Hotel Livemax Tokyo Shintomi-cho

The bathrooms were clean and the beds comfortable. That's about all I can say in the hotel's favor. The furniture in my room looked like leftovers from the 1980s. The front desk staff seemed to know nothing about the surrounding area, so don't count on them for directions or help with your needs. I've never encountered hotel staff this ignorant.

We were here for our honeymoon and anniversary, and unfortunately booked three nights. The entire floor was dirty, and the room was claustrophobic. The window wasn't practical to leave open all night in 3 degree weather. My wife has asthma and suffered through the night, so I worried the room conditions might cause medical problems. Even though our request said non-smoking, the room was marked smoking. That shouldn't mean the bed, mattress, and walls have to smell so awful. I've never had a smoking room smell this bad. We asked the front desk to cooperate with us from the day before, and even delayed check-in to give them time to sort it out. They didn't fix the issue or help with cleaning or fresh blankets and pillows.

The location is a little far from Ginza, and the checkout time is already early at 10 a.m. But the worst part was asking to leave my bags for a few hours. The front desk said they would hold them for only two hours, then throw them away. The man said it rudely and didn't seem to care how unreasonable it sounded. I travel often, including in Japan, and have never had this happen elsewhere. Most hotels will store bags for half a day or until evening. Being told my belongings would be discarded if I was delayed by more than two hours is excessive. I wouldn't stay here again, and advise other travelers to avoid it unless they don't mind poor treatment.

They won't reply to emails or help resolve booking problems. They're keeping nearly $1,000 while refusing the room/reservation. I'd pay more and stay somewhere else. Avoid this place at all costs.