Shimoda Prince Hotel — Hotel in Shimoda

A Dirty Hostel Pretending to Be a Resort – at Five-Star Prices

Shimoda is a beautiful town, and we were met with warmth and kindness everywhere – except at Shimoda Prince Hotel. What should have been a relaxing getaway turned into a frustrating and humiliating experience.

Upon arrival, staff asked for our passports before we even reached the front desk. There was no genuine welcome – just cold formality.

We had booked through Agoda and believed the price – around $400 – was for three nights. Considering the hotel’s age and condition, that felt reasonable. But to our shock, it was for just one night. Reception said nothing about checkout time or the booking length. They even helped us reserve dinner and scheduled shuttle buses – without ever mentioning we were due to check out.

That evening, we returned and were casually told, “You only booked one night, right?” With nowhere else to go that late, we had no choice but to book another night – this time for $420. We felt completely misled. We’d thought, okay, it’s a run-down room, but maybe it’s fine for three nights at this price. But over $800 for two nights? Absolutely not.

This place is basically a tired hostel disguised as a resort – charging luxury rates with none of the quality, cleanliness, or service to match.

We immediately offered to pay for the extra night, but the receptionist said, “You can pay at checkout.” Just ten minutes later, while we were about to shower, they called and demanded we come down immediately to pay. It felt like they didn’t trust us – two young women – to settle a bill. I felt judged and disrespected. They clearly assumed we weren’t “serious” guests. Little did they know we are well-traveled professionals who know exactly what decent hospitality looks like.

The room itself was awful – stained furniture, ripped curtains, and a bathroom we avoided using. Definitely not what you’d expect at this price.

When we asked where to leave our rental bikes, we were told to bring them into our room. Pushing dirty bikes through the lobby, into the elevator, and onto the carpet while guests laughed at us was humiliating and unsanitary.

We also asked for cutlery to eat some fruit. The answer? “No, it’s dangerous.” From a hotel that offers room service with full utensils. The inconsistency was absurd – and showed how little they care about guest comfort.

And the pool they promote online? It’s a tiny, stagnant splash area full of kids – despite the hotel being nearly empty. It felt dirty, noisy, and absolutely nothing like the relaxing, peaceful atmosphere shown in the photos.

At checkout, we again asked to speak with a manager. The staff laughed and said there wasn’t one. No apology. No care. No responsibility.

Their Google review responses are the same copy-paste lines: “We take feedback seriously.” Don’t believe it. If they cared, they wouldn’t dismiss guests, laugh at concerns, or ignore clear failures. They’d refund guests they overcharge and mistreat. But they don’t – because they don’t care.

To be fair, they helped us book a restaurant, and the shuttle driver was kind – easily the most professional person we met there. We didn’t use the onsen, so we can’t comment on that.

We’re now in a gorgeous Airbnb two minutes away, with a better view, a full balcony, thoughtful amenities, and actual respect – all for a fraction of the price.

Bottom line: Shimoda is full of amazing people and great places to stay – but this hotel is not one of them. It’s a cheap, dirty hostel in disguise, charging resort prices. Don’t...

New review 2025:

This was our second stay at Shimoda Prince hotel and alot has changed in 5 years. This was a family visit with two young children.

The reception staff where very friendly and kind and helped us with many requests throughout our stay. They also provided us with a bucket and lighters so we could do some small hanabi at the beach.

The room was very clean and while semi- remodeled since our last visit I really feel that Seibu needs to drop some serious money into a full Renovation of the hotel. Perhaps close it for a few months in winter and completely remodel the rooms. We understand that the hotel is quite hold and that has a nice charm it but its time to bring it up to 2025.

The beach and pools, last time we didn't use theses as it was a winter visit but this time was summer. The beach and view of it from the hotel are absolutely beautiful. We enjoyed walking along the cost line and enjoyed the sun rise every morning. Some feed back here the hotel really needs to invest in a beach rake and clean up the debris once a week. There were quite alot of branches and debris washed up if they were cleaned the beach would be even more beautiful!

The pool was very nice with private tables and umbrellas available. The pool itself was very small but considering the hotel is by the ocean that's no problem! They also had blow up slides for the kids that were fun. Honestly want to get one for my house! The poolside food was great but was a little too expensive for it's size.

The only bad thing:

The breakfast buffet staff however, never smiled , with the acception of the man greeting us, and looked rather unhappy to be working which made breakfast a little uncomfortable. We also had to find a table ourselves. I would expect to be seated at a prince hotel.

I look forward to staying here again and I hope that in 5 years we walk into a very modern and renovated shimoda prince hotel!

Old review 2020: Excellent place to relax on a weekday there are almost no guests here. The staff were friendly and polite from the moment walking through the doors..

The room was spacious and recently renovated with beach side atmosphere the only downside is that the beds, at 180cm are quite small.

The public bath is large and has a wide window to watch the sunset and sunrise. I highly recommend it if you can wake up early.

I can't comment on the outdoor facilities. As it was a...

Booked through Agoda with attempts to answer questions (ie: early check in, large bed instead of 2 twins, high floor, quiet room) about our room 1 week prior to check in. Upon day of check in, they were not able to accommodate the early check in. Waking into our room we noticed it was hot, humid, and stuffy. There was mold growing near the ceiling by the AC, the bedding and overall look was from the 70’s and the beds were 2 twins. What speaking with customer service, they were very kind and quick to remedy the situation, especially after being shown multiple attempts for requests and communication. We were given a different room, 2 double beds, and more updated appearance. All rooms face the ocean and unless you’re on the 1st floor, the balconies are standing only. Our daughter has egg and sesame allergy and this hotel points out it clarifies allergens on the menu. We ordered her the spaghetti and when it came out it looked fishy. Asked if there was egg in it, why were there be?, but yes the chef used egg with ketchup to make the sauce. They also added cut up Vienna sausages (which are a huge choking risk), none of which was listed on the food description. The steak was flavorless and chewy and overall options were poor. For a set tempura meal and steak meal, with the child’s curry (which we swapped out for) and some other charge it came out to ¥9,400. Extremely not worth it.

Also upon driving up to the front you can see the outside needs a power wash and new coat of paint and inside is just sad. Cobwebs with dead insects everywhere, peeling wallpaper under the windows and the bathrooms have zero privacy. The room door even has a 1.5” gap allowing the heat/humidity/light/sound in. The pool is closed until July 7th, not sure why, it’s hot as hades out. The place needs a revamp for sure! The only good thing is the beach!!

All in all, don’t eat eat, be prepared to smell and hear all bathroom ongoings, and expect to feel like you’re stuck in a 70s room and not...