Hotel Route-Inn Shinagawa Oimachi

Breakfast was good, and there’s a Familymart across the road. The location is handy too, just a few minutes on foot from the station. The room, though, smelled bad.

The breakfast runs from 7 to 9, with rotating dishes. It was all fine, though like many continental breakfasts it had plenty of sides and appetizers without much of a main item to build a meal around. My room was clean and reasonably comfortable, with no notable view, which doesn’t usually matter to me. For stays of several nights, choosing reduced cleaning gets you a vending machine coin or Ponta points. The WiFi was free, stable, and easy to connect to using the details given with the room key. Toiletries included soap and the usual disposables, but no toothpaste. It’s an easy enough place to find, about a 10-minute walk from Oimachi Station.

The price was good for what you get. The free WiFi was fast enough, and breakfast included Japanese items as well as basic European choices. There’s a bun and croissant oven tucked a little out of sight from the main buffet. Rooms are small, as usual, but spotless. Oimachi Station is a seven-minute walk away, and a Lawson that’s open 24 hours a day, seven days a week is nearby. Staff are friendly and know enough English to sort out the usual check-in and check-out questions. The air conditioning can be set to 21°C, though you have to bring the remote to reception, as everything is in Japanese.

The room was clean and the location was good. I accidentally booked a smoking room, so it smelled strongly of smoke. Opening the window helped air it out. Be careful when making your booking.