Hotel Grand Fresa Akasaka Review - An Affordable Accommodation in Tokyo

Tokyo used to be a luxury destination for travelers. Though it’s still one of the world’s most expensive cities, flights and accommodation have become more affordable over the years. Initially, my mother wanted to book the hotel where we first stayed at in 2012, but with a price of Php 11,000 per night, we knew it was too much, considering we will be mostly out and about during the day.

That’s when Hotel Grand Fresa Akasaka came into view. A 2014 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice, the hotel is part of Sotetsu Fresa Inn’s chain of hotels which are popular for business and leisure travelers. My husband and I already stayed at their Nihombashi-Kayabacho branch in 2015, so I was looking for available rooms at that hotel once more. However, the said branch was fully booked for our travel dates. When I saw their Akasaka branch and the rates were less than half of Php 11,000, I immediately booked three rooms for our stay.

If you’re looking for affordable hotel rooms in Tokyo within the city center, let me give you an overview of our stay at Hotel Grand Fresa Akasaka.

1. Accessibility

Grand Fresa Akasaka is located in Minato district, central Tokyo. We came by train with medium size luggage at hand, so it was convenient to find the hotel 1-2 minutes away (on foot) from Akasaka Station, Exit 6 (Chiyoda Line, subway). Once we got out of the escalator, we turned left and walked until we reached the hotel sign board.

In addition to its easy access to and from the subway, Akasaka Station is also very near to other popular Tokyo hubs such as Shibuya (12 minutes by subway including transfers), Tokyo (17 minutes), Ginza (12 minutes), and Shinjuku (20 minutes) to name a few. The area is very close to Roponggi and also Tokyo Midtown (about a 12-minute walk), which is a commercial and leisure complex where you can shop, dine, and unwind.


2. Convenient Location

Akasaka is both a residential and commercial area, filled with corporate headquarters as well as luxury hotels. Grand Fresa is situated in a small commercial street with lots of Japanese restaurants that serve gyudon (namely Sukiya, a 24-hour restaurant), sushi, and ramen. Foreign restaurants are also available along the street as well as Anytime Fitness. In addition, there are two Family Mart and one 7-Eleven that are all walking distance from Grand Fresa. At the end of the road is a McDonald’s. When you cross the other side at Akasaka station Exit 3A, you’ll get a view of Akasaka ACT Theater and Tokyo Broadcasting System. Opposite the said exit is Starbucks and a 24-hour supermarket called Maruetsu Petit Akasaka, all of which we stumbled upon by walking from the hotel.


3. Hotel Facilities

For a small, mid-rise hotel, the lobby is clean and spacious. The reception is on the right side of the entrance doors and we were able to check-in in less than 10 minutes after giving our booking confirmation and passports. For female guests, we received Japanese skincare kits which I think is pretty cool.


There’s a sofa set at the lobby and when you take the stairs, you’ll see a phone, vending machine for drinks and Nissin cup noodles, as well as a public restroom for male and female guests. In between the sofa set and the reception is a desktop computer for when you need to research, send mail or check-in online for your flights, and a shelf filled with travel brochures, tea sachets, bath powders, and toiletries.

Two elevators serve all floors and you have to tap in your room key card in order to access the elevator. All six of us can fit one elevator without luggage. There’s also an ice dispensing machine on the second floor (if I remember it correctly) which you can use for free.


4. Room Size

I booked three Standard Double rooms which are 13 sqm each. The room was very compact, which is very common in Tokyo standards. My husband and I carried medium size luggage each, which provided us enough walking space inside the room. However, when both pieces of luggage were propped open on the floor, it’s a challenge to move around.

Some rooms were bigger (about 15 sqm), which could accommodate two adults and two small children (ages 0-5), but it will be a challenge for them, considering families with children need to carry more stuff (extra luggage, stroller, etc.). Each room only has a maximum occupancy of two adults (in some rooms, only one).

5. Bedroom Amenities
The room doesn’t have a full closet but like a semi-closet where you can hang some of your clothes or place your shoes at the bottom. Free bedroom slippers were also provided. In the Standard Double room, we didn’t have a city view but there’s a window which can be opened slightly. The room has an air conditioner, a heater, a luggage rack, and a full-length mirror near the doorway. Hotel door signs are magnetic. The floor is carpeted and the room has good soundproofing.

What the room didn’t have were in room safe box (which I don’t normally use) and an iron and ironing board, which might be useful for those traveling for business (available in their Nihombasi-Kayabacho branch).

Overall Rating: 4/5


Disclaimer: This is not a sponsored post. The contents of this entry are purely my opinion and 100% honest based on my booking experience and accommodation. To secure your booking faster, I included direct links to Agoda on this hotel property.