Hotel Hillarys Shinsaibashi

The food was bad enough that I left meals unfinished and skipped one day. The coffee was terrible, and the juice was concentrated and overly sugary. The kitchen staff, though, were friendly. At reception, the non Japanese staff were cold, abrupt, and generally rude. There was no coffee or even a bottle of water in the room. When I asked, reception said they don't provide that there, although I'd consider it basic service in other hotels. The room also didn't look fully cleaned. I lost a key card and was charged 2000 yen for a replacement. Another hotel had simply given me a new card when I lost one. That's £10, 10 British pounds, for a plastic card. What a joke. Even a British hotel in the UK wouldn't charge that. Ridiculous excuses to leech money from customers. They charged us an "osaka tax fee" that wasn't mentioned anywhere on the website when I booked. It feels like an excuse locals made up to pocket money. And after this, I won't stay at a Hilary hotel again. Apa are far superior. Never again at a Hilary.

The room was clean, and I could open my suitcase all the way. The location is really good, right next to Shinsaibashi, with a pay carpark nearby. There's a small hotspa on the 13th floor, but it was crowded all the time. If a hotspa is a big part of what you want, you should take that into account.

The location was very good, near restaurants and within walking distance of the train station. My only real complaint was the bed and pillows. The pillows were extremely hard, and I woke up with a stiff neck. There's a traditional Onsen on the top floor, but tattoos aren't allowed and you have to remove your clothing.

The buffet breakfast is worth trying, and I’d recommend walking in for just ¥1000. The hotel is in a convenient, safe area near Daimaru department store and the shopping street. The chef and team put together comforting, delicious meals every day, including traditional Japanese dishes and Japanese-style western food like Osaka octopus balls and soy sauce fried noodles. It all tasted like home cooking. Their house-made buns, croissants, and danishes were wonderful, with seven flavours. I also liked the Japanese side dishes, including shredded vegetables and tasty ground sesame, and the iced oolong tea was great.