This hotel has free shuttle bus from the Kanazawa station. This hotel is located right in the middle of most attractions in Kanazawa, i.e. Kenrokuen, Castle park, Museums, high end shopping area, local craft and pottery shops, Omicho market, old Samurai street, endless restaurant rows, etc. that you can walk within 10 min anywhere. Also, tourist loop buses stop very near.
My wife and I stayed in a double room here for 2 nights after our cruise ended in Kobe. We wanted to stay in Kanazawa for our visit to Shirakawago. The room was small... it felt like we were still on the cruise ship... but comfortable and clean. It was certainly good value and fine for a short stay.
To get to the hotel from the train station we took a local bus. It took about 20 minutes and was easy to do as the hotel's instructions were clear. There is a hotel shuttle service to and from the station, but only in peak hours in the day. The front desk staff are very helpful but the ones we encountered had limited English. The hotel seems to cater mainly to local businessmen.
The hotel is great for walking as it is close to many of the local attractions like the Kanazawa Castle, Kenrokuen Gardens, Omicho market, and the samurai and geisha districts.
Wifi is fast. The tv only had Japanese channels. There's a small fridge and a safe.
Breakfast is geared, again, to the local businessmen. There is no continental breakfast. It is local fare such as rice, congee, preserved vegetables, and tiny portions of meat.
In summary, the Toyoko Inn is perfect for a short stay in Kanazawa.
This is the perfect location to walk to most, if not all, of the sights around town. We walked to the gardens, the castle, several old districts, and the fish market from here. The rooms are tight but clean, fun toilets with lots of buttons to play with. Best part was the buffet breakfast included in room rate which had a good variety of Japanese breakfast options for the adventurous. Shuttle service was on time and a great convenience. Several restaurants nearby. Walk up the road to the Portugese influenced shrine at night - quite pretty.
The Toyoko Inn Kanazawa Kenrokuen Korinbo (東横INN金沢兼六園香林坊) is one of the nicest that I've stayed. I reserved a single and got a double bed with plenty of room on the floor to move around and put your suitcase (in some you have to slide a suitcase under the bed to have room to walk). There was even room for a chair between the bed and TV/desk (in some you sit on the bed to use the desk). There was a wooden rack with hangers on one wall to hang some clothes. The heat pump kept up with the cold during my stay but in case the temperature dropped further there was an additional heater on the wall under the window. I didn't need it so I didn't attempt to turn it on. The bathroom was the fiberglass one-piece version with an updated washlet and 2-speed exhaust fan. The empty mini-refrigerator is standard. There were 3 elevators to get to the upper floors (most TIs only have 2).
To start off, this TI is located in the central business area of the city, quite a walk from the station. However, they run free shuttles from the train station on the west side to the hotel starting around 4 PM. Check the web site for complete photo directions to find the bus pickup location. Otherwise, a taxi takes between 5 & 10 minutes and costs around Y1000. Gucci, Louis Vuitton, & Tiffany & Co are just across the street and Armani is next door to the hotel. On a more practical note, the closest convenience store is a Lawson just 50 m north of the entrance where you can get supplies to stock your frig. If you arrive early, there's a back room behind the lobby PCs where you can put your luggage until check in time (3 PM for club members and 4 PM for others).
The central location gives easy access to Kenrokuen & the castle area, the Nagamachi district, Nishi Chaya, Teramachi and the Nomachi Kutaniyaki Kosen studio. It's a bit far from the Higashi Chaya district and the city market but you can still get to these on foot if you want.
Just to the south toward the river is a selection of restaurants and shops.
The breakfast is the typical Toyoko-Inn fare. One morning there were round mini-omelets and the the next they were mini-omelet shaped omelets. Also included were onigiri, sausage, meatballs, and salads. Coffee was from a a machine that doled out very small amounts but you could go back for more. The only thing missing from this breakfast that I've found at most other TIs was fruit juices. The dining room was the largest of any TI I've been and even though it was busy one morning there was no problem finding a chair. The second morning I went in at 8 AM instead of 6:30 AM and the place was almost empty (Breakfast was from 6:30-9).
The WiFi worked fine and was fast enough. I was able to use my Ooma app to call US phone numbers for free with no delay. There is also a LAN wire coming out of the desktop if you want to plug in. I compared the LAN to the Wifi and didn't notice any difference in speed although I didn't run any speed test.
In regard to some of the other comments, this is a business hotel, catering mainly to traveling Japanese businessmen. If you want to slide into this niche, it is an affordable option. If you're expecting a western tourist hotel, you might find it lacking. Personally, I use a hotel when I travel as a place to dump my luggage, clean up, and sleep. Anything more is an extra. The Toyoko Inns are excellent at meeting these requirements. In addition, I get a water heater to make tea, a hair dryer, a refrigerator, and a TV that has HDMI inputs so I can plug my tablet into the TV and watch a movie on a larger screen if I like.
I can't comment on the front's English ability, but they did everything I requested when I asked in Japanese and were more than helpful.
Basically like a better version of Premier Inn - literally everything you could need, exceptionally clean, quick and helpful. Good sized rooms, warm and comfy, decent sized bathroom and facilities including PJs (love these, they are in a UV cupboard so you know they have been sanitised!) razors, brushes, toiletries, fridge etc.
Lots of facilities downstairs in the lobby area too including laundry room, vending machines and hot/cold water.
near all the major sights, everything was walkable and lots of convenient stores nearby,
Free shuttle to and from the train station!
