Grand Base Hakata Station

There was plenty of room to eat, and I rested comfortably in a spacious, clean place. I also liked having a separate shower room and toilet. Water pressure and hot water were good, though cold water occasionally came through. Waiting a little or setting the hot water stronger fixed it. The hard part was handling luggage. Although the area is described as flat, the path was bumpy and dragging my suitcase up was difficult. Check the location carefully before you go.

Five adults and two children spent eight days and seven nights in a room listed for eight people. We were told to bring our own towels and toiletries. We asked for tissues on the second day and got one box, but when we requested more from room service on day four, they said we had to buy them ourselves. That was only one and a half boxes of tissues for eight days. How much does a box of tissues even cost in Japan now?!

It’s in a very residential area, and I wouldn’t recommend it for families. I can’t really call it bad, but I can’t say it’s good either. I booked after reading blog reviews, but now I’d suggest checking whether a reviewer has stayed at this same place more than three times. If their review doesn’t compare it with other accommodations, I’d skip it.

There were seven of us staying for two nights and three days. On the second night, from about 11:30 PM until 3 AM, we couldn’t get hot water. Tired from the trip, all seven of us went to sleep without showering. We kept adjusting the boiler and leaving the water running, as the text messages instructed, but it stayed cold. We continued messaging Agoda from 11:30 PM until dawn, and someone came around 3:30 AM to fix it. We’d been asked to check out by 10 AM, but with one bathroom for seven people, showers took a long time. We were already worn out from missing showers the night before, and what was meant to be a pleasant trip became unpleasant and stressful. In the cold winter, we had no hot water for hours, and with 7-8 people sharing one bathroom, we even had to take turns washing our hands. I asked the staff member who came early in the morning whether there would be compensation. They said a representative would contact us, but nobody did. When we asked again at checkout, they said, "We sent an email." The email only repeated, "There was no problem with the hot water." That was all they would say, and we were very upset. The accommodation’s response to problems is extremely slow and poor. I would never recommend it. Do they think this is justified? I hope the manager and staff read this, and I’m writing at length so other travelers hoping to make happy memories won’t be as upset as we were.