the b ikebukuro — Hotel in Tokyo

This is another hotel we stayed at Ikebukuro during this same trip in Japan. We are not very much impressed except that it is located at a good location very close to the JR station. |For the room size, it is slightly bigger than the other one we stayed (which is just across the street; and we spent couple of nights in each of these hotels) but for the overall room facilities or the hardwares you like to call, including TV, Wi-Fi and AC etc we would prefer the other one. |Although it looks like to me the room has been renovated, the facilities in the room are still old including a small and thick TV which is just slightly bigger than that of the inflight tv screen in the economy class. The TV is more like a product of the 90s I would say and it is not functioning quite properly when we have to point the remote control to another machine (kind of like a vcr) and press the button hard for several times before the TV can be turned on. Even the hotel staff have tried several times before he’s able to turn it on. Can’t really believe this would happen in Japan in 2020!!|Other than the TV, the Wi-Fi is in fact a disaster! Signal is very weak in the room and it can’t be connected to internet 99% of the time. And the staff suggested us not to use it as there are just too many guests using it at the same time and they have no way to improve it. Seriously? |For the AC, well...I guess it may be common that in most of the old(er) hotels, it is a centralized AC system, meaning that you can’t adjust the room temperate even with the AC control in your room. It’s winter time in japan but it is very warm. The room is so stuffy so hot that when we asked for comment, the hotel staff could only suggest us to turn off the AC and open the windows. Lucky that the windows could be opened for bit, but in fact, it would mean very noisy during the night when you will hear clearly people yelling out on the street or fire trunk passing by etc. In fact it makes not much different even with the windows closed as the windows are not sound-proofed kind. So yes, let’s forget about it but to open some windows for some fresh air. With the noise from outside, we both couldn’t have some good quality sleep during the stay. |These are the three things I’d like to share with people reading this post. There are ofcourse some other areas, like the space design issue, that need further improvement; but I guess I can bear with it lol. Credit goes to the fact that the room is although small, we could still get our two suitcases opened in full inside it. |So will I consider this hotel again? Yes, if it is cheaper than the other one...

This is another hotel we stayed at Ikebukuro during this same trip in Japan. We are not very much impressed except that it is located at a good location very close to the JR station. |For the room size, it is slightly bigger than the other one we stayed (which is just across the street; and we spent couple of nights in each of these hotels) but for the overall room facilities or the hardwares you like to call, including TV, Wi-Fi and AC etc we would prefer the other one. |Although it looks like to me the room has been renovated, the facilities in the room are still old including a small and thick TV which is just slightly bigger than that of the inflight tv screen in the economy class. The TV is more like a product of the 90s I would say and it is not functioning quite properly when we have to point the remote control to another machine (kind of like a vcr) and press the button hard for several times before the TV can be turned on. Even the hotel staff have tried several times before he’s able to turn it on. Can’t really believe this would happen in Japan in 2020!!|Other than the TV, the Wi-Fi is in fact a disaster! Signal is very weak in the room and it can’t be connected to internet 99% of the time. And the staff suggested us not to use it as there are just too many guests using it at the same time and they have no way to improve it. Seriously? |For the AC, well...I guess it may be common that in most of the old(er) hotels, it is a centralized AC system, meaning that you can’t adjust the room temperate even with the AC control in your room. It’s winter time in japan but it is very warm. The room is so stuffy so hot that when we asked for comment, the hotel staff could only suggest us to turn off the AC and open the windows. Lucky that the windows could be opened for bit, but in fact, it would mean very noisy during the night when you will hear clearly people yelling out on the street or fire trunk passing by etc. In fact it makes not much different even with the windows closed as the windows are not sound-proofed kind. So yes, let’s forget about it but to open some windows for some fresh air. With the noise from outside, we both couldn’t have some good quality sleep during the stay. |These are the three things I’d like to share with people reading this post. There are ofcourse some other areas, like the space design issue, that need further improvement; but I guess I can bear with it lol. Credit goes to the fact that the room is although small, we could still get our two suitcases opened in full inside it. |So will I consider this hotel again? Yes, if it is cheaper than the other one...

My second time here, with 2 kids. My first time was with my wife for honeymoon 14 years ago, when it was still new. So I chose this again in March 2024, for memories reason. But would be my last time, until you can control your own room's temperature like every hotel out there. Should really be 3-star, but it's a bit mean. So making it 4, for really nice staff.

Pros: Excellent Location, walkable to all major points of interest: Ikebukuro Station, Main Animate, Main Seibu, Labi, Parko, Sunshine City, bunch of Sushiros, Kuros etc Staff is great and helpful Provides Free Egg Tarts in the afternoon. Breakfast is VERY GOOD. Lots of choices that cater to different folks.

Cons: The # 1 problem, it is only central AC. This means, you CANNOT set the temp of your room. This alone would be the reason we're never coming again. It was March break 2024, it's cold outside. But Japan hotels tend to have heat cranked up, and it's so hot and stuffy for ALL foreigners. Other guests were discussion the same "too hot" issue in their room, it's so unpleasant. While another guest complained that their ventilation was broken, so they had to sleep with jacket on. There is no way the majority of foreigners can except this in a decently paid hotel.

Laundry: very weak dryer, don't expect an average load to dry within 2 hours. Also unlike some other hotels, dryer and washer are separate, so you gotta manually do the transition from one to another. I later learned that i should really be drying maybe 3-4 pieces of small clothing at a time to dry within an hour. So it's not cheap, nor convenient. And there are only 2 sets of machines, with no statuses provided on TV (like other hotels do). So you gotta line up and spend time checking back and forth if laundry matters. We can hear lots of guests complaining as I make my laundry trip.

It's a bit run down, a renovation due. But it is still tolerable if AC is upgraded.

Rooms are extremely tight, but this is a standard in busy area of Tokyo, not the hotel's fault. Just be...