Great hotel in a great location. Rooms are a bit small but I suspect all hotel rooms in Tokyo are small. The room was immaculately clean though, and the staff was wonderful. Although the concierge we dealt with knew very little English, we appreciated her effort in trying to answer all our questions. Located just southwest of Ikebukuro Station, the hotel is only a short walk (2-3 minutes) away from the all-important Yamanote Metro Line. There are also many western-style restaurants west of Ikebukuro Station, while there are many local cuisine choices east of the Station. There is also a delicious ramen stall inside the Station. There are also lots of great shopping choices in Ikebukuro. We found that we could dine and buy items at cheaper prices in Ikebukuro than in other districts such as Ginza or Shinjuku or Shibuya. The best thing about this great hotel was that we paid only 89250 yen (which is about $815 USD) for six nights (including a Friday and Saturday night) from 01/28 to 02/02 on japanican.com. That is about $135/night and that price INCLUDES all taxes and fees! I would totally recommend going over to japanican.com and looking at the Crowne Plaza . One last thing, other reviewers have mentioned the free internet at the hotel but that is no longer the case. However, internet use was very reasonable at 100 yen (about 92 cents) for 15 minutes.

The Crowne Plaza I found to be in a very handy location, with Ikebekuro station just next door, plenty of shopping and some good bars and restaurants in the vicinity. Staff were very good and the free high- speed internet access was terrific, with plenty of terminals to choose from. It doesn't take too long to get into the downtown area.

Stayed as part of a family holiday at the Metropolitan. Rooms were adequate for Tokyo and Japan in general. Like everywhere else in Tokyo, get your snacks & drinks from convienence stores within a minute's walk or from vending machines.

The breakfast buffet was plentiful and we were glad that it was included in our room rate. Go early as there may be queue by about 7:45 or 8 am.

The Ikeburo area as mentioned is quite chaotic and not really touristy so get the name of the hotel in Japanese if you plan to wander around the area or are coming in via the subway atation. The area is also northwest of the rest of Tokyo so its a bit further away but well served by many subway lines.

I booked a special deal through Japan Travel Service at a very good rate and was given a deluxe room. The room was on the 19th floor with views of Tokyo & Mount Fuji, and was clean and nicely decorated, but very small - perfectly adequate for me so not a problem, but if this was deluxe I wonder what a standard room is like? Otherwise, very nice, very large hotel with a good selection of restaurants & bars in-house, although they are a bit pricey - cocktail bar/restaurant on 25th floor is nice with good views. The staff were exremely polite, friendly & helpful (as were most of the Japanese people I had contact with). Hotel location is good - a few minutes from Ikebukero station, which is a major station - TIP: there are many exits, so take the one at the end of the platform marked 'Metropolitan Exit'. Ikebukero is a very busy area with lots of shops, restaurants etc. and is not a tourist area so you may struggle to be understood in English, but as I said, the Japanese are very helpful & friendly so just have a go at communicating and you'll get by (be brave, try speaking some Japanese - it's really appreciated!) - also, many restaurants have picture menus, so that helps!. Ikebukero is not right in the centre, although you can easily reach everywhere by the efficient train service.
Tokyo tips:
Be careful of the cyclists on the pavements(sidewalks).
On escalators, stand on the left/walk on the right (opposite to UK).
Beware - taxi doors open automatically.
In toilets, you may find heated seats (a surprise when you sit down!) and many buttons at the side - DO NOT PRESS ANY UNLESS YOU ARE SURE WHAT THEY DO!!!! ;-)