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Karuizawa inns that take dogs: 5 with dog runs and dining together
Approximate, at the rate on 2026-10-02. You pay in yen.
- Karuizawa dog friendly hotel: four of five let the dog sit with you at dinner
- Dog runs range from about 40 m² at Le Chien to 540 m² at Mikage Yosui
- Soyokaze takes large dogs, several dogs and cats; Le Chien has the hot spring
The five
| Best for | Where to book | Score | Weeknight (per person) | Saturday |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A hot spring, a dog salon, and the first two dogs free — if you can’t decide | Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa Check price |
77/100 | ¥19,000–44,000 | ¥24,000–41,000 |
| Kaiseki with the dog at the table, ten minutes from Kumoba pond | Regina Resort Kyu-Karuizawa Check price |
76/100 | ¥24,000–74,000 | ¥35,000–69,000 |
| Large dogs, several dogs, and animals other than dogs | Karuizawa Hotel Soyokaze Check price |
73/100 | ¥21,000–24,000 | ¥23,000–32,000 |
| A kitchen in every room, and two separate dog runs | Art Hotel Dogleg Karuizawa Check price |
72/100 | ¥12,000–25,000 | ¥16,000–25,000 |
| The largest turf runs, and a private run with the room | Regina Resort Karuizawa Mikage Yosui Check price |
71/100 | ¥20,000–26,000 | ¥26,000–44,000 |
Prices are the cheapest per person found on Rakuten Travel for Wednesdays and Saturdays between 2026-11-14 – 2027-01-06, for 2 adults in one room (checked 2026-11-05). They move daily — the link shows live prices.
The booking links go to Agoda, which shows today’s price and lets you pay in your own currency. Its price can differ from the Rakuten Travel figures above.
A hot spring, a dog salon, and the first two dogs free
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.66/5 (806) · Jalan 4.80/5 (598) · Ikyu 4.63/5 (172) · Google Maps 4.50/5 (664) · Tripadvisor 4.30/5 (32) · Agoda 8.9/10 (92) · 2,364 in total
- Southern French-style resort at Kyu-Karuizawa; every room takes dogs
- A dinner menu for the dog as well as you
- Two private hot-spring baths besides the communal ones
Why it made the five
- Dogs: dogs only, from six months old. No charge for the first two; from the third, ask, as it depends on the breed. Some breeds cannot stay.
- A woodchip dog run of about 40 m², a dog salon stocked with outfits for photographs, and a dog bath by reservation. Some rooms have a private garden or roof balcony.
- Western course dinner and buffet breakfast, both with the dog in the restaurant. Natural hot-spring indoor and outdoor baths and two private baths, which the dog cannot enter.
Getting there: In Kyu-Karuizawa. A car or taxi from Karuizawa station. Check-out is 11:00.
Language and payment: English, card acceptance and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. The hot-spring baths are communal, but there are two private ones, which is the route to take if a tattoo rules them out. Bring the vaccination certificate.
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Right for: 4.66 across more than 800 reviews, with a hot spring, and nothing to pay for the first two dogs.
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Not for: The dog run is small at about 40 m².
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Worth knowing: Bring proof of vaccination. Dogs cannot enter the communal or private baths.
Score breakdown — 77/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | A 4.55 average on Rakuten’s room, bath and dinner scores. |
| Value for money | ★★★☆☆ | Mid-range: at the median weekday price per person. |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out at 11:00, the dog run, the dog in the restaurant, a dog salon and dog bath, and a menu for the dog. |
| Trust | ★★★★☆ | 4.64 across 2,272 reviews on five sites. |
| Only here | ★★★★☆ | All fifty rooms take dogs, with a dog salon and a dog bath by reservation, while you get a natural hot spring and private baths. |
Kaiseki with the dog at the table, ten minutes from Kumoba pond
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.73/5 (123) · Ikyu 4.75/5 (330) · Google Maps 4.50/5 (283) · Tripadvisor 3.20/5 (12) · Agoda 6.8/10 (1) · 749 in total
- Twenty-six rooms, dogs only
- Ground-floor rooms have a private dog run; first-floor rooms a terrace facing the woods
- Kaiseki dinner matched with Shinshu sake
Why it made the five
- Dogs: no limit on breed or size, except dogs that bite. Up to six small or medium dogs per room, or three large dogs over 50 cm at the shoulder. Book direct and the first two are free.
- A woodchip dog run on the grounds, and a private dog run with the ground-floor rooms.
- Kaiseki dinner and breakfast both in a restaurant the dog may enter, with food available for the dog. Crates, bowls and towels provided.
