I can confidently say that this was the worst hotel experience of my life.
I have traveled to more than 20 countries and stayed in many different types of accommodations, but this was by far the most unprofessional and unwelcoming place I have ever encountered.
The main issue was the complete lack of communication. Messages often went unanswered for days, and even the booking platform’s support team struggled to get any response from the hotel.
A few days before my arrival, I became seriously ill with food poisoning and tried to cancel my reservation. Both I and customer support contacted the hotel, but they refused to cooperate.
On the day of check-in, I was still feeling very unwell but managed to arrive in Kyoto at around 9:00 PM. Finding the hotel was extremely difficult because there were no visible signs indicating that the building was actually the hotel. I spent around 15 minutes searching for it and only identified it after spotting a Wi-Fi information sheet with the hotel’s name inside. The hotel had never provided any instructions on how to locate the property, and the address did not clearly lead to the entrance.
When I finally arrived at approximately 9:15 PM, there was nobody at reception. After contacting support, I discovered that check-in ended at 9:00 PM. The hotel had never informed me of this, never asked about my arrival time, and never attempted to contact me despite knowing that I had not arrived.
For the next 90 minutes, both I and the booking platform’s support team tried unsuccessfully to contact the hotel. Nobody answered calls, messages, or support requests.
Exhausted and sick, I was forced to find another hotel late at night. Most nearby places were either full or no longer accepting guests. I eventually found accommodation about 30 minutes away and was only able to check in around midnight.
My stay consisted of two separate reservations. Support successfully helped cancel the first booking because the hotel had failed to accommodate me. However, when they tried to cancel the second reservation, the hotel again refused to cooperate, forcing me to change accommodations and completely disrupting my travel plans.
Two days later, I returned to the hotel. I arrived at 11:00 AM, understanding that check-in was not until 3:00 PM. I simply wanted to leave my luggage and go to a museum I had already booked.
The receptionist informed me that luggage storage would cost 1,000 yen. After I questioned this and decided not to leave my bags, he suddenly changed his mind and offered the service for free.
He then informed me that my room was already available and showed me where it was. However, he failed to explain that the room door locked automatically.
After briefly leaving the room to use the restroom, I returned to find myself locked out. I went downstairs to ask for help, only to discover that the receptionist had disappeared.
Another guest was also waiting for assistance but eventually gave up and left. I remained there for over an hour. Nobody returned, nobody answered messages, and even customer support was unable to reach the hotel.
All of my money and personal belongings were locked inside the room. As a result, I missed my museum reservation, my plans with friends were ruined, and an entire day of my Kyoto trip was lost.
What makes this experience especially frustrating is that these problems were not caused by unavoidable circumstances. They were caused by absent staff, poor communication, and a complete disregard for guests.
No explanation was provided, no apology was offered, and no effort was made to resolve any of the issues.
I rarely leave negative reviews, but I genuinely cannot recommend this property. If something goes wrong during your stay, there is a real possibility that nobody will be available to help you.
