Hotels With Bar in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan

Grand Mercure Awaji Island boasts unparalleled sea views of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge and the Seto Inland Sea. Its excellent location, however, makes it best suited for guests traveling by car. Our sea-view room was spacious and comfortable, with floor-to-ceiling windows that made the morning sea sunrise a daily spectacle. Both breakfast and dinner offered a wide variety of dishes; we especially recommend the Awaji Island milk and local onion specialties. However, dining options nearby are limited, meaning you'll likely rely on the hotel's restaurant for dinner. Without a car, finding other dining spots would require a taxi. The hotel service was attentive, and the front desk staff spoke fluent English, providing helpful guides to local attractions. While the rooftop open-air hot spring bath isn't natural, it was uncrowded, peaceful, and incredibly relaxing with its sea views. On the downside, the facilities are a bit dated, and there's a noticeable lack of family-friendly entertainment options. Overall, this hotel is ideal for guests seeking serene sea views and a relaxed pace, offering particularly excellent value for money during the off-season.

The hotel is nestled in Meriken Park, offering truly stunning views; the hotel itself is a scenic spot. The room size and facilities met expectations. I had researched beforehand and booked an East-facing room. I made a mistake when booking and ended up with a non-refundable special offer room, which was slightly smaller. However, the bed faced the balcony, so if you're an early riser, you can actually catch the sunrise from this room. The only downside is that the hotel might have been open for a while and hasn't been maintained very well. The cleanliness wasn't ideal, especially for Japan. There was a lot of dust on the ceiling directly above the air conditioning vent, which looked a bit messy. I hope the hotel pays more attention to these details. I had read in guides that it's best to take the shuttle bus or a taxi to the hotel because it's uphill and inconvenient with luggage. However, there's an escalator to the left of the hotel, which is perfectly fine for carrying suitcases. Just be aware that it stops operating after a certain time at night, so keep that in mind when checking in. Due to a flight delay, we were supposed to arrive at 4 PM, but it got pushed to the evening. We landed quickly, took the airport bus to Sannomiya, and easily found the hotel shuttle pick-up point. We were lucky to catch the 10:30 PM hotel shuttle. Upon arrival, we also bought some food and drinks at the convenience store on the first floor of the hotel lobby. This is the only convenience store in the vicinity, and it closes at 11 PM. Overall, the highlight of this hotel is its scenery. You can take your time to fully appreciate the beauty of Kobe Port – it's an experience worth having. The drawback is that it's a bit far from Sannomiya's shopping centers, which can affect your subsequent plans.

Good price with a nice view. View of the bridge during the day is breathtaking. The new wing’s rooms are a lot nicer. Not much service. No one helps you with luggage when you arrive. And staff don’t look too helpful or happy. The hotel is near outlet and easy drive to Kobe city centre. Breakfast is good with a lot of bread variety. You need to bring your room towel to public bath. For this price I wouldn’t mind staying there again.

A heartwarming and thoughtful mountain hotel experience. This hotel stay completely exceeded my expectations. From the moment I arrived, I felt a deep sense of genuine hospitality – there was a dedicated shuttle service directly from the station to the hotel, saving me the hassle of dragging my luggage around. The next day, I planned to explore the hot spring town at the foot of the mountain. The hotel proactively offered to store my luggage and deliver it to the station at the bottom of the mountain at the agreed time, completely freeing up my hands. The food was surprisingly delicious, with fresh ingredients and thoughtful pairings. The room was clean and comfortable, meticulously cleaned daily, and the common areas were also spotless. The service throughout was attentive yet unobtrusive. From the shuttle arrangements to the luggage storage, everything was efficient and heartwarming. It's truly perfect for travelers planning a hot spring trip. I'll definitely choose this place again on my next visit.

