115 Best Hotels in Japan

At one of the closest properties to the Tokyo Disney Resort, lots of natural light shines through a vast atrium, and all the recently renovated rooms rooms have sizable windows with views of either Tokyo Disney or Tokyo Bay. Eating options are limited to the all-day dining spot Le Jardin, a Japanese restaurant, and for guests with access, quick bites and drinks in one of two executive lounges.

As soon as you enter the grand, extravagant lobby, you and your luggage will be immediately taken care of, and, although rooms are spacious, the real highlights are the bathrooms with luxurious sinks and bathtubs big enough for two. You'll be spoiled for choice at lunch and dinner by a host of highly rated restaurants. The Grill on 30th is notable for its nighttime view of Tokyo Bay and is also open for breakfast.

Overlooking Otaru Marina, this 18-story hotel sits atop the huge WingBay shopping complex, giving easy access to outlet stores, restaurants, and a movie theater; inside is a reliable, familiar chain hotel with English-speaking staff. Western-style rooms in gold, blue, and brown have large twin or double beds, and most overlook the waterfront. It is a five-minute walk from JR Otaru Chikko Station, two stops from JR Otaru Station. The on-site restaurants include a small sushi restaurant (you are still in Otaru), Marina Bar, which features steaks, wines, and whiskeys, and the Terrace Brasserie with its panoramic views of the water and breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffets (and a dessert buffet on weekends). In winter, several of the ski bus companies offer pickup from the hotel, making it a convenient option for skiers and boarders.

The owner of this small ryokan in Honmura, which has three Japanese-style rooms and one guesthouse, spent decades in France and Morocco before returning to Naoshima to turn his family's 17th-century home into an inn. In the main house are exquisitely decorated tatami rooms, though the sliding screen doors aren't as quiet as many travelers would like. For more privacy ask for the annex guesthouse, which has its own kitchen and sleeps up to four people. Meals are available.

Overlooking the Naka River, this upscale Western-style hotel is a short walk from Canal City. All the rooms have generously sized beds, not always the case at business hotels. The riverside location beside the "entertainment district" puts you just a few steps from the alfresco dining at the yatai stalls, but the hostess bars and soaplands are in equal proximity, perhaps too close for comfort for some guests. Easily accessible from Nakasu Kawabata Station, the hotel is five minutes from Hakata Station on the subway's airport line.

This large bustling, modern hotel is a short walk from the station, the morning market, and the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouses. Standard rooms done up in pastel shades have bland decor. Many of the rooms and the Shiomi-no-Yu hot-spring onsen have great ocean views. 

A few hundred meters from the Happo-one Resort, this sleek hotel is one of Hakuba's newest, having opened in December 2021. You'll find bright and airy rooms that range from doubles to family rooms and a suite, plus facilities that include a Finnish sauna, hot-spring baths, and ski gear rental shop. There's also a bar for a nightcap.

This small ryokan has welcomed guests since 1804 with a strictly traditional experience: 10 large tatami rooms share a single bath and four clean but old-fashioned pit toilets, and the walls are sliding paper screens. Delicately arranged dinners are served in your room (book meals in advance for an extra cost). The ryokan can be booked in English via  www.japaneseguesthouses.com.

The best international-style hotel in town, the Hida Hotel Plaza exudes an old-style atmosphere. Beautifully carved wood accents the hotel's tastefully decorated restaurants. Many rooms have mountain views. Although the Western rooms are comfortable, you'll want to stay in a spacious deluxe Japanese room so you can enjoy the soft mattresses and fragrant cypress wood bathtubs. From the station, head north; the hotel is on the right. The hotel offers generous midweek discounts.

Impeccable service from a multilingual team at this flagship Hilton hotel, which opened in 2022, is the main draw. U.S. President Joe Biden stayed here for the G7 Hiroshima Summit in 2023. Premium rooms have access to the executive lounge giving stunning city views to those taking the complimentary breakfast or evening cocktails. ZATTA  Bar & Lounge has live music and a fine selection of drinks. The 20-meter pool, gym, and spa by L'Occitane will keep you revitalized. Across the street is a convenient full-service supermarket.

This large business hotel always gets good guest reviews for service and location, and it's a reliable option in Nagoya. The large guest rooms, many of which were refurbished in 2016, feature light-wood furnishings and translucent shoji (window screens). Facilities include an indoor pool and 24-hour fitness center. The staff are multilingual, and the hotel is near Fushimi Station.

At this behemoth hotel, the lobby—where a staircase leads to a mezzanine floor and a bar-lounge—has a surprisingly human scale, and sizable guest rooms have soft, relaxing color schemes and such Japanese touches as the shoji screen, a constant since the hotel's opening in 1963. The hotel is what many people would expect of a property in a business center like Tokyo, but with views of its quieter areas.

With a facade that follows the curve of the Tokyo Bay shoreline, the 15-story Hilton Tokyo Odaiba presents itself as an "urban resort" with European style. Dark-wood chairs and golden ornaments adorn the second-floor lobby, where large windows overlook the waterfront. The spacious rooms have a balcony and are decorated in pale yellow and beige textiles; select suites have whirlpool tubs. The Captain's Bar serves a large selection of whiskey and brandy. Access to the city center from here is cumbersome, but a boardwalk connects the hotel to a small park, an amusement area, and shopping destinations.

