Vessel Inn Namba — Hotel in Osaka

My wife and I stayed here for a total of six nights over two stays during a week, and had a lovely time. The room was spotless, the welcome bar from 2:00 to 7:00 was amazing, and the breakfast was simply fantastic! Although all rooms in Japan are smaller in size compared to North American standards, our room was very well designed to make efficient use of the space. For instance, the bed was raised just enough so that our carry on sized luggage could fit perfectly under the bed. Overall the staff were incredibly helpful and friendly and provided a level of personal service not seen in North American hotels. For instance, during the first night of our second stay on the 14th floor, the internet stopped working in our room. When we went to the front desk the next morning to enquire if the internet was down, a young lady from the front desk immediately came up to our room with us to try and resolve the problem, which she did! No passing the problem off to some IT person who may or may not get to it in the next few days. She actually took responsibility for addressing the problem herself. Getting back to the free welcome bar, the extended hours of 2:00 to 7:00 are well beyond any hotel that offers this, as most hotels if they offer it all, only offer it for one hour. This was such a nice feature for us to enjoy some complimentary alcoholic beverages after sightseeing all day and before going out for the evening. The hotel is located in a great area with everything being within walking distance including a 1-minute walk to an entrance to Namba station. We would certainly stay here again and would highly recommend it! For location and value it...

It is difficult to find a hotel and opinions on comfort and cleanliness are subjective.

Hotel overall- Staff was respectful and helpful. Not everyone speaks English but translate apps are really helpful. Cleanliness of hotel is very clean. Did not see random hairs, dirt in corners or dirty walls. We’d give it a 10/10.

Laundry - laundry room was clean and had ice and vending machine available. The detergent is included in the machine, so no need to buy any. It was 100 yen to wash, 300 yen to dry. There are not many hooks / hangers in the room so keep that in mind for line drying. 10/10

Room - very small. We stayed in 2 room types, both with double beds. Both very small with not much space for 2 people to be moving around. Luggage storage goes under the bed. Bathroom is also small but has a small soaking tub. All very clean upon arrival. 8/10

We are 170 and 187 so maybe felt smaller to us as my partner was too long for the bed and his feet would hang off.

Bed- this is the must important part of a hotel room for us. My partner and I prefer medium soft and medium firm… but this bed was hard. We would say on a scale from soft(1) to concrete (10) this bed would be 9/10 in firmness. The pillow did not help either as it was hard and flat. As a side sleeper my hips hurt every morning upon waking. We realize beds are not generally soft in Japan but just something to keep in mind.

Breakfast / drinks - breakfast was just okay. It’s enough to fill you but maybe not worth it since there is a Lawson’s just outside. The staff keeps it full of food and clean as people come...

Duration of Stay: 28 - 31 Dec 2023 Type of Room Stayed At: 1 Standard Double Non-Smoking

General Conclusion: Would return to stay at Vessel Inn Namba again during my next trip to Osaka

Location of Hotel: Excellent! Very close to Dotonbori, and walking distance to Shinsaibashi. Very close to Namba station. For taking the train to the hotel with luggage, use Exit 24 which can bring you to the ground floor with elevator. Many choices to food and shopping! The ramen shop next to the Hotel is great.

Size of the Room: Small & compact. Ok for a solo traveller with a 24-28" luggage

Cleanliness & Layout: Very clean with good room layout. Love the city sight from the window of my room. No closet, but sufficient racks to hold my clothes and stuff. Good use of space. Provide daily change of towels.

Quality of the Bedlinen & Amenities: The pillow is too flat, but can be comfortable if doubled up. Slept well with 2 pillows. Some may find the bed too hard, but I'm ok with it. Quality toiletries provided within the room, and more to help oneself to at the Reception such as bath salt, hair mask, tea sachet etc. Luggage storage available for hotel guests even on day of check-out

Client Service: During my check-in, was served by a Japanese who is multi-lingual in Japanese, Mandarina and English. Even when I encountered staff who cannot speak foreign languages, they are still friendly and helpful.

Additional Perks: Complimentary drinks during tea. Buffet breakfast is ok, but I would not eat there daily unless it's part of the...