Shizuoka Prefecture is famous for its stunning views of Mount Fuji, thriving green tea production, and great onsens. The prefecture sits on the Shinkansen line to Tokyo, making it a great addition to any Tokyo-centred trip. For those seeking fresh seafood and hamburgers, Shizuoka also has a lot to offer. Sawayaka, a regional chain in the prefecture, offers the finest genkotsu burgers, which feature fist-shaped burgers which are cooked over charcoal and made of 100 per cent local beef.
On my way back from my theatre trip in Nagoya, I stopped over in Shizuoka to explore the Pokémon centre in the outlet stores located in Gotemba Premium Outlets. Hotel Jalan is about a ten-minute walk from Higashi-Shizuoka making its location accessible via train, car or by foot. For the category of location, I will award a score of 7; whilst the location is accessible, the area it is situated is far from any big cities and hotspots. However, the location is quiet, and for those looking for a break from the hustle and bustle, this is certainly a good quality of the hotel.
For the next category of ease of access, the hotel can be booked on Couples.JP and because of its proximity to the station it is possible to take a gamble and walk in on the night. I usually don’t recommend taking this risk, but if the hotel is close enough to a station or another hotel, I will sometimes chance it and hope there is a free room. The website has better images of all the rooms, I recommend checking those out first so you can make a better judgement on what room you decide to take. The image displayed on the outside of the rooms is not very informative. For this, I award another 7 for a new total of 14.
The hotel is drive in style so guests can park up and head on up to the room they prefer without having to call reception. The hotel is very clean, and everything used for tea making and drinking is covered in plastic. The bed was very comfortable, and the room has a set of stairs which take you up into an open-plan-style room. The room featured cosplays that can be used in the room and there is a TV ordering system for anything additional. The room I got was very modern with a lot of nice LED lighting, creating a nice, relaxing atmosphere even better the room has a control panel so you can adjust the lighting to suit your mood. For comfort and cleanliness, I award an 8 for a running total of 22.
On top of the features already mentioned, the hotel provided the usual items needed to meet the standard Love Hotel motto of turn up empty-handed. In the room I had there was a sofa and table, there was a fridge for any food and drink guests bring in and a drink fridge in case guests want to buy a drink without going through the TV system. The room had a fair few amenities so I will award a 7 for a new total of 29. The bath score is a 5, taking the score up to 34. It was a simple Japanese-style bath, which was a bit of a squeeze. I will also award the usual 5 points for food, as I arrived late and had already eaten. So, the new total is 39.
For overall enjoyment I award a 6, the room was nice but there wasn’t anything that really set it out from other experiences. The bathroom was small and there weren’t any unique features asides the cosplay which as usual never features anything to dress your male counterpart in. The room was pricey, so I am factoring this into my score. Finally, we hit likely to return and for this I award a final 5 points for a grand total of 51. The location was very off the beaten track, and should I return to Shizuoka I will be trying to explore more of the Fuji area and hopefully trying to experience what the city has to offer. Shizuoka is often a prefecture which gets overlooked as most tourists will favour Yamanashi for the fuji views. But this works in your favour if you are hoping to have a quieter trip. There is a lot to offer in the area, and you can book tours to Shizuoka from Tokyo! The outlet stores offer a direct highway bus to Tokyo station if you want to take a day trip and go shopping in the shadow of Mount Fuji! The Pokémon outlet store offers fans a chance to buy a rare Pikachu featuring Mount fuji and sometimes the store offers cheaper products which are coming of the main product line. I recommend checking the prefecture out as it has a lot more to offer than just mount Fuji.
