Jun
6
A small cozy family hotel called “Dolphin hotel” or “Iruka Hotel” in Japanese, with just 13 rooms here, and a very homely feel.
The hotel is owned by a professional cameraman specializing in TV documentaries about Hokkaido wild nature who came to live to this place fascinated by the beauty of local nature.
The hotel is situated right on the shore of the Ohotsk sea with a great view over spectacular mountains and sea from all rooms. In the winter, you can enjoy a breath-holding view of the frozen sea right in front of the hotel and snow-capped mountains of Shiretoko.
In the summer, you do not need to go far away for a stroll on your private beach. From mid July to end of August is the best fishing season for trout and salmon season is from mid August till end of September. There is a wide range of exciting things to do and see in Shiretoko all year round, like wild hot springs, waterfalls, diving, sea-kayaking, ice-walking, snow-shoeing, wildlife watching, etc.
There are many dolphins in these water in the spring and summer, so if you are lucky, you will see them from your hotel’s room. You can also get aboard a dolphin-watching tour boat. This is also one of the origins of the hotel’s name. Attached to the hotel, there is a great Japanese style spa overlooking the Ohotsk sea. Come here to sit and relax and watch the starry sky with a cold beer or Japanese sake after a long interesting day spent in Shiretoko.
Dining
They serve fresh seafood obtained by local fishermen from the sea - delicious and healthy Japanese or Western food with lots of fresh products straight from the sea: crabs, sushi, sashimi, octopus, salmon, oysters, lobsters, prawns, shrimps,etc.
There is a restaurant on the second floor, where you can always come to have a meal, sit and watch TV or movies, talk to other customers or our friendly staff, or flip through the books and magazines from our library while having a cup of fresh coffee. You can also bring here your own notebook to connect to the internet and check email for free! Through the restaurant you can enter a terrace overlooking the sea and mountains, where it is great to have a beer on a fine day.
Rooms
All rooms offer a great view of the Ohotsk sea and beautiful Shiretoko mountains and equipped with a bathroom, shower, TV and heater.
Both single rooms and double rooms are available with Western beds or Japanese tatami floor and futon.
You can experience a real Japanese way of life while staying at our family hotel!
Shiretoko
There are only a few places in the world where you can try diving under ice. Shiretoko, a beautiful peninsula of Hokkaido island located in the north of Japan, is one of these rare places.
We invite you to come here, stay at our hotel and get the wildest experience: try diving in sub-zero water temperatures of the frozen Ohotsk sea, watch the unusual creatures like clione (sea angel), walk above the frozen sea, go fishing for salmon and trout, see life under ice, bears and deer and northern lights, sit and relax in wild hot springs, go skiing and snowboarding, eat natural delicious food, and more…..
Shiretoko is located in a very picturesque region rich with beautiful untouched nature: mountains, rivers, wild animals are ubiquitous here. Utoro, a town situated on the coast of the Ohotsk sea is a gateway to this nature’s beauty.
Both winter and summer seasons offer amazing sceneries as well as opportunities for exploration. It’s not unusual to see wild animals like deer, bears, trout in the rivers, eagles in the forest, seals, dolphins and even mink whales and baleen whales in our sea. Diving also offers a new unseen underwater world all year round.
SUMMER
* Shiretoko sightseeing boats - 2 boats offer a 1 h 30 min trip and a 3 h 45 min. trip around Shiretoko Peninsula, where you can see breathtaking cliffs, waterfalls, dolphins, whales and splendid mountains.
* Fishing boats are available for fishing trout and salmon in the summer (July - September).
* We can show you bears in the wild hunting for trout in a river or playing with cubs in the forest. Beware: we don’t recommend taking a risk of trying to see them on your own. You should use an expert guide.
* You can also see many other wild animals like foxes, deer, owls and eagles, whales and dolphins, that’s why our hotel is called “Dolphin”.
* You can take a tour or go on your own to see beautiful waterfalls, wild hot springs, 5 Shiretoko lakes and untouched nature.
* Stunning sunrises and sunsets over the sea. To see a sunrise you won’t forget, you have to get up early and take a 20 minute drive to the mountain pass, from where on a fine day you will watch fantastic sunrise over the sea of clouds. Sunsets over the sea can be seen from near the hotel.
* There are a lot more travelling and sightseeing opportunities in Hokkaido and Japan. Click here to learn more.
WINTER
* Besides ice diving and ice walking tours in the frozen Ohotsk sea offered by Dolphin Hotel, there is a wide ranging of other winter activities in our area.
* “Aurora” Ice-breaker trip offered in Abashiri will guide you through the frozen Ohotsk sea. You will get aboard a real ice-breaker and see ice cracking under the boat, ice floes passing by with birds resting on them. Occasionally you can also see seals.
* Put on skis or snow-shoes and take a short walk through winter forest to the frozen waterfall “Otome no namida”, which literally stands for “Virgin’s tears” while watching lots of wild deer in the forest gazing back at you. You will also see terrific sunset and huge snow-capped mountains of Shiretoko and lots of wild deer staring at you.
* Every night in February and March you can watch a stunning “Aurora” Northern lights performance of light and music which is a close resemblance of the real Northern Lights. See pictures here.
* Take a short drive and enjoy the view of a moutain river running down the valley from the snow-capped Shiretoko mountain into the frozen Ohotsk sea. The water is so clean and healthy you can drink from it without worries.
* Great powder skiing and snowboarding are available at the nearby skiing slope.
* You can travel around Hokkaido and enjoy lots of winter festivals concentrating on the combination of ice and snow figures and lights performances, visit a real ice-bar or a hot spring in the middle of a frozen lake (Shikaribetsu lake), fly a hot balloon or a paraglider, visit the famous Ice Festival held each year in Sapporo.
* You can relax and warm up after a forest walk, diving or skiing in one of the many wild and cultivated spas and hot springs overlooking the ice fields of the Ohotsk sea.
* Again terrific sunrises and sunsets over the frozen sea are awaiting you in Utoro and more, more, more…….
Iruka Hotel
Japan, Hokkaido, Shari town, Utoro, West 5
Tel.:(81) 1522-4-2888? Fax:(81) 1522-4-2788
info@iruka-hotel.com
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