Taking On What No One Else Does A Theatrical Entertainment Hotel — Shiga Grand Hotel

If you’re looking for a hotel in Shiga Kogen’s Ichinose area that offers more than just a place to sleep, Shiga Grand Hotel may be just what you’re after. With the ski slopes, parking lot, and bus stop all right in front of the hotel, its location is hard to beat. In recent years, it has also taken on a new style of stay called “Hotel Camp”—a blend of hotel comfort and camping fun. While meeting the needs of skiers in Shiga Kogen, the hotel is also transforming itself into a place for experiences, using the rich natural setting of the green season as its stage. It is, in the best sense, a hotel with a personality all its own.

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Taking On New Challenges

The current president is the second-generation owner, Daisaku Takaso. The hotel was originally operated in the Hasuike area for about 20 years before the family acquired the current facility, which had been put up for sale, and relocated here. Looking back through the family history, his grandmother’s generation ran a ryokan in Kanbayashi Onsen, making this a family with deep roots in hot-spring hospitality. Today, the family is also involved in the operation of Fudoson-no-Yu Kotobuki. While carrying on a lineage of locally rooted inns, Shiga Grand Hotel continues to try one new idea after another. That flexibility and willingness to take on challenges are what give the hotel its distinctive character.

Shiga Kogen’s First Glamping Experience: “Hotel Camp”

Looking back at the hotel’s history, the building that preceded it was once used as “Hotel Tirol,” and there is even a unique story that it was once considered for conversion into a disco. Today, Shiga Grand Hotel’s concept is “a hotel that challenges new frontiers.” A prime example is “Hotel Camp,” Shiga Kogen’s first glamping experience, launched in 2022. Guests can enjoy tents, BBQs, and outdoor activities just steps from their rooms—a fresh proposal that combines the comfort of a hotel with the openness of camping. It is not simply about staying in the mountains; it is about staying while playing in the mountains. That spirit runs throughout the experience.

The hotel has also taken an ambitious approach to its guest rooms. By combining two rooms into one, or even three rooms into one, it has transformed them into higher-end rooms designed for extended stays. These rooms are aimed at groups and families of around four to six people, as well as guests who want a more spacious and relaxed stay. The hotel continues to evolve by offering “stay value” that goes beyond simply providing a place to sleep.

There’s a Live House, Music Studios, and a Bar. Sometimes, It Even Turns Into a Club.

Another essential part of what makes Shiga Grand Hotel unique is its commitment to “doing what no one else does.” The music studio facilities, developed from an idea by the previous generation, were a major undertaking said to involve an investment of around 100 million yen. The hotel was also quick to introduce bars and food tenants, reportedly including a taco shop and a canned-food bar at one point. Including the reflection that they may have been “a little too far ahead of the times,” as President Takaso puts it, these efforts reveal the hotel’s unmistakable tendency to keep challenging itself. (→ Shiga Underground, Shiga Kogen’s first music event, was also held here)

Usually a live house, the space quickly transformed into a club for the March event.

Music practice studios are also fully equipped.

Meals are based on Japanese cuisine, and depending on the number of guests, may be served buffet-style. At times, fish caught by the president himself or bamboo shoots he has gathered may even appear on the table, giving guests a real sense of the hotel’s close connection to nature. The hotel also pays attention to small details for international guests, such as keeping spoons available and using easy-to-understand katakana labels such as “rice”.

Speaking about Ichinose in Shiga Kogen, the area is described as a community with a strong sense of unity, where people have shared the hard work of protecting their water. The clean water, clear air, fishing, wild vegetables, and alpine plants that define Shiga Kogen’s natural environment have been preserved through cooperation among local people. The hotel has not forgotten that these surroundings are what make its new challenges possible.

→Read the Ichinose Area Storybook Here

A Hotel That Continues to Evolve

Looking ahead, the hotel is envisioning itself as a “theatrical entertainment hotel.” A future that combines accommodation with experiences to watch, gather around, and get excited about—such as DJ events and rock events—feels unmistakably true to Shiga Grand Hotel. A hotel for skiing is great. A quiet place to rest is great, too. But sometimes, the hotel itself becomes the attraction. This is one hotel offering a new way to enjoy Shiga Kogen’s Ichinose area.

There is also a bar next to the entrance.

A Playful and Capable President

A new indoor activity is also currently in the works. We’ll introduce it in the next article.

This helmet is a carefully selected piece that President Takaso personally commissioned from a helmet artisan.
“We’ll be waiting for you in the green season, too!”