Absolutely loved this hotel! The hot springs were so relaxing, and the breakfast was delicious. After a dip in the onsen, there's even complimentary ice cream, Yakult, and late-night ramen – such a nice touch! The service was also excellent. Both the rooms and hallways are fully tatami-matted, making for a very comfortable stay. The location is right next to Nara Station, and you step out directly into a shopping street, which is incredibly convenient. I'll definitely be staying here again on my next trip to Nara!
The hotel's location is great, just a 2-minute walk from the subway station. Check-in is handled by robots, and you can store your luggage in the lobby on the first floor. Renting manga books is also a unique Japanese touch. The room was quite spacious, and the soundproofing was good. The bathroom wasn't huge but was clean. Overall, it's pretty good.
The room was spacious and spotlessly clean, including the bedding. While the room was well-equipped, some facilities felt a bit dated. However, both the interior and exterior of the building exuded an aristocratic grandeur. The front desk staff were incredibly polite, professional, and went above and beyond to help guests with any issues. The hot spring had specific operating hours, and unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to experience it, which was a slight disappointment.
It's a well-known fact that accommodations in Japan can be pricey, so for my trip, I opted for several chain budget hotels, and Smile Hotel was one of them. It offers great value for money.
The Smile Hotel in Nara is conveniently located right next to Nara JR Station; you can spot their sign as soon as you exit the station. It's the perfect starting point for exploring Nara.
Rooms in Japanese budget hotels are generally small, but they are always clean and tidy, with impeccable hygiene standards. And even though the rooms are compact, they still come with a desk and chair, which I found very convenient for writing and organizing. I really appreciate that.
Finally, a heads-up: toiletries and pajamas are available on the first floor for guests to pick up as needed. You might want to grab them before heading up to your room.
True to its reputation as an established hotel, everything was impeccable. With Christmas and New Year approaching, the lobby was beautifully and exquisitely decorated. The walls of the lobby displayed the hotel's illustrious history, making me feel incredibly fortunate on my first stay. Additionally, the hotel boasts an excellent location, right outside the JR station, making travel exceptionally convenient. It will definitely be my top choice for my next visit to Nara!
Hotel was about 2 mins walk from the entrance of Nara park n the shopping district. Very good location. You could either walk 1.3km to the hotel from the JR station, or take a taxi which would cost around 1200yen. About 10 mins walk from the metro station. I stayed for 2 nights with breakfast and dinner inclusive. The Ryokan did take note n served us a different menu each day. There was also a small indoor n outdoor onsen in the Ryokan. The food was superb.
about a 10-minute walk from Shin-Omiya Station. Right next to it is the Mi Nara Shopping Mall, which has a large hypermarket and several shops selling affordable clothing — including lovely children’s wear. To reach Mi Nara, head to the left side of the hotel, toward the JW Marriott Hotel.
Highly recommend:
- Mount Yoshino (steep slopes hiking) lots of persimmon, kiwi trees, pomegranate. Be sure to prepare some food, water in your bag & most importantly hiking stick. We took 4 hours of walking to complete the entire Mount Yoshino (from right with shrines to left with restaurant, fruit trees).
Places to explore near the hotel:
1️⃣ Mi Nara Shopping Mall – Perfect for groceries and daily essentials, with prices more affordable than Aeon Supermarket.
2️⃣ Montbell Village & Bellside Café – A great spot for outdoor gear, and the café serves delicious pasta, pizza, and pastries.
- Ask the hotel staff for a printed copy of Bus 28’s schedule to Montbell (the bus stop is right in front of JW Marriott). From Montbell, it’s a short walk to Hard Off / Off House, where you can browse a fun selection of secondhand items — clothes, bags, toys, and household goods.
- The breakfast buffet offers a good variety and is worth the price — ¥3,000 per person, payable at the front desk.
- The room was clean and comfortable. I recommend renting a humidifier if you experience a dry nose due to the cold air. Also, wearing a mask outdoors helps to stay comfortable in dry or chilly weather.
- A free shuttle bus is available — check with the lobby staff for a printed copy of the schedule.
The front desk staff were all friendly and polite, and could communicate in English. We could store our luggage, and were welcome to use the lounge even after checking out.
The location is excellent, very close to Kintetsu Nara Station (not JR Station!), which made getting around very convenient. There are many restaurants nearby, and plenty of places to explore on foot.
