Sotetsu Fresa Inn Tokyo Tamachi — Hotel in Tokyo

Update: Having stayed here for 5 days & 4 nights, I’ve reconsidered my initial review of the hotel. It’s not as bad as I initially thought. No one has contacted me nor compensated me for this update. The staff was nice and took care of my concern right away by cleaning the toilet. After 2 days, I had to go to the 8th floor to microwave some food and this time it didn’t wreak of smoke—it smelled like strong air freshener so that was an improvement. The carpets in the rooms are older and it shows. However if you can overlook that, this place is budget friendly. The neighborhood is quiet, near a train station, local eateries, grocery stores & conbini. Tip: If you sign up to be a member of the hotel chain (free), for a limited time they give you some money back if you stay at any of their hotels. I saw Sotetsu Fresa Annex, which is next door and I believe is part of the hotel. It looks newer with its own entrance but I wasn’t able to go inside to check. Original: Checked in today and went up to unpack. I reserved 2 rooms for my family of 2 adults & 2 children. First thing i noticed in both rooms was worn and dirty carpet. The rooms were small, but i expected it based on the description. The small fridge does not have a freezer section and barely fits into the cabinet it’s housed in. The bathroom is extremely small which says a lot since I am a petite woman. The controls used to turn on the sink are the same ones used to turn on the shower. I realize this design is supposed to save space, but it’s inconvenient if one person wants to brush their teeth while their partner is showering. What bothered me most was how unclean the toilets were. There was a huge black stain on the toilet even though I had just checked in. There was also a stain in the second room i booked, but it wasn’t as big as in my bathroom. They were going to move me to another room, but the new room’s toilet was equally stained. It was so gross to have to see this while on vacation. We stayed at other Sotetsu hotels before and they’re usually good and clean. Had I known how bad this location was I wouldn’t have booked 5 days and 4 nights here. On top of all the above, the washing machine, microwave & ice machine are all located on 8th floor but when the elevator door opened, there was strong smoke stench. Not a good idea to locate public amenities where nonsmokers have to endure smoke. There were only 2 washers & 2 dryers for guests to use. I usually post positive reviews for businesses. Staff was fine--I felt bad for the receptionist who tried to help me as it wasn’t his fault that many of their toilets are dirty. However, I cannot recommend this hotel due to uncleanliness, smoke laden air to access public amenities. In this case, I hope management will make improvements so they don’t loose...

The location is very good, mere minutes from Timachi JR station where you can take the Yamanote line to Haneda or to Tokyo Central. A few minutes further on is Mita underground station. You can't use your JR card here so you'd need to either buy a single use or a 1-2-3 day ticket. This type of ticket is for tourist and you'd need to present your passport to purchase it. We did buy a 3 day one but found it was of limited use as we already had the JR pass and you can use that a lot (if you're travelling by underground to Shinagawa station and want to transfer to the JR line for the Shinkansen you'll need to pay 140 yen for the adjustment fee. You present the adjustment ticket and your JR ticket to the gate inspector).|Back to the hotel. The reception staff are very friendly and do speak limited English. At reception there's a range of free toiletries, creams etc. Also free here is the coffee machine and an ice maker for iced coffee. There's also a ice machine on the 8th floor, same room as the washer/dryers and microwave, but the ice here is big chunks of it.|The room is typical Japanese business style, very small with an equally small but deep bath tub with overhead shower. If you use the eco choice (they'll make up your bed but won't change the sheets) they'll leave you a bottle of water. They will still change the towels.|Back to the washing machine and dryer. The washer takes 300 yen and dispenses detergent automatically as part of the price. The dryer is 100 yen for 30 minutes. There's also a vending machine in this room.|All in all, a nice place to stay. At the end of my 3 week tour of Japan I'll be back in Tokyo staying at a hotel in Tokyo Bay. It'll be interesting to compare but I'd have no problem...

The hotel is very conveniently located as it is a mere 5mins walking distance from the Tamachi station. There were also about 3 convenience stores located along the hotel. You can take the Yamanote Line directly from this station too. Location wise, it was terrific. ||||Everything about the hotel was great except that it was really small (typical Japanese business hotel standard) that it is impossible to lay two big suitcases down (you need to let one stand in order to open/close the door properly). The bed was comfortable and the water pressure was good. Once again, the bathroom was also pretty small. ||||The hotel provides free coffee at the lobby every morning. They also provide basic amenities (such as shower caps, tea/coffee packs, face mask, body lotion etc) at their reception for free. There are also washing machines & dryers (JPY 300 per use if I am not mistaken) located at the 8th floor (if you are a non-smoker, you might want to avoid staying at this floor as I did smell some cigarette smell when I was at the floor so I assume this is where the smoking rooms are located). Did not try the breakfast so am unable to comment on that.||||All in all, if you're on a budget and looking for an affordable & comfortable hotel, this is the...