Hotel Rokune

There’s basically no service. Nobody is ever in the lobby or at the front desk, and nobody answers the phone, so there’s no one to help with questions or problems. We heard nothing from them until one day before arrival. They didn’t send the form we were supposedly required to fill in, so we had to message and ask for it. They also don’t store luggage before or after their stated hours, and only told us that the day before.

Everything we needed was in the room, and getting around was easy because it’s close to the train and bus stations. Self check-in was simple and intuitive.

This luxurious place is basically a very nice apartment, and I’d especially recommend it for families or bigger groups. It’s close to JR station, and buses from the terminals can take you to the park. There’s no baggage service, so you’ll need to use a coin locker until check-in. The check-in instructions confused me a bit. I expected an email the day before, but when it’s time to check in, you just use the link in the follow-up email.

For the price, I’d stay at Hotel Rokune again. We had a comfortable bed, a clean and spacious room, a washing machine and a microwave, with enough extra room to spread out our suitcases. Nara station is a five-minute walk away. The shower never got as hot as we wanted, and there weren’t many power sockets. We had to unplug the lamps and kettle to charge our devices. We couldn’t leave our bags before check-in because the front desk isn’t staffed. Still, I’d recommend the place.