Houses of the Moon is a truly interesting stay. A western, and sometimes southwestern, take on a…read moretraditional Japanese inn.
Each of the rooms is moon themed, named, whether in English or Japanese, after a phase of the moon. Those with good Japanese skills, however, may notice that they've run out of phases of the moon and have started doubling up (there is both a hangetsu and half moon, for example).
The site is absolutely gorgeous. Even if you're not staying here, it's worth a drive outside of Santa Fe just to come gawk at the architecture.
The rooms are comfortable, if a bit sparse. Our mid-level room, for example, had no table. The original rooms are built out of a renovated 80-year old adobe house, and as a result are heated by overhead units and fireplaces rather than central air. Despite that, I never felt uncomfortable in the room, despite visiting in November. I also found the bed very comfortable. Firm but forgiving, not the mushy-soft beds which are becoming trendy at some high end hotels.
The rooms do also have a number of amenities, including a variety of types of tea (although not very good tea), fresh fruit, and granola in the room daily. The granola and fruit make an excellent breakfast and/or midnight snack, which is important because it's a little ways into town from Houses of the Moon. The washlets in the room (electric Japanese toilets with heated seats and bidet features) are a nice touch.
I personally found the Buddha chocolates delicious, but somewhat kitschy and sacrilegious. I imagine there are a lot of folks out there who would be offended by a place that served you little chocolate Jesuses, so it seems to me we should treat the Buddha with at least as much reverence. Add to that the fact that freeing yourself from earthly desires is a central tenet of Buddhism, and the idea of serving chocolate Buddhas (chocolate being something of a symbol of luxury and earthly desire) seems a bit strange if you stop to think about it.
Houses of the Moon also provides guests with yukatas (which they refer to as kimono, presumably for the predominantly Western guests), and bath sandals. However, these don't appear to be sized to the guests. My medium sized self and girlfriend got an XXXL and XXL coat to go over our yukata, and I was swimming in my sandals as well. A nice touch, but would be a lot better if they weren't so huge! Yukata can be worn to Ten Thousand Waves and Izanami, both located on the same property.
In addition, Houses of the Moon guests have complimentary use of the communal baths at Ten Thousand Waves, with some restrictions. A nice perk.
The staff at Houses of the Moon were excellent, calm, helpful, and never intrusive. They answered all of our questions, and anticipated our needs. A highlight of the stay.
Overall, for those looking for a quiet retreat without a lot of hubbub or action, Houses of the Moon is a good choice. If you're just looking to visit Santa Fe, Houses of the Moon doesn't represent a good value for money. There are plenty of nice places to stay closer to the city at much lower rates. Houses of the Moon should also not be mistaken for an authentic Japanese ryokan. While it bears some relation to one, it is more of a western cousin.
