Himeji Castle Grandvrio Hotel

Hotel east wing is slightly dated but still a really nice hotel. Onsen superb, best we have had in many hotels. 3 baths, 3 tubs, sauna, mist room and cold plunge pool. 9am closure for maintenance could be moved to 11am so guests could use it before going out. Good location and courtesy bus to and from Himeji station great, if you spot it... maybe mention it in ads? Room spotless, amenities first class, we enjoyed our stay.

The room was non-smoking and fine, but the corridor smells smoke. It would be nice to have designated floors for smoking and non-smoking.

Easy 10-min walk from Himeji station or there is a free shuttle bus that runs on a regular schedule. Staff speak some English. Hotel looks impressive but internally seems to be a mix of old and new. Our room, while perfectly adequate, seemed a bit tired and dated. In contrast, the spanking new luxurious onsen on the ground floor was a real treat (free to hotel guests). We treated ourselves to the breakfast buffet which was huge and varied, and had a nice supper in the cafe/dining restaurant on the second floor the first night. The area around the hotel is mostly offices and other hotels so not many dining options, better to return to the station area for those. My only complaint would be that Housekeeping did not pull our door closed so the room was unlocked all day (luckily nothing was taken and anyway we had our important valuables on us). When I tried to report this to the front desk as feedback, their English was not up to understanding my meaning at all.