OURS INN HANKYU — Hotel in Tokyo

Ah, what a disappointment this hotel was. The rooms were spacious. Beds comfy, little window for a bit of fresh air was much appreciated. Bathrooms were alright, quite big. Walls were a little dirty but thats normal. Breakfast was fine, nice selection. Lobby and look of the hotel is rather impressive. What I was most excited about? Onsen IN the hotel! One of my favourite things! Like many other hotels I've stayed in which have had an ofuro available to the guests, I have had no issues with my skin or the tattoos that I have on my body. Even in big public onsen, ones that very clearly do not allow tattoos, I have spoken to them and they are comfortable with the size and subtlety of my tattoos. And even then, when I enter the onsen, not once in my time of living in Japan or travelling, I have never had anyone approach me, butt naked in a shower, asking me to leave. Until I came here! Now I respect that there are still hundreds of people who may find tattoos offensive, I respect that and understand that it's just a part of Japan (which is slowly changing but that's another story). I arrived with my group and received my bundle of onsen vouchers. Excitedly I went straight there after checking in to chill out. I still have not been told once that tattoos are not allowed. I sit down to my shower, and this lady next to me is very obviously staring at me and making me feel really uncomfortable. I continue to shower and she eventually gets up and walks away. Then I have a staff member approach me, sitting naked on my stool, asking me if I speak Japanese. I knew what was happening now, but played a little dumb to see how this panned out. She eventually got frustrated and walked away when I couldn't understand her, so my friend and I jumped into the spa bath. It was lukewarm anyway and not that nice but it was still okay. I see the lady who was staring at me sitting there eyeing me off. She then gets out of the water and goes to get the staff member again! This time the staff comes over with a laminated rule book and she points at the "no tattoo" rule. I said I understand but I'm in the middle of my bath. I've paid to be here, I stay in the hotel, I was not told once upon checking in that I would be scolded and removed from the onsen for my body. So why did I have to leave? And she oh so condescendingly decided to ask me over (and over) if I understand what the word "rule" means, and continued to put her hands in the water trying to get me out of the bath. Eventually, my friend and I got out and got dressed and she just followed us around making sure we were leaving. What about the fact that I had someone staring at me whilst I was having a shower? I was uncomfortable but why should I complain? Oh right, my opinion doesnt matter because I'm not Japanese. I forgot. This is the very first time I have ever experienced such horrendous service in Japan, and it reminds me everyday that no matter how much Japanese I learn or how long I've lived here for, I will never be Japanese. I eventually convinced the men downstairs to refund me for the remaining vouchers I had left during my stay (roughly an extra $25aud) which was a struggle in itself. I honestly have never been more offended in my life than how I was here. Good luck to the other foreigners out there. I hope noone has to...

The hotel doesn’t accept contactless card payments. I lost my card in Thailand, the country I was before arriving in Japan, so I have been using Apple Pay instead and I had no problems to pay this way for the last 2 months up until this hotel. The whole situation was ridiculous and they treated me very badly.

My flight arrived in Tokyo very early so I got to the hotel 4 hours before the checkin time. They said I could check in earlier but I had to pay extra, which I found expensive considering the price of the night. Again, every hotel I stayed would allow me to check in earlier if they had availability. I decided to wait until 3pm to check in.

Upon checking in, I found out that their card machines are old and could not take contactless payments. I explained to the staff I didn’t have my actual card and that I would need to register for one of the payments they accept (like WeChat or Alipay) but I was very tired so I asked them if I could check in (enter the room) and pay the bill later that night. I was staying with them for 4 nights, so a few hours wouldn’t make a difference for them but it would make a difference for me. All I wanted was to have a shower and change my clothes as I was travelling for 12 hours and I had been sitting in their lobby for another 4 hours waiting. And believe it or not they said I could not enter the room until I paid the bill. I even said I would leave my passport as a security that I would go back to pay in a couple of hours. I had to talk to 3 different people, including the manager (who doesn’t speak English) just for them to say sorry, they couldn’t allow me to check in. I never felt so embarrassed and mistreated. I asked if there was another way to pay , if they could provide me with a link, for example, for online payment or something else, but they couldn’t help. I would not recommend this place after this incident.

The rooms are tiny and the area is far from the tourist places in Tokyo.

Plus, they woke me up calling me to say they needed to clean the room. They must clean it every 3 days even if you have the “do not disturb” card at the door. I’m fine with the cleaning, but they shouldn’t call the room before at least 10am. I’m on holidays and I slept very late the night before, so it’s not nice being woken up. There was a reason I put the “do not disturb” sign on. Only call or try to clean after at...

We stayed at the hotel for two weeks - my husband for work (mostly) and I was sightseeing and pursuing my hobby - patchwork and quilting. The hotel is very conveniently located - across the street from the very well connected Oimachi station. It was a breeze getting anywhere in Tokyo, as well as in the nearby smaller cities. |The room was simple but stylish and the beds were very comfortable. The wifi was very reliable in the room,in the lobby, less so in the breakfast area. There was an electric kettle in the room and every day we got bags of macha tea. Toiletries were replenished daily, but no shower caps were provided - bring your own. Admittedly, I did not ask at the reception whether they could provide caps, maybe they would have obliged. |Breakfast was not included, but could be taken in two different locations - one in a buffet form (very copious for just 1000 yen), the other - Japanese or continental (smaller for 600 yen). I would advise the buffet - predominantly japanese and very, very tasty. Don't be shy - ask the people serving for information and advice - they were extremely helpful explaining how ingredients should be combined. |On the first three floors of the hotel building there is a plethora of small shops and restaurants, behind the station there is a shop where you can buy plug adaptors (ask me how I know ;-) ). If you want to experience japanese bathing - visit the spa on the fourth floor. There are both indoor and outdoor facilities, a steam bath with scrubbing salts, a sauna (a TV in it was an annoyance), a couple of warm and cold pools, relaxation areas, massages and drinks for an additional fee. The atmosphere in the women's part was very joyful - groups of friends use the occasion for a get-together. I've been reliably informed that the men were more subdued.|I would warmly recommend staying at the Ours Inn...