The first thing you should know about going to P-Dash Garden is this: If you’re driving there at night, be sure to have a GPS. If you do not have a GPS system and are attempting to find the youth hostel in the dark, it may result in you getting lost for one and half plus hours. Like me. Thankfully, I had jotted down the number to P-Dash before my friends and I embarked on our adventure, and after about six or seven phone calls to the receptionist (“We’re near an auto shop on West 10th Street… do you happen to know where we are?”) we managed to find our way there before 10:30 pm.
P-Dash is a little out of the way on the edge of metropolitan Asahikawa and the small town of Higashikawa, but it is a reasonably priced, peaceful, and quirky hostel to experience. I would not recommend staying at P-Dash unless you have a car, since it is a difficult to reach and is located in a small town. Upon arrival at the little hostel, P-Dash offers a free spot for you in their parking lot, Internet access, hot showers, and a free breakfast of toast and hardboiled eggs. It is about an hour drive from Daisetsuzen National Park, and about 30 or so minutes away from central Asahikawa.
Although the ride in was rather difficult and frustrating, the rest of our stay was stress-free and enjoyable. The lobby of the hostel has dozens upon dozens of manga volumes, a 50’s style red booth for eating a meal or chatting, a television, and a computer. The owner’s geeky paraphernalia can be found throughout the hostel, not just the dozens of volumes of manga stacked upon bookshelves, but also Star Wars posters, framed pictures of manga covers and characters in the hallways, and several collectors’ statues.
Despite it being a holiday weekend, my travel companions and I managed to find the dormitory style room all to ourselves, with seven different beds to choose from. Since it was the beginning of October, the room became a bit cold at night, but this was easily remedied with extra blankets found on one of the beds. Sleep came easily when surrounded by such a peaceful atmosphere, and the morning welcomed us with a splendid view of mountainous scenery on the edges of Higashikawa.