Getting there: In the Kyu-Karuizawa villa district, about ten minutes’ walk from Kumoba pond. Check-out is 11:00.
Language and payment: English, card acceptance and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. Vaccination is required; where a dog cannot be vaccinated, a deferral certificate issued within the year is accepted. The free allowance for two dogs applies only to direct bookings.
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Right for: Within walking distance of Kumoba pond and Kyu-Karuizawa, with a serious dinner you eat beside your dog.
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Not for: The shared dog run is a single area, smaller than at the Mikage Yosui property.
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Worth knowing: Vaccination required, or a rabies deferral certificate within the year. The free dog allowance is for direct bookings only.
Score breakdown — 76/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★★☆ | A 4.71 average on Rakuten’s room, bath and dinner scores — the highest here. |
| Value for money | ★☆☆☆☆ | The weakest axis: about 1.53 times the median weekday price per person. |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out at 11:00, large dogs accepted, a woodchip run plus private runs with the ground-floor rooms, both meals with the dog, and a dog menu. |
| Trust | ★★★★☆ | 4.63 across 748 reviews on four sites. |
| Only here | ★★★★☆ | Both the kaiseki dinner and breakfast are eaten with the dog in the restaurant, the ground-floor rooms have their own dog run, and Kumoba pond is ten minutes’ walk away. |
Large dogs, several dogs, and animals other than dogs
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.62/5 (523) · Jalan 4.50/5 (237) · Google Maps 4.10/5 (233) · Tripadvisor 3.10/5 (24) · Agoda 6.0/10 (1) · 1,018 in total
- Seventeen rooms in the woods; has taken pets for a long time
- Rakuten scores dinner at 4.83
Why it made the five
- Dogs: large to small, several at a time. Cats, rabbits and other indoor pets can stay too. Charged per dog whatever the size.
- A dog court of about 100 m². The Garden Comfort Twin has a fenced private garden where the dog can run off the lead.
- Seating in the restaurant for you and the dog, and an additive-free dog menu using organic vegetables and Japanese ingredients, served in the restaurant or the room.
Getting there: In the woods at Naka-Karuizawa. A car from Karuizawa station is the practical way. Check-out is 11:00.
Language and payment: English, card acceptance and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. The dog must be house-trained and vaccinated annually; dogs under a year old and non-dog pets need you to bring a crate.
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Right for: The easiest here for a large dog, several dogs, or a cat — and the dinner scores well for the humans too.
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Not for: A location score of 4.14, the lowest of these, and a car is useful from the station.
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Worth knowing: House-training and annual vaccination are conditions. Bring a crate for a dog under a year old, or for a pet that is not a dog.
Score breakdown — 73/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | A 4.50 average on Rakuten’s room, bath and dinner scores. |
| Value for money | ★★★☆☆ | Mid-range: about 95% of the median weekday price per person. |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out at 11:00, large dogs accepted, a 100 m² dog court, the dog in the restaurant, and an additive-free dog menu. |
| Trust | ★★★☆☆ | 4.44 across 1,017 reviews on four sites. |
| Only here | ★★★★☆ | Large dogs and several dogs both accepted, along with cats, rabbits and other indoor pets, with an additive-free menu for the dog. |
A kitchen in every room, and two separate dog runs
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.44/5 (72) · Jalan 4.10/5 (219) · Ikyu 4.33/5 (20) · Google Maps 4.30/5 (128) · Tripadvisor 3.90/5 (33) · 472 in total
- Designer hotel; all nineteen rooms have a kitchen
- Large and small dogs have separate runs
- The hotel can point you to dog-friendly places to eat
Why it made the five
- Dogs: all nineteen rooms take dogs. Charged per dog, though some plans include the first two.
- Two natural-turf dog runs, 20 × 8 m for large dogs and 12 × 12 m for small.
- Breakfast is a plate of Asanoya bread and Chozumeya ham. No dinner: cook in the room’s kitchen, order in, or eat out. From May to October a terrace barbecue can be booked.
Getting there: At Naka-Karuizawa. A car or taxi from Karuizawa station. Check-out is 11:00.
Language and payment: English, card acceptance and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. There is no communal bath, so tattoo rules do not arise. Whether a vaccination certificate is needed is not published — ask when booking.
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Right for: A kitchen for the dog’s food as well as yours, and well suited to several nights.
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Not for: No dinner served, and no hot spring or bath house.
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Worth knowing: The dog charge depends on the plan. Check whether a vaccination certificate is required when you book.
