City Hotel Shinsaibashi

This is a decent, inexpensive place, especially for backpackers or a group. Our room had three double beds, two singles, and a couch that could turn into another bed. Four people would fit comfortably, though six was still okay. There was some room for luggage by the entrance. The rooms are a standard bedroom size and have balconies, though many places look bigger in photos than in person, probably because of wide-angle shots. Each room has an electric code lock, and the building entrance is coded too, often with the same code as the room, so you can come and go without sharing a key. The location was handy: a 7-Eleven was a three-to-five-minute walk, and the train station was ten to fifteen minutes away. There’s a small kitchen with a single electric cooktop, a range hood to keep food smells from lingering too much, and some pots and basic utensils. A separate door between the kitchen and bedroom would be useful, as would a door between the toilet and sink, but we managed. The shower area looked like a modular unit fitted into the building, which was kind of cool. It connects to the toilet area, with the toilet in the open section before the shower room, so it could be awkward if a friend wanted to shower while you used the toilet. Extra cabinets by the toilet were handy for storage. The room was fairly clean, but I spotted some dust in the air conditioner and range hood vents, and dirt under the sink cabinet where a floor slat was missing. Don’t expect anything fancy. For the price, it was a cool place to stay, and I had no issues. For check-in, I’d send passport photos and other details through the guest app before arriving, to avoid waiting outside while doing it. There are three tablets, and sometimes they don’t work, though our sign-in went fine. The system may glitch depending on arrival time, or guests may make the process harder for themselves. Come prepared and you’ll probably be okay. There’s also a helpline that connects you to an operator, who helped us. This is self-check-in, so there’s no one at a counter. There are four washing machines on the ground floor, in a room to the right at the opposite end from the elevator. One may sometimes be out of order, but they fix it quickly. All in all, keep your expectations simple. It’s somewhere to sleep while you’re out enjoying your holiday, and for the price, it’s good.

Seven of us stayed for ten days and didn’t get any room cleaning at all, which was unacceptable. They only provided fresh towels when we asked, and the room was never cleaned during those ten days. After a week, we contacted the online counter to request cleaning. They said they couldn’t do it the next day because of staff shortages, which was unbelievable. When we pushed for cleaning after seven days, they promised to do it two days later, but that was all a lie. We found that two rooms had never been cleaned. My strong advice is never to stay here. They don’t deserve even one star.

The room was nice, clean, and comfortable, with a kitchenette for cooking. Getting checked in was a bit of a hassle, though. Once you arrive, you have to contact the operator through the tablet.

The rooms were clean and comfortable, the location was good, and the price was solid. As others have mentioned, there’s no front desk. Use the email they send and then sign in on the tablets. I’d definitely stay again.