Sakura Cross Hotel Shinjuku East

The room was clean, the bed was comfortable, and the shower had great water pressure. But we didn’t have a good stay overall. Our first-floor room was at the back, with one window looking straight at a wall and no natural light. The other window was covered by the TV, which didn’t match what the booking.com photos showed. We asked the manager to move us, but that wasn’t possible. The room itself was really small, fine for crashing at night and showering the next morning, but not much else. There’s no person at the front desk since check-in is automated, so getting in touch with management when something goes wrong takes time. The location also wasn’t great, about a 20 minute walk from Shinjuku station. I’d pay a little more for somewhere closer to the station and the main shops and restaurants.

The neighborhood was a cozy home base for our first trip to Japan, with a Family Mart next door and two coin laundry options nearby. Higashi-Shinjuku station is about a 10 minute walk, and we could reach all the major areas we wanted to visit, including Shibuya, Odaiba, Ikebukuro, Harajuku and Akihabara. We stayed for a week with three friends. The room was spacious for the area, very clean, and had extremely comfortable beds, a great shower room, and a good sink and toilet. They took our trash and brought fresh towels every three days. Staff were always kind and welcoming, and they replied quickly to emails and texts when we had questions. A few things to keep in mind: cold air comes through the windows in winter, the trash cans are on the small side, and there can be some street noise now and then. We were on the first floor, and there are no elevators. Still, the space, bedding, bathroom, cleanliness, location, price and staff made this a 5/5 stay. We’ll absolutely return. I had no clue where to stay on my first Japan trip, and I’d highly recommend this place.

The beds were really comfortable, and the rooms are nice. The street-facing windows can get noisy, though, and each room comes with earplugs. The hotel is small with minimal staff, and there’s no place to store luggage. You check yourself in on a tablet, and they don’t issue room key cards. I booked with points, but the location wasn’t as central as it looked. It’s about a 15-20 minute walk from the main Shinjuku area. There’s no elevator, so you have to carry your bags up the stairs to your floor, as high as the fourth.

The staff were kind and really accommodating when my family, who had never been to Japan, needed help in a pinch. The room was very clean, and the hotel is right in eastern Shinjuku. The steep stairs and lack of an elevator are the one downside, so I wouldn’t recommend it for anyone in the family who has trouble climbing stairs or is disabled. Even so, I’d absolutely recommend staying here in Shinjuku.