I stayed a night here as it was the splurge for my Japan trip. It was easy enough to find - once you get out of the right side of the tram/cable car at Koen-Kami (from Gora station), you go down the stairs, turn right at the road, walk up the hill till you see the red sign on the left, then do a left and walk up the hill. There's a parking lot in the middle of the road on the left and the ryokan is opposite. It is a bit of a walk if you've got luggage but you can make use of the luggage forwarding service at Hakone station. When I left the staff were nice and dropped me off at Gora station without me asking.

The lady that greeted me was very nice, as I had a few hours till check in, she let me leave my luggage and go off exploring, explaining she'd take it up to my room for me. Not to digress but it was a lovely stay. It's in a nice location, easy enough to get to all the sightseeing bits of Hakone, the food was amazing, the service was great and the onsens available were just the cherry on the icing. All the staff some an acceptable level of English. I don't speak Japanese (I know a little bit) and we were able to communicate without any problems. I was travelling alone but still got a double room with single beds, the lounge area was huge too. There is no internet here though and there aren't baths or showers in the room, you have to use the onsen. However, there's a public male and female one as well as a private one. There's also the use of an onsen down the road from the hotel so many options for the shy ones. Overall a wonderful place I'd recommend to all!

It looks like the breakfast meal hasn't changed since the photos already available were taken, I got I believe the same thing. It was still delicious though!

I visited Japan at the end of April, eager to catch the Sakura blossoming. Arrived in Tokyo early in the morning from Sydney, Australia and took several trains to Hakone and stayed one night at Kiritani Hakoneso (you can google the various way to get here but it's not hard!).

The pros:
Great service, friendly staff, clean, and gorgeous location. It is 5 mins from the station and a bit of an uphill walk. Not good if you have huge heavy luggage to carry but good exercise. I don't mind an adventure so I didn't mind that I struggled to find the place but once I did, it really was a short walk from the station.

The cons:
The map didn't help me and if I hadn't been able to speak any Japanese (my Japanese is quite basic), I may not have found it! I rang the reception and only one person (the nice gentleman) spoke English but it was as good as my Japanese... the location is a bit remote and not near night life if you want all that. The locals there don't speak English and the signs are in Kanji so you probably won't be able to follow any directions.

Instructions:
When you get out at Koen-Kami Stn, walk in the opposite direction of the Museum of Crafts. Walk down the road and take the first left turn. It's uphill and keep walking. I think it's several driveways in (see my 3rd photo). I asked several locals in basic Japanese and they were all very helpful and pointed me in the direction.

Comments:
If you don't mind the lack of net or nightlife and want something with great Japanese food, I'd highly recommend this place. I thought that everyone was lovely and I really love the view. It is a bit hard to find at first. I do hope the improve the signs (eg, many something in English, or even kana).