Art Hotel Asahikawa

“Ok for the price but many niggling issues that don't have easy solutions to”

Booked early and managed to score the deluxe/executive king for a reasonable price for two nights during the Asahikawa winter festival. When we checked later the hotel was fully booked out. As others have mentioned, the onsite car park (one of those automated tower things) was designed before the … more

Booked early and managed to score the deluxe/executive king for a reasonable price for two nights during the Asahikawa winter festival. When we checked later the hotel was fully booked out. As others have mentioned, the onsite car park (one of those automated tower things) was designed before the advent of SUVs/MPVs, so you'll have to use one of the many partner car parks if you drive anything larger than a sedan. These aren't too far away, but the downside is that you'll have to clear the snow off your car every morning. The deluxe king is a great size and fits two comfortably, with space leftover for two large suitcases. My quibble with the room is that there are no power outlets near the bed at all for charging mobile phones. We had to request for an extension cord. The room is also rather old, and can do with a renovation. As others have noted, the windows do not open at all (they are completely sealed, and cannot be unlocked by staff). So it does get a bit hot and stuffy at times. We mostly turned the system off. More positively, our room, on the 13th floor, had great views of the city (including its sole roundabout!), the winter festival site, and the Ishikari River that wends through Asahikawa. We made use of the independently run spa downstairs at the discounted guest rate of ¥700 (vs ¥2,260). The water wasn't natural spring water but did the job of warming up cold bodies after a day out in the -15°C weather. Earlier on in the reviews, someone complained that about the availability of laundry machines, so while we were in the basement we checked out the laundromat, which appears to have gained two new all-in-one machines (¥600 for a complete wash/dry including detergent). They join the older two washers (¥200 a wash) and two dryers (¥100/30mins). Detergent costs ¥100, and is required only for the standalone washer. Also mentioned earlier, the entire hotel (which has around 20 floors including basement levels) is serviced by two lifts. Which is inadequate, especially since the hotel caters to group tours. We faced a huge line once when a tour group checked in. On a more pleasant note, the online chat function links to an actual human (and from my experience over two chats, the one and only same human) who was very helpful in sorting out some reservation issues and answering some of my questions about the hotel in English. Unfortunately the function seems to be missing now. The bottom line is that the hotel is way past its prime. The problems such as the insufficient number of lifts, the centrally controlled air-conditioning system (you can't set the temperature) and the antiquated carpark, all cannot be easily fixed without tearing the whole building down and starting afresh. So for now, the hotel and you, the guest, will just have to make do.

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“Good Value ”

Centrally located for visiting the annual ice festival, this 15 story hotel has a big sign on the side of the top floor. It’s an easy icon to spot from afar. We walked just over 1km from the JR station down the pedestrian path past several ice sculptures. The room is cozy and a bit dated yet adeq… more

Centrally located for visiting the annual ice festival, this 15 story hotel has a big sign on the side of the top floor. It’s an easy icon to spot from afar. We walked just over 1km from the JR station down the pedestrian path past several ice sculptures. The room is cozy and a bit dated yet adequate for our one night stay. The best feature is the breakfast buffet and 180 degree views from the 15th floor. The buffet has the typical Japanese dishes of noodles, fish, vegetables and soup. I especially liked the tempura scallops. This is your place for walking around the park and ice sculptures.

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