Originally Posted by
AdaQuonsett
Is there REALLY such a big difference in quality?
Oh yes!!!
Originally Posted by AdaQuonsett
We booked 2 rooms at the Park Hyatt in October at the rate of 48,000 per room per night and are started to ask if it's worth the money when we look at rates at other 5 star hotels.
Park Hyatt is looked on as the gold standard in Tokyo - it's remained practically unchallenged until only recently. The FSs, The Conrad and the Mandarin Oriental are some of only a handful of hotels that can make any claim to matching the PH's standards (and there's always room for argument)
Westin Tokyo, Meridien Pacific Tokyo, Sheraton Miyako are 4 stars (The Westin if it
is a 5* only just scrapes in as one)
I didn't think much of my stay at the Meridien Pacific, I much preferred the rooms, views and comforts of the 4*Grand Takanawa Prince next door - which is usualy VERY reasonably priced through
www.utell.com
It's up to you to decide what it is you really expect from your stay - if you're not that fussed and just want all the services and comforts of a solid 4* hotel (good, but nothing cutting edge or swanky, although the garden there truly is beautiful!) then get a room at the Grand Takanawa Prince as you can get them for about 17,000yen.
If you want something with more oomph, then perhaps you should post the budget you actually WANT to spend and let us come up with some suggestions for you. (If you do, let us know the dates as well as this will have a huge affect on prices)
Originally Posted by AdaQuonsett
The other thing that confuses us is the distances, eg, Narita to Park Hyatt is 1 hour 40 minutes whereas Narita to the Westin Tokyo we were told is only 1hour.
Westin Tokyo is in Ebisu, I'm not sure where you got that time from, I'd estimate it taking perhaps 1 hour 15 minutes if you take a taxi from a local train station. (EDIT - estimate is a bit off - see post#7)
The Park Hyatt is to the West of Shinjuku - about as far from Narita as you can get in this city, with a lot of potential traffic between. It's one reason we rarely suggest this hotel for those spending just one night in Tokyo.
It's a HUGE city (more like several cities in one - with most of the main hubs being linked by the Yamanote train line)
Originally Posted by AdaQuonsett
another thing,Tokyo Airporter(which was mentioned in another post) will take us from Narita to Park Hyatt for 20,000 yen but the hotel says the rate is about 45,000 yen. Of course the hotel is going to be more expensive everywhere, but twice as much as a "normal" car service?
Again yes - I got a quote from MK Taxis for an airport transfer last year - that was also double Tokyo Airporter's rate. And MK Taxi is a standard, reputable taxi firm - not a deluxe outfit. (I couldn't believe it either and contacted them again so that they'd confirm it)
You CAN get a taxi from the airport at a pre-set rate which will be only a little higher than TokyoAirporter's charge - but the vehicle won't be as nice, and the driver won't show up at arrivals to help with your luggage etc...