The room was clean overall and service was quite good. But my stay at the hotel ended on a low note. On my check-out day I decided to have breakfast at the hotel restaurant on the 2nd floor. The menu included a ”Continental Breakfast” (at 2000 yen), for which I could choose between toast/croissant/danish, different juices, and coffee or tea. I assumed that the above choices are breakfast items with options, and expected a normal ”Continental Breakfast” which usually includes an egg, bacon/sausage/ham, and some potato fries etc. It turns out that this continental breakfast includes *only* 3 pieces of toasted bread (they later gave me 2 additional pieces because the original 3 were too burned), along with juice and coffee, charging me 2000 yen just for these. I felt this is a rip-off even for a hotel breakfast, and misleading.

I booked a corner suite, and the room was huge with an amazing view. It had a massive jacuzzi, which was perfect for a relaxing soak after a day of shopping – I felt completely refreshed and ready to go again the next day! Though, I have to say, for Kobe, the price wasn't exactly cheap, so it really depends on what you're looking for. During the day, there are malls and an Aeon supermarket around the hotel, but there are no convenience stores nearby at night, which was a bit inconvenient. So, remember to stock up before heading back to the hotel. I didn't book breakfast as it seemed to be a set menu, which I'm not a fan of. Overall, it was a good experience. I'd definitely choose this hotel again if I come back to Kobe.

Excellent location just outside Himeji train station. Quiet rooms with comfortable beds. The room was little on the warm side during my Dec/Jan stays.

It was the first time I stayed at Shimahana, but I was impressed by the good service of the New Awaji Group. I was able to fish at Yumesen Kei and caught two cherry blossoms, but they cooked and served for dinner at night and it was very delicious. The rest was processed cleanly and I was able to take it home. Shimahana is located a little far from the opposite bank, but I enjoyed it without any problems because I could pick up and drop off the hot water. I want to go to Hokans again

The “sea view” was very disappointing and honestly not what I expected at all when booking this room. What made the experience worse was the pricing issue. After my booking became non-refundable, the hotel price dropped by around 30%, which was shocking. I’ve never had this happen before. The explanation that the lower price was a different non-refundable rate doesn’t fully justify such a big drop. On top of that, trip.com customer service only gave me an update after I followed up four times, which was frustrating. Check-in was also a poor experience. We arrived around 9pm with a child, and there was no staff at the ground floor to help with luggage at all, even though the reception is on the 17th floor. After check-in, there was again no assistance with luggage, which was very inconvenient when travelling with a child. Despite my booking clearly stating one adult and one child, there were no kids’ amenities provided, not even a child’s toothbrush.

What a fantastic ryokan! We spent a long time choosing where to stay in Kinosaki – my husband and I both have a lot of large tattoos, so Kinosaki was the perfect onsen village option for us, as all the onsens here are tattoo-friendly, even if you have very large and numerous tattoos. In the end, we decided to stay at Yuraku and were absolutely delighted! The hotel is located a short distance from the station and the main street (literally a 5-minute walk), which was a huge plus for us – it’s secluded, surrounded by a beautiful forest, quiet and peaceful. The hotel itself is beyond praise: it’s beautiful inside, the rooms are incredible, and the window offers a stunning view of a small pond with a waterfall and the forest. The kaiseki restaurant exceeded all expectations – incredibly delicious and very filling; we practically crawled out of the restaurant. You can choose several convenient dinner and breakfast time slots. The staff is very polite, friendly, and pleasant. A special bonus are the onsens within the hotel itself; After we'd explored all the public onsen (you'll be given a special card upon check-in that gives you free entry to any public onsen in Kinosaki), we decided to check out the onsen at the ryokan itself. You can book a private one for free, but we went ahead and checked out the public ones. There wasn't a single person in either the men's or women's onsen. The women's section has a stunning outdoor plunge pool under a canopy amid a bamboo grove—it's truly something! Plus, as a bonus, you can book a free hot tub for two when you check in. You can choose between a flower-infused or fruit-infused bath. Absolutely fantastic! Honestly, it was one of the highlights of our entire trip, and we highly recommend this ryokan!