Waterbirds drift by the windows of the big but friendly hotel on the shore of Lake Abashiri, a few miles from town. It has the usual noise of Japanese resort hotels—game corners, tour groups, and karaoke rooms. But beyond the doors you can enjoy the peace of a lakeside walk, enjoy a soak in the hot spring, and finally retire to your room and relax over a multicourse crab dinner. The combination rooms have raised beds and tatami sitting areas. The hotel has everything you can imagine, even a barbershop for dogs.

Located down the lively (and partially covered) Shinmachi shopping street is an emphatic hotel, where everything is large, including the lobby, public areas, roomy restaurants, and spacious, if tame, rooms. Because many wedding parties are held here on weekends, the hotel tends to be crowded with lots of families and kids. The top floor of the 17-story hotel houses a French restaurant and a bar, and the view beats even that of the 13th-floor observatory of the ASPAM building.

A wonderful location—atop the 35-floor Odakyu Southern Tower, minutes on foot from Shinjuku Station—and several on-site dining options are the main draws at this hotel. The 20th-floor lobby, with its wooden floors, is a relaxing perch from which to take in the beautiful views. Rooms, though basic, are pleasantly outfitted in light-wood furnishings and sizable writing desks suitable for the business traveler. The hotel is directly connected to plenty of shopping and entertainment options.

This low-rise hotel next to the train station has Western-style standard twin rooms with private baths; larger deluxe twins with sofas are worth the extra expense. A simple breakfast is generally included in the rates and served at the attached restaurant on the first floor.

Across from Fukui Castle, Hotel Fujita Fukui has the amenities of a luxury hotel at prices that won't empty your wallet. With a range of rooms—from tiny economy singles all the way to mixed Japanese- and Western-style suites—it caters to all budgets and tastes. Eight restaurants mean you can have a different culinary treat every evening. The staff speak basic English and, in little-visited Fukui, are delighted to have a chance to speak with foreign guests.

With a giant Godzilla head on the eighth-floor lobby terrace and one special guest room with movie posters, a rubber monster suit, and a giant claw emerging from a headboard, the Gracery is a good choice for fans of the silver screen's top prehistoric creature. A word of warning: while the hotel is clean, and the staff is friendly, it is located in a red-light district.

Bright-white marble and richly stained wood dominate the lobby at this large, luxurious hotel, a comfortable base for exploring the area. The bilingual staff are cheerful and welcoming. The superior rooms are spacious, with higher floors offering views over the city. It's conveniently connected to the JR Okayama Station—stay on the second level and follow the signs toward the southern end.

At the main intersection in Ishigaki City, the Hotel GranView Ishigaki is a short walk from the port, restaurants, and dive shops. The rooms are spartan but clean and modern, and the staff are helpful and friendly. Japanese communal baths are open in the morning and evening. This is a great choice if you are focused on diving or don't have a rental car to get to more out-of-the-way beachside hotels, which ironically have far grander views.

This chic downtown pied-à-terre successfully combines traditional ryokan elements—sliding paper screens, tatami rooms—with some unexpected boutique-hotel touches like the contemporary room design and the lobby aromas that change with the season (citrus when it's cool outside, mint when it's warm). One definite break with tradition is that you can opt for a plan that includes no meals.

Adjacent to the JR Akita Station and ALS shopping mall, this hotel with its large rooms is a perfect choice for shopping and exploring the sights. Rooms are understated in style, with wood accents. Premium-floor rooms are larger, but all of the rooms are clean and functional. There are also laundry facilities, massages, and access to the neighboring fitness center (for an extra ¥1,100 fee). 

Tastefully furnished, spacious rooms and English-speaking staff make this hotel—run by the same group as the Hotel Metropolitan Morioka (original branch)—a safe choice for visitors to Morioka. The hotel is conveniently close to Morioka Station. The presence of a large wedding altar right in the middle of the coffee lounge in the lobby gives it a rather over-the-top appearance. 

This upscale hotel adjacent to the railway station is a great value, with spacious, tastefully furnished rooms that have been renovated in calming tones. The restaurant and café on the second floor are bright and airy, with a fabulous glass-front view for people-watching. The hotel's location is great for travelers, but also good for events, so don't be surprised by a raucous wedding party or company dinner.

Glossy marble and massive slabs of granite dominate this popular and upscale hotel. Standard twin rooms are large and comfortable, with enough space for a table and a couple of easy chairs. Light colors, pastel carpets, and tasteful gold accents keep things looking chic. It's unbeatably convenient, right next to Nagasaki Station and the always lively Amu Plaza shopping center.

Indoor and outdoor pools, a rooftop garden, tennis courts, and a sparkling marble atrium make this hotel a popular choice for both Japanese and Western travelers. The modern rooms, large by Japanese standards, afford handsome views of Osaka Castle and the Neya River. Rooms have pale color schemes accented with geometric patterns and Japan-inspired prints. There's a lot here—it's like a city within Osaka Business Park. Spend an evening in the teppanyaki restaurant on the 18th floor enjoying Osaka-jo in all its floodlit glory.

The city's largest hotel provides plenty of creature comforts in rooms with thick carpets and large windows that let in lots of light. Given its location next to Nara JR Station, the rooms are remarkably quiet. All have private baths, and there's a communal bath as well. Close to downtown restaurants, the hotel sits atop a popular shopping arcade. The lobby is on the third floor, where you can also find a lounge offering free drinks including wine and sake.

A striking white tower in the colorful Shin-sai-bashi district, the Nikko is within easy reach of shopping meccas like Amerika-mura. What you pay depends on the amenities, as the twin and double rooms are all the same size. For a little more comfort, opt for a room on one of the L floors for a couple of thousand yen extra. Black-and-white photographs of Mido-suji-dori ornament the walls.