Japan Insider

I had a chance to stay at Dormy Inn Sendai Ekimae in September, 2017 for one night. It was surprisingly a pleasant experience with great value, and I would like to share it with you.

 

It was less than 10 minutes walk from Sendai station, and there is a nice covered shopping and restaurant area named Clis Road close by.  This shopping area (Shoutengai) felt long a kilometer long, and it kept going and going, then another road crossing the street with similar covered setups. The location was convenient and great for a night out.

They had a great service at check-in time, and everyone was nice and courteous.  I guess we expect nothing less from any Japanese hotels, so my expectation was met. The semi-double room for 2 was standard Japanese size, and was tiny.  I have to expect that when I travel in Japan. The space is premium there. The room was new and very clean with full of expected Japanese amenities such as toiletries  (toothbrush, hair brush and razors), and electric kettle with tea and coffee. So far, so good.

The difference with this hotel was that it had real Onsen (hot spring bath) on the top floor with separate men and women sides. The onsen baths were small, but it even had outdoor bath which I enjoyed very much. The guests can walk around in the hotel with their hotel provided pajamas and slippers. It almost felt like I was having a mini Onsen vacation which would usually cost me three to four times more than the price I paid for one night at Dormy Inn.

Some business hotels may have Onsen or public bath, but they have only one bath and different set time for men and women. Most of the time, the bath usage is for men since there are more business men travelers that they cater for.

 

Another pleasant extra was their free night time snack, Yonakisoba, a mini bowl of ramen noodles available from 9:30 to 11pm in the breakfast area. It was quite tasty, and was better than some ramen noodles we had at a restaurant. Yonakisoba used to be served from road side stalls or push carts at night for the people who were out for drinks.

Also, their breakfast buffet was great with so many choices of food. They are mostly Japanese style breakfast food but there are some toast and breads. It is worthwhile to add breakfast to your booking for this hotel if you like Japanese style breakfast. You can buy it after check-in, but it will cost more to do that. I think the price was 1200 yen to buy separately.

With all that extra and a pleasant stay,  I paid US $83 including tax and fees for 2 people which was a bargain. The best $83 I spent ever!

According to my research, the Dormy Inn chains mostly provide the same amenities such as access to onsen and night time ramen. Some Dormy Inns do not have onsen on site, but provides access to other ones in the area.

I enjoyed the stay so much, and I think I will look into staying at other Dormy Inn properties in my future Japan trips whenever possible .