Hotel New Grand Yokohama is a historic hotel located in the Naka Ward of Yokohama. Built in 1927, four years after the Great Kanto Earthquake, the hotel has welcomed historic figures ranging from General MacArthur to Charlie Chaplin, and Babe Ruth. In fact, this was where MacArthur stayed for his first night in Japan during the American occupation after the war.

In 1991, the hotel underwent a significant expansion with the opening of an eighteen-storied tower next to the historic main building. Following the opening of this tower, the hotel now has 249 rooms spread between the two wings. Like several other independent hotels in Japan, Hotel New Grand maintains a marketing agreement with Preferred Hotels.

Booking Hotel New Grand

I’ve stayed at the Hotel New Grand many times prior, so this would not be a new hotel for me. I booked this stay through Agoda.com, which I feel has been consistently offering the best prices for hotel stays in recent years. For our two-night stay, we paid an average of JPY14,900 for a Tower Twin Room, which is a steal considering hotel prices in the Greater Tokyo Area as of late. Whilst their website indicates that some of their rooms have been renovated, this category features the same design from 1991. I am not sure whether the hotel has plans to renovate all of its rooms, although the lack of observable renovation work during my stay points towards a ‘no’.

Location

Hotel New Grand is wedged between Yokohama’s scenic harbourfront Yamashita Park and Yokohama Chinatown (Yokohama Chyukagai). The latter, being over 160 years old, is Japan’s largest Chinatown complex, featuring many Chinese-style food stalls and restaurants popular with locals and visitors alike. In fact, I’d say that Yokohama Chinatown has some of the best Chinese food outside of China, so it definitely is worth a visit!

Around five minutes away from the hotel is Motomachi-Chyukagai Station on the Yokohama Subway Line, which conducts through services to the Tokyu Toyoko Line to Tokyo. Bear in mind that the Yokohama Subway Line is not part of the JR Rail Pass.

Arrival and Check-in

After our JAL flight from Jakarta, we took the Narita Express to Yokohama Station, and switched to a short cab ride to Hotel New Grand, arriving at around 18.00. As we arrived at the hotel’s porte-cochere, our bags were promptly taken and we were walked to the check-in desk where we were greeted by a friendly reception agent.

It didn’t take over five minutes for us to be checked in, and before long we were handed our metal room keys and escorted to our room by a friendly porter, who took care of our bags (how quaint!). For one, I admired the elegant look of the marble-clad lobby, which looks fitting for a historic hotel.

Tower Twin Room

We assigned a standard Tower Twin Room on the 11th floor, overlooking the east towards the harbour. Whilst not the best view I’ve ever gotten at Hotel New Grand (or in Yokohama, for that matter), this was a nice change of scenery. For one, our room had direct views of the nearby Yokohama Marine Tower, which is one of the city’s well-known landmarks.

Bedroom

Our room is sized at 32 sqm (344 sq ft) and was sufficiently spacious for our two-night stay. To be frank, the room is not the most modern out there, in terms of design or technology, but it was perfectly clean, comfortable, and very well-maintained. In any case, the room’s design exuded a rather charming Art Deco feel, that was appropriate in a nod to the hotel’s heritage. I also liked that the carpeting feature the traditional ichimatsu checkered pattern.

I particularly liked the abundance of seating options in the room, including an armchair and sofa by the window, and a full desk across from the bed. Next to the desk is a flat-screen television, with a television console that doubles as a storage cabinet. Above the nightstand is a master control panel used to operate the room’s lights and air-conditioning. Whilst this is a feature common in hotel rooms in the 90s, I definitely wish more modern hotels would have this convenience.

Additionally, the bed is on the firmer side (like those in most Japanese hotels), although I didn’t have any issues sleeping. In all, I felt that the room is very functional and well-designed, which I really appreciate.

Bathroom

Located next to the entrance is the bathroom, which I found to have an interesting design. For one, the sink and vanity area isn’t separated from the rest of the room by a door, in which the carpeting also extends here. Next to it is the actual bathroom, featuring the toilet and bathtub and shower combination. Whilst the vanity area is relatively nice, I did feel that the bathroom looked very old. Regardless, the entire bathroom is really clean and well-maintained, as one ought to expect in a Japanese city hotel.

Service

The staff at Hotel New Grand are friendly and welcoming. I observed that the porters who patrol the lobby would proactively greet and help guests by pressing the lift buttons. Additionally, compared to other non-international chained hotels in Yokohama, I felt that the staff at Hotel New Grand are a lot more proficient in speaking English, which is a plus if your Japanese language skills are rather rusty like mine!

Overall

Overall, I (as always) had a pleasant stay at the Hotel New Grand. Despite its aging look, I found comfort in the well-kept rooms and the hotel’s strategic location in Yokohama Chinatown. Having stayed here many times before, I may be biased, but I would be happy to book this place again in a heartbeat. I would say that given its location, Hotel New Grand is the ideal hotel to stay in to explore Yokohama.

Read more from this trip here!