Hotel C. – Fukuoka’s 100k love hotel?
I recall exploring Booking.com recently to find a hotel in Kitakyushu, a city I had yet to visit in my neighbour prefecture, Fukuoka. Many choices vary in price, and many offer sea views and balconies. Fukuoka faces the Sea of Japan, and Kitakyushu is a city perched on the coast with stunning island views and in the sun, the ocean shimmers blue. I planned to catch a ferry from Mojiko to Shimonoseki after enjoying a bowl of Yaki curry. Whilst searching, I saw a collection of Love hotels in the area, about 8 are registered on Booking.com and a handful more on Couples.JP.
One hotel immediately stood out, not because it had a crazy theme or the building was insanely ornate, no, what jumped out at me was in fact the price, the price was 6 figures. Even though in Japan, this isn’t as eye-watering as a 6-figure number in the UK. This price shocked me. It is no lie that some higher end love hotels can in fact come very close to breaking 6 figures. There are some rooms with private pools, fun fairs, penthouses, water slides, saunas and spas, private bars and even more. Love hotels can be mind-blowing with what they offer in their top-tier rooms.
On Booking.com, Hotel C. was showing as 100k for every tier of room they offered, which is peculiar when the tiers exist to allow travellers on lower budgets the chance to still stay with less room features. Curious to see what they offered, which warranted the highest price tag I’d ever seen for 1 night at a Love hotel. I explored their website and saw nothing out of the ordinary; the rooms all have a sea view, and some rooms in what should have been the higher tier had outdoor saunas on balconies. What I concluded to be the top tier room had a beautiful sea view, sauna and blue LEDs to create a relaxing atmosphere on the balcony. The room was the penthouse and had wooden flooring, it looked like a penthouse you may see in an otome game where the rich CEOs apartment overlooks the city somewhere in Korea. But asides this there was nothing that screamed 100k. I moved on with my search, but this find was bugging me. After noting this hotel was in a cluster of hotels, I decided to chance walking in and seeing for myself the prices, a small part of me believed someone at Booking.com had added an extra 0. On the couple of nights the hotel was showing as unavailable for online bookings, but this was the night before arrival which is not uncommon. There was a number to call for last minute bookings, but my Japanese would not have been up to the task. So armed with my curiosity I left after work and travelled to Kokura.
Hotel C. is located about a ten-minute walk from Kokura station it sits on a road next to around 5 other Love hotels. The hotel, at first glance it looks modern, but there are no standout features. Compared to the other five on the road, it looks rather unassuming. For location, I award a 10. Kokura is a very large city, and a ten-minute walk along a main road is a blessing. The hotels all overlook the sea and there are a few convenience stores along the walk.
After walking into the front lobby, I headed straight for the electronic check-in board and started exploring the rooms and prices. My hunch was correct someone at Booking.com had added an extra zero and messed up with pricing. I am writing up my experience about a month later and can now confirm that the prices on Booking.com have been fixed. The lowest-tier room is available for 11k. For ease of access, I award an 8, taking the score to 18. With Booking.com now fixed and the hotel available for bookings via phone and Couples.Jp booking is easy. The electronic check-in board shows a handful of pictures, which I feel fairly represent the room and even show the bath, which I like.
For comfort and cleanliness, I award a 7 taking the score to 25. The hotel is new, and my room was very clean. In general, if a hotel is new, it is likely to score highly here. The items in the room were covered in plastic, and all freebies are new in packets, too. The bed was comfortable and the sheets clean.
Moving on to amenities the lobby has a drinks bar, but it is one per person. There were some bath salts and usual hair and beauty products that could be taken up to your room. The room also has its usual freebies so guests can turn up emptyhanded. There wasn’t a large variety, but for those showing up in need of a hotel, it certainly has you covered. For amenities, I award a 7, taking the total to 32.
For food there is a wide range of choice the menu features lots of inviting images however I feel after eating a few dishes from the menu the images oversell. The photographer is very good at food photography and photoshop. The dishes that arrived did not hold up or even look like the image at times. The steak did not come with the side in the image, and the stew was underwhelming. The menu included English, which was a surprise and the images look great. The food was mid, so I am awarding a score of 6, taking the total to 38.
For overall enjoyment the room I choose had a good-sized bath which I enjoyed however the ocean view I had was at the side so not a full ocean view. The room’s dark wood vibe was nice, and the small space was used well. The bed was comfortable and the food at least satisfied me. Would I have paid 100k for the experience most certainly not. But now the price is adjusted and the mistake corrected, paying 11k for the night is a little less painful. The hotel’s location is very convenient, and the area it is situated in is quiet, and the view, if you’re lucky to get a view that’s not at the side, is relaxing. I can imagine the penthouse suit has a great starry view as the open-air bath overlooks the ocean the darker side. For overall enjoyment, I award a 7 for a total of 45.
For the final category of rebooking, I will award a 6 for a total of 51/70 which ties it with Gate Dream also in Fukuoka. There are at least four more hotels along the same road near Hotel C. which I would probably opt to investigate if I needed to stay out in Kokura again. There is still a little I want to explore so the option may arise. But I recommend checking the hotel out if you need somewhere close to the station. Whilst it isn’t a 100k experience or close, the top-tier room is certainly worth checking out if you’re looking to splash a little, but I’d advise waiting for good warm weather to enjoy the outdoor sauna.
