The Hotel Monterey has a great location, right in the middle of Ginza. It is very reasonably priced, and has free in-room internet access. The rooms are rather small and pokey.

The staff were nice and friendly, and I had no problems during the week of my stay.

However, I didn't really like the place, and was glad to leave. You get what you pay for, and if there is ever a next time, I'll pay a little more to stay in a lighter, less "gloomy" building. But if you want to stay in the heart of Ginza, in a perfectly OK place at a bargain price, then the Monterey would be fine.

I'm VERY particular about cleanliness, and I have to say that this hotel was superb in terms of that. The bathroom (replete with a bidet--which you could choose to utilize or not) was immaculate, and I really appreciated that the comforter was zipped into this removable sheet that could be washed with every new guest (no more fear of touching the comforter). I guess I wasn't too crazy about just two things: The overlight was a bit too fluorescent for my taste, and the room had a lot of hard, uncomfortable furniture that didn't exactly invite you to just lounge after a tiring day shopping in Ginza. Please be advised that this hotel does not offer room service, which you probably won't need anyway, considering all the great eats around the area. The location is great. With one subway line, the Ginza It-chome, just a minute's walk away, and the main Ginza line about a 7-9 minute walk away, it was very convenient. I found that walking to the Ginza line directly allowed you to link up to the other arteries of the subway system easier, not to mention save you a bit of cash by avoiding numerous transfers. Overall, a good modern hotel.

Overall - a well located hotel at the heart of Ginza; near shops, subways and large range of restaurants from cheap eat to most expensive. Strong retro styled building that gives a business ‘boutique hotel’ feel (the lifts have sliding block indicator that actually click over each floor with a sound).

Compact room size that offer adequate floor area for bags. Good size bath room for Japanese standards. No problem in returning for my next stay.

Breakfast is expensive at the hotel, as expected in all Japanese hotels. More reasonable if you go for the local coffee shop - big mug of blended coffee at Y160.

Service is attentive and staff spoke reasonable English.

Check in / out time – disappointingly restrictive! Earliest check in time 3 PM and latest check out time by 11 AM with extra hour charge at Y1000. This is a ‘hard rule’ and typical of Japan hotels, even though there may be rooms available. Pretty stupid rules; Japan Travel Bureau please take note.

Facilities - a compact hotel with few extra services. There is a large TV in the room with just one English Channel (BBC); access via a language selection that did not work well as the selected language kept reverting back to Japanese after some minutes. Internet access was free but you need to obtain a cable from the Reception (this practice is common in most Japan hotels). Coffee and tea are also supplied free of charge but the facilities are hidden away that you need to play hide and seek in finding them.

Shakesp380, Sydney Australia

I booked a room for 3 people at the Monterey Ginza, the room rate was with Travelocity, clearly stating "3 ppl" on the room criteria, I noticed other Tokyo establishments through Travelocity stated clearly *2 ppl per room only*. At my dismay when checking in, the poor English speaking receptionist said the rooms were 2 people only, therefore I had to shell out for a single room for the 3rd person.

The hotel welcoming area was cramped, crowded, although clearly well furnished given its 'new hotel' status. The restaurant was strictly of the businessman clientel, with prices to match.

The rooms were small and snuggly (if you like that sort of thing), at least half the size of the average American hotel room. The bathroom included a nifty electronic 'spa' toilet and bidet, shame it didn't work properly, thankfully the manual chain did. Even the Lipton tea in the room is only 'accessible' via a fee.

Clean hotel, pricey, well furnished, glossy, small, boutique style in a good location for the '$10 for a coffee' brigade in Ginza, Kanto. Watch out for the hidden extras and read the small print.