APA Hotel Chiba-Yachiyo-Midorigaoka

What People are saying

Avoid!

Tony Kon 14/03/2017 06:36

Most hotels, whether they be good or bad, at least pretend to be good and welcome guests on arrival. We had a business party of 5 people and received the frostiest welcome ever from this hotel. We booked via Booking.com and at their "special requests" box listed the few requirements we needed (Twin rooms, single rooms etc) as the choices were not available on booking.com's site. We also needed different check-out days as we were all leaving Japan on different days. APA Hotel staff denied any such knowledge and charged vastly more (close to double the rate) for a room with twin beds. After complaining to booking.com as to why they bothered with a request box if this was to be ignored, we received a note from the management in apology. If they had responded to this before we checked in we would either have changed hotel or at least have been prepared.

The rooms themselves were shockingly tiny. We measured the double rooms and the twin rooms and the single rooms and they all measured the same tiny size.

APA Hotels advertises itself as a "business hotel" yet there are no business facilities whatsoever. There is no lounge, no dining room, nowhere to have a business meeting with a cup of coffee or a whisky over a business chat. There is a dreadful little coffee shop next door that only is open til after lunch, serves a dreadful yet expensive breakfast and shuts the doors at around 13:00.

We were here for 5 unfortunate nights and APA Hotels on one of its many little notices dotted haphazardly around ones little box of a room, advertises the fact that guests staying longer than 3 nights will receive complimentary bottles of drinking water. Needless to say we didn't get these on the first night, although they were in agreement that we had booked for 5 nights; we only got them for 3 of the 5 nights we stayed there and had to buy water from the 7/11 across the street. Just as well we had the 7/11 - it was a godsend as APA Hotels do not provide tea/coffee making facilities in the room. There was not even a kettle, but puzzlingly enough we were provided with a rice-maker. No rice, just the rice maker tucked away in a bottom shelf. A first for me in any hotel!

We booked this hotel on the strength of a previous revue from Waikay3 saying it was close to the Makuhari Exhibition centre. This is far from the reality. The Makuhari Messe is an hour by train, 2 or 3 train changes (horrible pushing and shoving at morning rush hour) and an impossible 90 minutes by taxi.

Even the bad hotels have one or two good points, so lets not forget these. The APA Hotel Chiba Yachiyo is right next to the Midorigaoka train station. The hotel has clean and comfortable beds, although the hard pillows get some getting used to. The rooms although dreadfully small are very clean and serviced daily by staff. Bathrooms are clean and functional. The 7/11 across the street is a godsend as it has snacks and a good coffee machine. It also has an easy to use ATM. The hotel room has a fridge, useful to keep cold drinks available from the 7/11.The hotel staff were also kind enough to store our bags for a few hours after we checked out. The free WiFi was OK. There are lots of restaurants within a very short walk.

I will never ever stay here again! You could offer me money and I will never ever stay here again! Of all the hotels I've reviewed over many years with TripAdvisor, this has to rate as the very worst. However, I must be alone in my opinion as the hotel was full and turning folks away on a few nights.

Good choice for business travellers

mark_c_hopeon 25/09/2016 09:34

I stayed in this hotel whilst on business in the Tokyo area for a couple of days.
It is located just next to Yachiyo-Midorigaoka train station which is on the Toyo-Kosoku (Rapid) line.

Like many hotels in Tokyo, the rooms are small. Both bed room and bathroom. So this should be considered normal, even if surprising for some western visitors if it's your first visit to Tokyo. However they are quite adequate if you are just there in the evening between meetings and need somewhere to sleep and catch up on some work. Less ideal if you plan to spend the day in the room with a family for instance.

Rooms are clean and well equipped with good wireless connection and all usual hotel room amenities.
Trouser presses are provided on each floor (no irons) and there are several vending machines for soft drinks and beers.

Breakfast is on the ground floor in a Starbucks style coffee shop which provides western style food such as egg, bacon and sausage or toast and pastries and a selection of tea and coffee which is all good quality.

Nearby is a shopping mall with supermarket and shops and a selection of restaurants from burger bars to traditional Japanese food and underneath the station are a couple of bars where you can sit in and enjoy a beer or even some fresh made sushi.

Despite proximity to the station and main road I found the rooms very quiet and was never disturbed by noise from outside.

Nice stay for exhibition

Waikay3on 25/04/2016 16:27

The hotel is nicely located near to Makuhari exhibition centre. Ideal for exhibitors and suitable for family leisure trip.

The room is nice and considered big enough compared to others stayed before.

The staffs are helpful and polite as japanese always are.

However, breakfast always same and with limited variant of food. Maybe due to high occupancy during exhibition period. High consistency but low surprises

Very small room

Kunlathidaon 29/12/2015 13:23

Room is suitable for solo travel. No place to walk inside the room, its very cramp. Between the bed and the table barely any space for walking. Pillow very thin and bed very solft, its will make you have backache. Can hear the train whenever they pass by.

Functional

StewieTokyoon 29/06/2014 02:18

It seems a bit mean to only give 3 stars to somewhere so cheap - I stayed 6 times over 2 months and paid either 4,800 yen or 5.300 yen for the night without breakfast.

Good points:
1. Location - you can see the hotel from the train station on the other side of the taxi rotary.
2. Price.
3. Clean (but book a non-smoking room if you can - the smoking ones stink for a non-smoker)
4. Efficient staff with smooth check in
5. Check out is just putting your room card key in a box
6. The large communal bath - the rooms are small and the bathrooms tiny but this makes all the difference - you can stretch out and relax or even sit outside - there is also a sauna.
7. Paypal accepted for internet booking
8. Shops / restaurants and even a multiplex cinema nearby

Bad:
1. If you have to stay in a smokers room they stink
2. The air conditioner won't go below 28 degrees
3. The train station is close so, if you sleep with the window open, the train wake you up early.
4. The rooms are tiny even by Japanese standards.

I would not recommend for a vacation but why would anyone be sightseeing in Yachiyo anyway?