearby, a row of metasequoia trees stretching 2.4 km in total length is worth seeing not only in the season of autumn foliage, but also in fresh green and snowy weather. Visitors can take pictures with the tunnel of trees in the background, or take a stroll along the rows of trees while admiring the surrounding mountains and orchards, and spend a relaxing time in nature.
NEST Biwako, located in Makino, currently has two villas for rent. The warmth of wood can be felt as soon as you step into the villas, and the beams and pillars of the space above the indoor pool and the ceilings of the bedrooms are made of wood in abundance, giving the impression of being enveloped by nature.
I was surprised to find a karaoke machine in the bedroom! The villa is located in a rich natural setting and there are no private houses nearby, so you can play loudly without worrying too much about your surroundings. There are also Jenga, UNO, and other games, and I was able to open the roll screen on the window to look at the sky while relaxing and playing with my children on the tatami mats.
[One of the features of NEST Lake Biwa is that each building is equipped with a heated indoor swimming pool. I thought it might be cold in the pool in early June when I visited, but the air conditioner allows you to set the room temperature as you like, and the water temperature of 30 degrees Celsius is comfortable, so I was able to float around in the pool with my child for two to three hours. The villa is a private space surrounded by a fence, so I could change my child into a bathing suit by the spacious poolside. The villa is so easy to enter that we were able to fulfill our request to play in the pool first thing in the morning after getting up.
At night, the indoor pool is filled with a magical atmosphere. There is a projector on the deck by the pool, so you can enjoy a celebrity-like experience of watching a movie while swimming in the pool. A glass window between the bedroom and the poolside deck allows you to watch your children sleep while you talk over a drink. Families as well as friends with children will enjoy staying here!
Next to the pool is a sauna, and beyond that is a guest room spa and totoi space. In the sauna, I was able to warm up slowly in a space where the only sound was the crackling of the stones, which was quite soothing. My daughter seemed to enjoy the "wax" and was very excited by the unusual experience of water being poured over the stones to create steam!
Have the natural hot spring all to yourself in the atmospheric hot spring baths!
Natural hot spring water with a thick consistency gushes out of each building. The water can be added to the hot spring water, allowing those who do not like hot springs to take their time soaking in the hot spring. The barrel baths are spacious enough for adults to stretch their legs comfortably, and there is plenty of room for children as well.
BBQ can be enjoyed in the dining room with kitchen. This was my first indoor BBQ experience, and it was more comfortable than I expected. The room is bright and air-conditioned, free from insects, and you can enjoy BBQ to your heart's content.
The BBQ stove is a large type that can also be used for smoking. Although BBQing in a room may seem like it would fill the entire villa with the smell, each room is separated by an airtight glass window, so surprisingly the smell does not reach the other rooms.
The tableware is made of stylish but easy-to-handle plastic, so there is no need to worry about it breaking, which is a plus for those with children, and it is also nice to know that the BBQ stove is within easy reach of the dining table, as well as a refrigerator that keeps beer chilled until just before drinking and a trash can. This shows the thoughtfulness that goes into providing a comfortable dining experience.
When we travel with our family, our children often say that they want to go outside and play, and we cannot relax at the accommodation facilities. So, I was able to fully enjoy the facilities from check-in at 3:00 p.m. until check-out at 11:00 p.m. without getting bored. The hotel also offers a sense of nature, with little birds visiting the windowsill and the sound of insects when you go out into the garden at night.
Although glamping has an image of being expensive, the price per person can be reduced if the maximum number of guests is five, as the accommodation is based on a single-bedroom rate. In addition, as a Leaf KYOTO exclusive benefit, a 5,000 yen discount on the room rate is available for reservations only until Wednesday, December 31, 2024. Follow the steps below to take advantage of this special offer.
If you send a message on the official LINE of [NEST Biwako] saying that you saw Leaf KYOTO when you make a reservation, you can get a 5,000 yen discount on the room rate *only for LINE reservations
Expiration date / Until reservation on December 31, 2024
Conditions for application of special offers
(1) Add the official LINE account (https://lin.ee/P14z81Z) as a friend
Send the message "I saw Leaf KYOTO" on the LINE talk screen.
(3) Follow the automatic guidance sent to you on the LINE talk screen.
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