Shibuya Excel Hotel Tokyu

Shibuya Excel is literally in the center of Tokyo. You’re walking distance from all of the popular restaurants and a few stops from Harajuku and Akihabara.
The view of Shibuya Crossing is visible from the elevators. It’s like Tokyos Time square, minus the rude people pushing each other.
Laundry coin operated machines available.
Luggage storage by concierge available.
Free Wi-​fi available.
Bus service to airport available.

If you’re at all interested in seeing the famous Shibuya Crossing in person (the world’s busiest intersection
), then staying at Shibuya Excel is a no-​brainer. From several guest rooms and the elevator lobby on each floor, you’ll be greeted with a fantastic view of this modern day marvel. It’s very intense.
As for the rooms themselves, they’re straightforward and serve as a functional ally for your visit to Tokyo. They won’t blow you away with unabashed Japanese culture, but you’re there to explore the city, not sit in your hotel room.
Shibuya itself is central to much of Tokyo’s attractions with easy access to trains and within walking distance to shopping, nightlife, and restaurants. This property is right in the middle of it all, so you’ll have access to many fun activities in the immediate proximity.
Thumbs up.

Great location — if you like the hustle and bustle of Tokyo.
The hotel rooms are very clean and offer toiletries such as a razor, brush, toothbrush and many more. I was not too thrilled with the communal shampoo, conditioner, and bodywash. However, I suspect this is a common thing for Japan, as it was similar to my Shinjuku hotel.
This is a very convenient hotel being right in the center of the main shopping artery, and connections to the JR Lines, Keio, and Metro lines.
I was lucky enough to get a room on the 21^st floor which had an amazing view of the Shibuya scramble.
The breakfast is on the 25^th floor — but is pretty much the same thing everyday.

This is a really comfortable hotel to come back to after spending the day out. Western size room, comfortable beds, quiet. A couple of notes: If you want the electricity in the room to work, you must put your room key into the slot by the door. Otherwise you have no AC and no lights. Of course this means that when you leave the room and take your key with you, the AC turns off so you will have a warm room until it cools off again when you come back. Tokyo is on a campaign to conserve energy. Also, it took us 3 days to figure out the room lights. We looked all over for a switch for the ceiling lights (the can lights that shine into your face when you lie down on the bed). There is a switch for every other light in the room. So we ended up taking the room key out of the slot to turn off the lights, which meant that in the middle of the night if you get up it is pitch dark and you have no light in the bathroom. I finally called the front desk and they told me the switch is on the alarm clock by the bed! See the picture. Ahhh, AC and a light switch for the bathroom tonight! The other odd thing is that the shower room has no fan, so it gets really humid and steamy in there when the door is closed. In our room, we have 3 beds and the shower room is separate from the toilet room, which is nice. The toilet room has a miniature sink with only cold water for some reason. Give the «washlet» function on the toilet a try! Remember to select the gender or the aim of the warm water will be off! The red button is to Stop, otherwise it keeps going for I don’t know how long. The toilet seat is always heated for comfort, I guess. They arranged for us two adjoining rooms on the 23^rd floor which is super nice. Don’t be fooled by the information that the front desk staff is proficient in English. Many of them won’t understand your question and will answer in the affirmative just to please you. Another question was about drinking the water from the sink. The answer is «yes the water is drinkable» and you will want lots of water to drink when you’re in Tokyo in the Spring/​Summer! There is a Family Market on the 4^th floor of the building in the shopping mall, so if you need medicines or such you can find it there. Very limited English. Perfect hotel to enjoy Shibuya!