The room was clean and tidy, with all the basic amenities. Breakfast was alright (not a huge variety though). The room wasn't large, but it was comfortable. The bed and pillows were good, the air conditioning was cold enough, and the hot water was hot enough.
I stayed for 1 night this time and had a good experience. I would definitely stay here again when I revisit Nara.
Facilities: The facilities are brand new, and the hotel occupies the entire building. Its proximity to the train station is also a significant advantage.
Cleanliness: True to Japanese standards, the hotel was spotlessly clean, providing complete peace of mind during my stay.
Environment: Despite being surrounded by busy roads, the hotel's soundproofing is superb, ensuring a quiet night's sleep with virtually no noise.
Service: The Japanese-style service was excellent. There was even a friendly ********* staff member at the front desk, allowing for seamless communication in Chinese.
Amazing
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9.4/10
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Amazing
GGuest UserA question to think about, ‘What makes a hotel a luxury one?’
To me, it’s luxury because of the hospitality of the staff, quality of the property and the food they provided totally exceed travellers’ expectations, and as a result, we would love to pay more for the experience.
Some staff really tried their very best to help me during my stay while some just didn’t. Upon arrival, I tried to communicate with the staff that I’d like to cancel my third night’s dinner because of the change of my plan. At first, I booked six meals in total and I’d only want to cancel one dinner and they said I needed to pay 100% for the cancelled meal because they have already bought the ingredients. Okay, I tried to understand that because they had already taken away my credit card and there’s nothing I could do about that and I thought it must be a very nice meal and that’s why they insisted that. Disappointingly, the portion was so small and paying the same amount of money I could get so much better food in 虹夕諾雅 or any other five star onsen hotels in Japan. As a result, I went to bed feeling hungry and eating the snacks I bought for myself :( The food portions are like a bento instead of a proper meal. )
Also, the Western style breakfast was so overpriced and the avocado in the omelette was not fresh at all.
One more thing to note is that the complimentary champagne service they provided to their guests. It’s a nice experience but maybe I’m just a lady travelling alone and I couldn’t speak Japanese at all, the waitress didn’t serve me the same way as she served other people in the cafe. When all of them got two glasses of free drinks, one cocktail and one champagne, she only gave me one champagne and didn’t offer me the cocktail. And the day after, there was a nice staff who served me properly and I finally realized that I am entitled to two drinks.
(Sigh)The experience was like buying a Chanel bag. The bag was pricey but the chain of the bag just suddenly fall apart
while you are using it for the very first time. My advice is: Don’t use their catering services especially for the in-room dining plan. There are so many better choices out there in the city. The room and the service of the staff are great tho.
蔡蔡瓜The front desk staff were all friendly and polite, and could communicate in English. We could store our luggage, and were welcome to use the lounge even after checking out.
The location is excellent, very close to Kintetsu Nara Station (not JR Station!), which made getting around very convenient. There are many restaurants nearby, and plenty of places to explore on foot.
The room was clean and tidy, with all the basic amenities. Breakfast was alright (not a huge variety though). The room wasn't large, but it was comfortable. The bed and pillows were good, the air conditioning was cold enough, and the hot water was hot enough.
I stayed for 1 night this time and had a good experience. I would definitely stay here again when I revisit Nara.
KKoh Kabout a 10-minute walk from Shin-Omiya Station. Right next to it is the Mi Nara Shopping Mall, which has a large hypermarket and several shops selling affordable clothing — including lovely children’s wear. To reach Mi Nara, head to the left side of the hotel, toward the JW Marriott Hotel.
Highly recommend:
- Mount Yoshino (steep slopes hiking) lots of persimmon, kiwi trees, pomegranate. Be sure to prepare some food, water in your bag & most importantly hiking stick. We took 4 hours of walking to complete the entire Mount Yoshino (from right with shrines to left with restaurant, fruit trees).
Places to explore near the hotel:
1️⃣ Mi Nara Shopping Mall – Perfect for groceries and daily essentials, with prices more affordable than Aeon Supermarket.
2️⃣ Montbell Village & Bellside Café – A great spot for outdoor gear, and the café serves delicious pasta, pizza, and pastries.
- Ask the hotel staff for a printed copy of Bus 28’s schedule to Montbell (the bus stop is right in front of JW Marriott). From Montbell, it’s a short walk to Hard Off / Off House, where you can browse a fun selection of secondhand items — clothes, bags, toys, and household goods.
- The breakfast buffet offers a good variety and is worth the price — ¥3,000 per person, payable at the front desk.
