Royal Hotel Shinokubo — Hotel in Tokyo

The room was very spacious but quite outdated (it felt like I time traveled to the 60s) and there weren't many outlets. The toilet paper roll kept falling from the holder and the shower head would spurt every now and then. There's a laundromat on the 2nd floor, 100yen for the washer and 100yen per hour for the dryer. They do NOT clean out the dust from the dryer. I pulled out the dust from the dryer I was going to use and it was an inch thick.||||As for customer service, check-in was smooth and I did not have a problem. But, on the second night, my friend and I wanted to go out to buy clothing at a store right next to the hotel so we told the night staff that we'd be back in 15-20min when we handed him the room key. When we stepped outside, it had started raining so I went back up and asked if there's an umbrella we could borrow for a few minutes. He went to the back and handed me one so I thanked him and went out.||When we came back, I gave him back the umbrella and thanked him, told him our room number and name but the first thing he said was "No one at check-in didn't tell you anything?" and I had no clue as to what he meant by that so I said "No, I'm not sure what you are talking about." He pulled out the check-in sheet that I filled out when I checked in alone, the reservation was under my friend's name so I wrote my name beside my friend's name. He went on saying, "You're supposed to show us your residence card or passport when you check-in if you're not Japanese." I explained to him that I checked in alone and told the staff my friend would come later but they did not mention anything about showing ID and that I am Japanese and they should have known instantly that my friend was non-Japanese just by seeing the name and should have asked during check-in. But, he went on as though we were the bad ones for not showing ID. They had enough time to ask for ID from the 1st night and all throughout the 2nd day, every single time we went in and out of the hotel, giving them back the room key. I told him that I understand why they need ID for foreigners living in Japan but it was on them for not asking in the first place so I do not appreciate the way he is accusing us of not showing ID and the way he was asking for it. I told him "It's been a long day and we're tired. My friend's ID is in the room so can we just show it tomorrow morning?" He said "I'm asking you now so can you go up and bring it down." I told him that I get that the hotel needs it but I do not like the way he is asking. But he went on to tell me "I'm doing my best to give you a comfortable stay and even let you borrow an umbrella for free when we sell it for 500yen." I told him that if he was going to bring that up, then he didn't need to lend me an umbrella, I could've just gone back up to the room and gotten my own umbrella. He continued, "Let's clear this up while I'm asking you to and bring down the ID because if I don't do it now, then I have to tell the morning staff to get your ID." But, that is their job. He is too lazy to relay the message, forcing guests to go up and down when tired. I was fed up, so I said fine, told him our room number again and he gave us the key but the WRONG key.||The following day, I told the hotel manager about what had happened last night and he was very understanding and agreed that the way the night staff said things was inappropriate and said the ID could've been at any time after mentioned. I want to thank the hotel manager for his understanding but the experience with the night staff was awful so I do not expect myself to ever...

First time in Japan and the first hotel stay in the country! ||||Location: Very convenient. It's only a 5-minute walk from two subway stations (Shin-Okubo and Okubo). Plus it's right behind a Don Quijote (you need to walk down the dark, shady-looking alley to the right of it with vending machines to find the entrance on the left) and there are plenty of 7-Eleven / Family Mart / Lawsons along the street. McDonald's and many other restaurants too. Shinjuku station is only about a 20-25 minute walk too. Can't complain here! ||||Room: It's a huge room! Even by North American standards (coming from Toronto Canada). The bathroom is basically two different rooms, one with the toilet / sink, and the other has a jacuzzi with a separate stand-up shower spot. The bed was very firm, but found that to be the norm based on our other stays. The room size is definitely above average for Japan standards. Our room had several windows that looked out onto the street (read some reviews about boarded-up windows, but that wasn't our case). ||||Cleanliness: Despite being a dated hotel, it was clean. No issues here. ||||Service: Friendly but difficult to communicate due to the language barrier. We inquired about the Tsujiki market but they answered that they didn't know what it was... even after giving them examples of the fish/tuna auction. On rainy days, you can buy an umbrella for 500yen, but nearly all other hotels give them for free. ||||Tid-bits: There's a flight of stairs you need to ascend before the lobby area. Not recommended if you have bad knees. Elevators are very small. ||||Overall, a decent stay being the first time ever. Missed the size of the room in comparison to our other hotel stays but that's really it. I'd sacrifice the space for more modern facilities. Price was comparable to many other hotels...

For a 2 star hotel, it's okay. The location is really what you're paying for, since it's only a 5 minute walk from the metro station.

The rooms are very outdated, but spacious (at least the one we were in). The carpet had a floral pattern and just looked super old. The bathroom looked like it was straight out of the 60's with how much pink there was: the floors, bathtub, toilet, sink and even wallpaper. In the shower area I noticed a bunch of black speckled spots on the ceiling, which looked like black mould. While the room appeared clean, it just didn't feel clean (maybe in part to the outdated design/decor). It also lacked some amenities that you would get at other hotels, but to be expected for a 2 star hotel. That being said, the wifi was HORRENDOUS. It was constantly disconnecting from our devices and when it was connected, it was painfully slow.

In terms of service, it was fine. The staff were pleasant enough, though I did find it odd how we had to hand in our room key whenever we left. The hotel has laundry facilities and a microwave on the main floor. During our time in Tokyo it rained almost every day. We asked the reception if they had umbrellas to borrow and they could only be rented for a fee.

Considering we paid ¥13,500 per night, it wasn't worth it. I think if I came back to Tokyo, I'd pay a bit extra to stay...