You sure can’t beat this place for location. I stayed here in November 2013 on a
rate, and was extremely happy.
There was some language barrier fumbling during check-​in, and as I was starting to get a little frustrated, I thought I heard the desk clerk say «quad.» After several nights in a Mita hotel room that was so small there was no room to walk without putting the suitcase on the bed, we were looking forward to being able to stretch our arms out a bit, and the quad (surprise upgrade, since I had only booked a double) was *awesome*. It felt like infinite space — when you’re used to the
rate entitling you to the left over room that no full price guest would ever get, this was a wonderful surprise.
The room itself feels a little dated, but they were clean and the beds were comfortable, and that’s really all I was looking for — I was there to vacation, not to check out the inside of the hotel. To me the bathroom setup seemed odd, with a powder room on the opposite side of the hotel room from the shower and vanity room, but it was actually kind of nice to have them separate. And as someone else remarked, the room was stocked with every kind of toiletry amenity you could imagine, almost hilariously so.
You can grab these rooms for pretty reasonable prices on
, so since I like staying in Shibuya, this property would be high on my list. As mentioned, it has a better location (don’t even have to go outside once you get off the train) than the Cerulean Tower, but it’s a little less posh, certainly as far as the rooms are concerned. So you pick — walk for some luxury, or close for a little less opulence.

Have you ever watched Tokyo Drift and seen that scene where they’re racing and come across that super busy intersection of the city???
Well, that’s what my sister asked me before I set out on my vacation. Although I couldn’t remember that scene, I know she just passed out when I sent her a photo of my view on the 22^nd floor overlooking that intersection!!! It was surreal!
We arrived in the evening and when we got into the room and looked out, we couldn’t help but want to be a part of the big city energy outside.
The hotel is very clean and it a great part of Tokyo. Shibuya Excel is right above the train station, so that made it extremely convenient to get to other parts Japan. It’s literally one stop away from Harajuku and Shinjuku! This was also helpful, because when we took the Shinkansen to Osaka we just rolled our luggages downstairs!
If you’re a fan of Hachiko, you can also just head outside to see him. The hotel is smacked in the middle of Shibuya where you’re surrounded by tons of things to see and do.
The service of the staff is great and efficient. Quick check in and check out. They’re also very helpful on helping you get where you need.
While we were there they had a computer on each floor that we could use. They also have free wi-​fi.
Getting here from the airport I suggest the limousine bus. It was convenient and safe. They’ll drop you in front of the door, which is best for those traveling to this hotel/​area for the first time. Fare price was very good at about $ 25/​pp and they come to pick up frequently. From Narita hotel, the pick up was every hour to hour half.
The hotel cost can be higher than other Tokyo hotels, but the rooms are larger than most hotels I have seen and heard while doing my research. So I think it’s so worth it; for the size and the location itself.

Location: The best in Shibuya, it’s connected to Mark City building, and it overlooks the infamous Shibuya crossing. Basically you can access anywhere in Japan from this hotel.
Room: For a hotel in Tokyo, it’s pretty big. (which is to say, average size in the States).
Amenities: Includes everything, such as blow dryer, toothbrush, toothpaste, razor, etc.
Cleanliness: Any hotel in Japan is guaranteed to be cleaner than any hotel in US. I have yet to experience cleanliness issues in Japan.
Service: Excellent. Took less than 5 minutes to check in and check out. Front desk literally jumps to help you when you come up to the counter. We had to leave our bags for couple of nights while traveling elsewhere, and it was no problem.
From the airport: Limousine bus will take you right up to the entrance of the hotel, it’s about 30 dollars/​pp. If you take JR, you have to cross the street, so it can be tricky with lots of bags, but doable as well.
The only downside of this hotel is the noise level due to the location. Since it is right in the center of Shibuya hub, you will hear some outside noise even late at night. If you haven’t been to Shibuya, it’s like NY Times Square on steroids, so it can’t be helped. It wasn’t too bad though, and I would take convenience over a little noise anyday.
Overall, considering all the factors, I wouldn’t stay anywhere else in Tokyo. Recommend.
tip: Free wifi was extremely fast.
tip: If you use limousine bus to get to the airport from the hotel but you still have some time after you check out, they will hold on to your luggage and take it to the bus for you. Great service!