Hotel Chateau Briant – Saitama – Don’t judge a book by its cover
Situated only a twenty-minute walk from the Railway Museum and only one train stop up from Omiya this hotel is just outside of the bustling Saitama city. It is only a 5-minute walk from the station and is nestled within a residential area. From the outside the hotel looks very unassuming even a little disappointing. The exterior is old and has certainly seen better days. For location I give an 8, it is well connected to transport links and there are three trainlines that cross within the area. However, the area is devoid of places to eat which is usually not an issue as most hotels offer food, but this hotels menu was very limited down to two items only.
Next is ease of access this hotel is available on booking.com and it has a basic electronic board which displays only a handful of images. The room rates in the hotel are reasonable so much, so I realised the rates available on booking.com ensure you had one of the two top tier rooms in the hotel. The ability to book online is a weight lifted as a room is guaranteed for you. the booking came with free breakfast which was a collection of pastries and tea. For this category I award an 8 for a total of 16.
The next is comfort and cleanliness. The room I ended up with was the room I really wanted and was the one that drew me to book in the first place. Despite its aged and slightly weathered exterior the room was the opposite. It was very modern and used the space very creatively. It reminded me of the fancy ski lodges that you sometimes see in Hollywood movies. You enter and are greeted by the tea making facilities a set of stairs takes you down the sitting area. the bathroom is off to the side. The bed is back up another set of stairs on the opposite side of the room. There is a small space under raised sleeping area which I nicknamed the Low Place. The room was very modern, and the floors were a dark wood, the whole room took place on three different layers. The bed was large and modern and there was a large tv. The Low Place had cushions and mirrors with fancy lighting making it a great hideout. The bath was spacious and the room had a night atmosphere. There were some hard-to-reach spots where you could see a failed attempt to dust had been made. But asides this the room scores another 8 for a score of 24.
Next up is amenities and sadly there is no amenities bar that you often find in Love hotels the room comes with basics but do not expect any thrills. It scores a 5 for a new score of 29.
The next is food and often I score 5 for being unable to try the hotels food, however there is only really two choices for food on the limited menu and breakfast was nothing to shout about. I ended up ordering via uber eats which caused a little issue with the no contact rules. I asked ahead if uber eats was ok and it was fine if the driver only stayed in reception. However, getting out of the room was impossible and after three calls and finally being allowed out to go pass over my code and receive the delivery I was told not inside. Which had this been mentioned at the original time I would have added to delivery instructions. It caused some faff and stress so for this it still receives the 5 taking the score to 34.
Next is overall enjoyment and I had fun hanging out in the Low Place and taking a bath. The room was comfortable and I enjoyed a peaceful night which was appreciated after the sleepless night experienced at the hotel the night before. The room has a good heating system and despite thinking the stairs would prove a pain in the night for any bathroom trips it was not an issue as the stairs were solid. I have stayed in some hotels where stairs are makeshift and very wobbly. For this I award a 7 taking the score to 41.
Finally rebooking. This is a hard one as the room itself was very fun and memorable but the lack of food and issues with uber eats was a little off putting. There are many hotels in Saitama and if I return, I will most likely want to try another despite my love for the Low Place. I award a 5 taking the final score to 46/70.
