Yokohama Techno Tower Hotel

The service was a real plus: the staff were friendly and quick to help. My room was good overall, though there were no water bottles and the toilet seat wasn’t heated. The hotel is handy for Tokyo bay and a train station.

This was easily the worst hotel of my three-week tour of Japan, and also the most expensive. We paid twice the price. The rooms were awful, and the location felt far from everything. What a terrible stay. There may be worse places in Japan, but surely not many. Don’t stay here!

The view is the standout: the Pacific on one side and Mount Fuji on the other. Even the restaurant, which has a fairly standard Japanese menu, feels special because of its outlook. The front desk was very helpful and knew how to get things done. Most rooms are above the 18th floor, so the views are likely to be fantastic. Sangyoshinko center station on the seaside line is only about 200 meters away.

We had to stay here because it was the only place near my training area in Koyo. For 10,000 yen a night, the room felt far too cramped and small. Breakfast wasn’t included, and although there’s a restaurant, it was closed on its day off when we went looking for food, so we had to head out early and find something. The hotel is also far from any convenience store. The receptionists did try to help with directions, which was appreciated since we hardly knew any Japanese then. But during our five-day stay in October 2017, the cleaner came in for routine cleaning despite the “do not disturb” note. When he asked them to leave, they said “go away,” probably because they didn’t know other English words. It felt disrespectful. The soundproofing, if there was any, didn’t help with noise from what sounded like porn channels. I’d expected a business hotel, but it felt more like a love hotel with plain furnishings. Never again.