Score breakdown — 72/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★★☆☆ | Rakuten gives no bath or dinner score here, only 4.25 for the room. It is a condominium-style hotel with a kitchen in every room. |
| Value for money | ★★★★★ | The cheapest here, about 58% of the median weekday price per person. |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out at 11:00, large dogs accepted, two dog runs divided by size, and a kitchen in every room. |
| Trust | ★★☆☆☆ | 4.20 across 472 reviews on five sites — the weakest axis here. |
| Only here | ★★★☆☆ | All nineteen rooms take dogs and have a kitchen, so you can cook for the dog in the room and eat out at dog-friendly places yourself. |
The largest turf runs, and a private run with the room
Regina Resort Karuizawa Mikage Yosui
Reviews: Rakuten Travel 4.64/5 (158) · Ikyu 4.57/5 (52) · Google Maps 4.50/5 (414) · Tripadvisor 4.20/5 (38) · Agoda 9.1/10 (11) · 673 in total
- Dogs-only resort of twenty-six rooms in the woods
- Ground-floor rooms step straight into a private run
- The path along the channel is the walk
Why it made the five
- Dogs: up to six small or medium dogs per room, or three large dogs over 50 cm at the shoulder. Book direct and the first two are free; through other sites, each is charged.
- Natural-turf runs of 540 m² for all breeds and 140 m² for small dogs, plus a 16–20 m² artificial-turf private run with each ground-floor room.
- Dinner and breakfast both with the dog in the restaurant. Crates, bowls, toilets and towels provided per dog.
Getting there: In the woods along the Mikage irrigation channel. A car or taxi. Check-out is 11:00.
Language and payment: English, card acceptance and tattoo rules are not published, so ask when you book. There is no communal bath, so tattoo rules do not arise. You sign an undertaking about the dog, and the hotel takes out pet insurance at its own expense.
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Right for: The largest turf runs here, private runs with the rooms, and the dog at the table.
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Not for: No bath house and no hot spring; the baths in the rooms are not thermal either.
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Worth knowing: The free dog allowance is for direct bookings only. You must agree to the dog-stay terms and be covered by pet insurance, which the hotel pays for.
Score breakdown — 71/100
| Criterion | Stars | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Quality | ★★☆☆☆ | A 4.48 average on Rakuten’s room, bath and dinner scores. |
| Value for money | ★★★☆☆ | Mid-range: about 101% of the median weekday price per person. |
| Easy to stay | ★★★★★ | Check-out at 11:00, large dogs accepted, 540 m² and 140 m² turf runs plus private runs with the ground-floor rooms, both meals with the dog, and a grooming room. |
| Trust | ★★★☆☆ | 4.52 across 662 reviews on four sites. |
| Only here | ★★★★★ | Two natural-turf dog runs, one for all breeds and one for small dogs, an artificial-turf private run with each ground-floor room, and both meals with the dog in the restaurant. |
Know before you book
- Kyu-Karuizawa puts the old Ginza street and Kumoba pond within walking distance, so morning and evening walks need no planning.
- Towards Miyota and Naka-Karuizawa the grounds are larger, and some hotels have a natural-turf dog run.
- Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza is on the south side of Karuizawa station, an easy detour by car.
- Karuizawa station is about an hour from Tokyo on the Hokuriku Shinkansen. From the station to these hotels, assume a car or taxi.
- Large dogs are limited by shoulder height and by number. If you are bringing several, check the cap for the specific room type.
- Summer and the autumn leaves are busy. In winter the roads ice over, so the car needs the right tyres.
How we chose: theme, conditions, scoring
How we chose
- Candidates: every property in Karuizawa listed on Rakuten Travel — 279
- Passed the review filter (counts and averages on Rakuten Travel, the one site that lists every property in the area): 77
- Met every condition below: 18
- Kept: five, each the best at something different
Where the facts come from
- Facts: Rakuten Travel property information (in some articles, each hotel’s own site too)
- Prices: Rakuten Travel live availability, Wednesdays and Saturdays over eight weeks
- Reviews: counts and averages from Rakuten Travel, Jalan, Ikyu, Google Maps and Tripadvisor, added up in each hotel’s Trust row. Agoda’s reviews are shown under each hotel name for reference only and do not count towards the score
Conditions (all of them, not most of them)
- The dog stays in the same room as you
- Reviews are consistent: a floor of 30 or more reviews averaging 4.2 on Rakuten Travel, after which we add up the published counts and averages from Jalan, Ikyu, Google Maps, TripAdvisor and Booking.com, and score the trust star on that combined total
- Preference given to hotels within the towns of Karuizawa and Miyota
- Prices are the cheapest shown for two people with breakfast, one night. The dog is charged separately, and we give that charge for each hotel — some are free
Scoring
Five criteria, one to five stars each, weighted to one hundred points. Every star says where the number came from.