- The room was clean and comfortable. I recommend renting a humidifier if you experience a dry nose due to the cold air. Also, wearing a mask outdoors helps to stay comfortable in dry or chilly weather.
- A free shuttle bus is available — check with the lobby staff for a printed copy of the schedule.
MM0117****True to its reputation as an established hotel, everything was impeccable. With Christmas and New Year approaching, the lobby was beautifully and exquisitely decorated. The walls of the lobby displayed the hotel's illustrious history, making me feel incredibly fortunate on my first stay. Additionally, the hotel boasts an excellent location, right outside the JR station, making travel exceptionally convenient. It will definitely be my top choice for my next visit to Nara!
SSolo AceThe hotel is literally next to the JR Nara Station.You can purchase all of your travel tickets there and the airport bus tickets, too. In that area, there is a grocery store, a Walgreens type store, and nice affordable places to eat. I highly recommend the place on the corner(pic #1-2). The two guys that run it are so nice. There is a long shopping/restaurant street kinda across from the tourist center. I don't recommend this one ramen place located there. They make everyone pay before eating, and for the basic ramen that I got, it was overpriced. My bowl wasn't even full!(pic# 3-7)
The tourist center is located close by, and the folks in there are very helpful(pic# 8). All of the buses are right there, so touring is very easy. The hotel itself is very comfortable. It's keyless, so take a picture of your pass code. The onsen on the premises has a pass code as well. Inside was very nice and relaxing. I went at 2:20am and it was wonderful. They have pajamas, pillows, and a free happy hour. The variety of spirits is extensive. Also, the elevator smells so good! The scent will de stress you. You can try a lot of things with a nice view of the station. I would definitely stay at this hotel again. The last two pictures are the view of the bus terminal. There is another one on the other side of the building. This is the front view (airport bus location)
KKinglumLoved the hotel!! It’s in the center of nara city
It’s 5 mins walk to the nara shopping area, 5mins walk to the nara park there is deer walking around the hotel in the morning
There is free morning city walk tour at 7:00-8:00 with local guide; the bicycle is free
The view of the pond is nice the service is great!! 5stars to everything
The room is spacious and the bed is comfortable
They have drink lounge for free use with unlimited snacks; fruit juice, sake, beer, wine from
15:00pm-2:00am
Really recommend everyone that travels to nara city to stay at this hotel!!
The only downside of this hotel is the breakfast only provides japanese style food ; grill fish and onigiri
The onigiri is huge, grill fish and miso soup is cold
I wish they can make the onigiri smaller so
We can taste more flavors
And hope that they can provide a bakery corner for people who doesn’t like to eat fish
Otherwise we loved the hotel and want to go
Back again!!
Ps: there is not parking space so we need to park at the coin parking costs us 2400¥ /night
UuknowpennyThe location is great. You can see it right after you exit JR Nara Station. It's about a 3-minute walk. You can have breakfast in front of the window and see the view of Nara Station.
The sanitary conditions are a little worse than those of good hotels in Japan. I chose a non-smoking room, but there was a very faint smell of cigarettes when I first entered. The big suitcase cannot be fully unfolded. I guess it would be a bit aggrieved for a 1.8-meter-tall person to use the bathroom. But what do you want for this price?
Breakfast is the highlight! Affordable but not low quality.
DDayanAbsolutely loved this hotel! The hot springs were so relaxing, and the breakfast was delicious. After a dip in the onsen, there's even complimentary ice cream, Yakult, and late-night ramen – such a nice touch! The service was also excellent. Both the rooms and hallways are fully tatami-matted, making for a very comfortable stay. The location is right next to Nara Station, and you step out directly into a shopping street, which is incredibly convenient. I'll definitely be staying here again on my next trip to Nara!
MmixukiI used to live in Nara but now live far away, so I stayed here for the first time when visiting a friend.
This hotel is located in front of the station, so it was very convenient.
I often go to the drinking district around Yagi Station, and it was great that no matter how much I drink, the hotel was always so close by!
The interior of the facility was also very clean, and it was well-maintained.
The bath and open-air bath on the top floor were also great.
This time I only stayed overnight, so I would like to try breakfast next time.
AAnonymous UserFew people, quiet, great hot springs! The food is OK (the ingredients are fresh but not amazing), the hot spring pool is private and healing, and the atmosphere is different in the morning and evening. Suitable for a pure lying holiday.
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