OMO7 Osaka by Hoshino Resorts — Hotel in Osaka

Definitely not 5 stars. By claiming a 5 star title, I don't think it's unreasonable to expect certain standard of service or basic items. Issues with room & service Check in is self service and if you arrive before 3pm (the check in time), no one entertains you. The English of staff is so poor that even after chasing down staff to enquire we were told to wait around the lobby. We eventually managed to use a translator to ask if we could leave luggages there first instead of having to wait around for a few hours. This type of service is basic? Even one of the 3 star hotels that we had booked had staff with good English and could communicate check in procedures well and offer alternative solutions such as luggage storage before and after check in. -We booked omo house which was one of the higher costs as we wanted the kitchenette features. despite providing utensils and pots /pans etc, there is not dishrack or sponge holder in the room. After asking reception staff for one I was rudely told "we don't have such things, you can use towel". contrary to their "marketing" of being environmentally friendly, because of this we had to use multiple towels for dishes. Ironic, since providing a simple dish rack in the room would have saved the use of so many towels to do 1 job. kid was playing with her toys one of them dropped under the bench and rolled under the fridge. Upon trying to retrieve it, was disgusted to find an accumulated amount of dirty tissues/ food and dust under it. The fridge is a small fridge that could easily be moved for cleaning so it's unacceptable to have this sort of level of cleanliness. the fabric sofa and dining seating I reckon has never been cleaned properly. All of us had rashes on the legs area or anywhere that had contact with the fabric. In the end we had to resort of covering all the sofa or dining sofa area with towels before we sat down. they don't do housekeeping everyday (which they did note to guest in a small pamphlet left on the table). Housekeeping is done every 4 days, but dirty towels are collected daily. no cleaning services or basic housekeeping unless you stay 4 days is pretty pathetic. We stayed 5 nights and even then after the full housekeeping day I still felt the room was just dirty.

"fine dining" is a joke As it was a belated anniversary, we decided to add on the "Naniwa neo classic " dinner which was marketed as a fine dining experience covering 8 classic courses costing $130/person. There is NO dedicated restaurant, "special dining" is simply an area cordened off in the lobby. It's a joke as through the night they have their takoyaki and beer events. Instead of having a quiet dining, you just hear the noise and buzz of people in the lobby and outside. Even if this wasn't meant to be a full fine dining experience to charge 130/pp and not to even have a proper dining area is a real joke. The food itself was not worth the 130. Save yourself the money and go eat somewhere else.

Amenities (laundry) issues There is no laundry service and the cashless machines operate on mainly level 3 if you wish to do your laundry. With so rooms/guests and essentially only one room of washing machines and dryer, even trying to get timeslot to the laundry is a joke. You're often left trying to wait around hoping a machine is free. Basically, you're stuck in the hotel all day if you intend to do laundry. Even after paying for a dryer none of the clothes dried even after spending 16 dollars(4 cycles)trying to dry the clothes. In the end, we just laid it all out around the room on every surface we could find.

In summary, the hotel is just bells and whistles. It's shocking that this belongs to the Hoshino brand of 5 star resorts /hotels. Kudos to their marketing team but in reality this is just a 2/3 star hotel passing off as a 5 star simply by name. The ONLY positive is the big garden space that is great for young kids. But since that's all they can offer that gives value, save yourself the money and stay somewhere else that is...