- Quality25 pts
- The average of the room, bath and dinner scores on Rakuten Travel.
- Value for money15 pts
- The cheapest breakfast-inclusive plan per person against the median of the hotels we compared.
- Easy to stay25 pts
- What matters with a dog: size accepted, dog runs, eating together, grooming facilities and dog menus.
- Trust20 pts
- Review counts and averages from Rakuten Travel, Ikyu, Jalan, Google Maps, TripAdvisor and Booking.com, added together.
- Only here15 pts
- What this hotel offers a dog owner that the others do not.
What we dropped
| Property | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Trailer House Hotel Jennie | Runner-up (69/100) | A whole trailer to yourselves with a large dog is appealing, but the dining is terrace-only and it placed below the five. |
| SORA HOTEL KARUIZAWA OUTLET | Runner-up (65/100) | The indoor dog run and the position by the station are both useful, but on the combined scores it placed below the five. |
| Karuizawa Marriott Hotel | Runner-up (54/100) | A hot-spring bath in the cottage is unmatched here, but one large dog only, by arrangement, put it last of the candidates. |
| Aux Sauvignes Karuizawa Club | Not selected | 113 Rakuten reviews at 4.72 clears our floor, but only three rooms take dogs, some with a dog-run terrace, medium and large dogs are capped at one, and dogs cannot enter the restaurant. |
| Karuizawa Prince Hotel West | Needs checking | The Prince Forest Dog Village has eleven dog cottages and dog parks divided for medium and large dogs and for small ones, but we could not confirm a breakfast-inclusive booking for a dog cottage on the hotel’s Rakuten page, and the reviews are for the hotel as a whole. |
| DOG DEPT GARDEN HOTEL KARUIZAWA | Below the floor | A hotel built for dog owners, but 59 Rakuten reviews averaging 4.07 is below our 4.2 floor. |
| ART HOTEL VILLA11 Karuizawa | Below the floor | Every room takes dogs and there is a dog run, but 28 Rakuten reviews at 4.6 falls short of the thirty we require. Worth revisiting as reviews build. |
Questions visitors ask
Can the dog sit with us at dinner?
At most of these, yes — Karuizawa is unusual in this respect. Both Regina Resort properties serve dinner and breakfast in a restaurant the dog may enter. Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa and Hotel Soyokaze do the same and have menus for the dog. SORA HOTEL has seating where the dog may sit with you, Trailer House Jennie allows dogs on the diner’s terrace, and Karuizawa Marriott lets you take dinner in the room. Art Hotel Dogleg serves no dinner at all.
I am visiting Japan. Can I bring my dog?
Not quickly. Bringing a dog into Japan needs a microchip, two rabies vaccinations, a rabies antibody test and advance notification to the quarantine service, and the process runs to months before departure. This article is for people living in Japan, or whose dog is already here.
How large a dog can I bring?
Both Regina Resort hotels take large dogs over 50 cm at the shoulder, up to three per room. Hotel Soyokaze takes large dogs and several at once. SORA HOTEL takes one to three medium or large dogs depending on the room type, and Trailer House Jennie takes dogs over 25 kg up to half the unit’s guest capacity. Karuizawa Marriott takes one large dog, by arrangement.
Which have a private dog run with the room?
Both Regina Resort properties attach one to their ground-floor rooms — at Mikage Yosui it is 16–20 m² of artificial turf. Hotel Soyokaze’s Garden Comfort Twin has a fenced private garden where the dog can be off the lead, and some rooms at Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa have a private garden or roof balcony.
Do I need a vaccination certificate?
Usually yes. SORA HOTEL wants proof of combined and rabies vaccination within the year, or a positive antibody test. Karuizawa Marriott wants a copy of the certificate and the rabies tag. Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa asks you to bring the certificate. Regina Resort will accept a rabies deferral certificate issued within the year where a dog cannot be vaccinated. Art Hotel Dogleg does not publish a requirement — ask.
Can the dog get in the hot spring?
No. Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa’s natural hot-spring baths and two private baths are for people only, and the same applies at Karuizawa Marriott’s cottages. If sharing a bath with your dog is the thing you want, Izu Kogen rather than Karuizawa is where to look — one inn there allows it.
Which one would you book?
Le Chien Kyu-Karuizawa, on the combination of a natural hot spring for you, a dog salon and dog bath for the dog, both meals together in the restaurant, 4.64 across 2,272 reviews, and nothing to pay for the first two dogs. The dog run is only about 40 m². If running the dog is the point, Regina Resort Karuizawa Mikage Yosui has 540 m² of natural turf and a private run with the ground-floor rooms.
Changes
- 2026-11-05 First published. Scored from 279 candidates.