Bottom line up front: I’m not a hotel rating pro but I’ll give the OMO7 Hotel in Osaka 4.5 out of 5. This rating isn’t an option on these reviews so I’ll give the hotel the benefit of a 5 star rating. Best: The suite was awesomely huge with four individual full size beds and the two oversized, padded bench seats at the large table are made to comfortably sleep a 180cm person like myself. You could sleep six people in this room without issue. This is a great hotel for families and the suite is great for large families. Worst: The onsen is not included in the stay. It is ¥1000 per person per day. Given the fact that we (me and my two kids) spend 25 minutes in the facility split between washing and sitting in the onsen (the kids only last seven minutes in the hot water but they “love it”), the cost of the onsen for a family of four isn’t worth it compared to other hotels with the onsen included. With that said, we did the onsen three times in five nights because again, the kids “love it.” Thus, I acknowledge that my words don’t match my actions. I would have like the typical hotel fitness center, but I’ll live and many Japanese hotels do not have a fitness center and that’s okay. Location: 5-10 min walk to multiple JR lines or subway. Grounds: very nice and modern with a spacious outdoor garden with plenty of seating, room for the kids to run around, and greenery to contrast the city setting. Building: modern decor with large open spaces and plenty of natural light, and seating in the lobby. Four fast elevators to get you to your quarters. Each floor has a vending machine with drinks and ice and water machines. However, the ice machine on our floor worked 80 percent of the time. I don’t know why and I didn’t ask. I just went to another floor. Services: For those who don’t know, service in Japan is, in my limited world traveling experience, the gold standard. The OMO7 is no exception. Dining: The cafe in the lobby serves coffee, snacks, and pastries for much of the day. The restaurant serves a breakfast buffet starting at 0700 featuring Japanese cuisine along with pastries, a variety of juices, and two fancy coffee machines that can make the drink of your choice. I don’t know if it is worth the ¥2500 per adult but it’s food, it’s fast, and it’s convenient if you’re trying to get out of the hotel quickly in the morning. Lounge wear: the hotel provides lounge wear (what I would call semi-traditional robes with an obi to tie it off) of various sizes. The lounge wear and house shoes alone (you know what I’m talking about) are fantastic for going to and from the onsen and it was great. You know the saying, when in Rome. Many people wore the lounge wear while lounging in the hotel lobby (who knew), in the outdoor area or to meals. Rooms: the room has a tiny fridge good for a day’s worth of food and drink. The bathroom has two sinks and a large counter for all the bathroom requirements. It comes with a kettle for heating water and free pour over coffee and a package of pineapple candy that I ate in one sitting (don’t judge me; I’m on vacation). One odd thing is the toilet is on the opposite side of the room from the sink and has an auto light that activates when the door is opened and cannot be turned off at night. Still, it didn’t wake my kids because they were exhausted from partying all day. Bottom line: I would gladly stay here again and I will recommend it to anyone traveling to Osaka. pay the money and stay...

I originally gave this resort a 5 star but I've edited it due to their poor guest relations. My friend fell severely ill on the second night of stay and I went to front desk for help. I speak Japanese fluently so it wasn't a language issue. I asked for their help in finding a hospital that accepted foreign tourists. They gave me two numbers to call. One of which was a hospital for car accident patients and another that did not take foreigners. I asked if there was any other clinics or hospitals nearby that they suggest and they said they only know those two. I asked for them to help me look for one but they said I'd have to google it as that's all they have listed. I found a few hospitals myself but had no access to a phone (only data) so I asked them to use the phone or for help in having them call but they refused at first saying their phone is needed for front desk. I kept explaining that although I speak Japanese I am Canadian. I don't know the area and since they aren't helping me find a hospital for my friend, I need to use their phone. Finally they relented and let me use the phone and I managed to find a JR hospital 5 minutes taxi ride away. The irony is that this very large hospital is 5 minutes away and they didn't even know of it or think to suggest it? If this is any indication of the Hoshino Resort affiliated chain, I'd rather not stay with them again. If their staff is not trained to deal with such emergencies, I'm not sure why they are even there? The automated kiosk is sufficient if they can't even fulfill basic concierge services.

As Expo 2025 is nearing and more tourists descending on Osaka, I certainly hope they step up their game as this is very disappointing for such a reputable brand such as Hoshino.

Below is my review on the property itself prior to this incident:

This hotel is architecturally stunning. It’s like walking into a contemporary museum.

The hotel is a 5 minute walk from Dobutsuen Station on the Midosuji line and one stop from Namba. They offer a free shuttle to/from USJ which is 30 minutes away. There is a Mega Donqi a 5 min walk away and a Daiso 10 minutes away. Shinsekai/Tsutenkaku a 15 minute walk too.

This is a perfect hotel for families looking for larger rooms (we are a family of 4 our friends are a family of 5). We are staying in the Idobata room which is even large for North American standards. Every night they put on a projection mapping show as you see in my video. They also have nightly entertainment. Last night was a rakugoka (traditional storyteller). He was performing on the outdoor stage in their front garden. We were given lanterns to borrow and offered free beer and a...