This was our very first hotel that we booked in Japan and we weren't disappointed! The hotel was small but that was really of no surprise to us as that seems to be the trend in Japan. Everything was tastefully decorated and overall kept quite clean. The location just couldn't be beat. We were able to walk to the Imperial Gardens and the main shopping district and there were tons of great little restaurants and cafe's in the area. The hotel itself was a little difficult to get to on the subway system from the airport but that was mainly because we didn't know which line to transfer to when we arrived in Tokyo station. You can either try to figure it out or just take a taxi. It should only be about $15. If you're looking for a great central hotel to all the main things in Tokyo, I highly recommend this hotel!

Stayed at the Monterey Hanzomon for two nights in January 2008. Fantastic location, right in the center of town, with the Hanzomon Subway station right across the street (it’s a small station, and you hardly even notice the entrance). The rates here are great. I booked two superior singles for my mother and I, and paid approximately $90 USD per night, per room. Considering there are $600 USD per night hotels nearby, this is an amazing deal. The hotel is an immaculately decorated boutique hotel, with all the amenities. The furnishings make you think this hotel should be in the five star category, but it’s not because the rooms are small size (just enough for two people per room). I recommend you book this hotel as there was nothing to fault. The view was great from my room, the bed was really comfortable (one of the best I have stayed in), and the furnishings make you feel like this is an incredible bargain for the price. Don’t miss the breakfast buffet. It is a great way to start your sightseeing day, and is a good value considering all the offerings (Japanese and Western). If you forget your laptop, there is Internet in the lobby for around $5 USD per hour. Also noticed a nice Chinese Restaurant off the front lobby, which appeared to have many local people from the neighborhood eating there. There are small cafes, coffee shops, a Texas style BBQ, an Indian restaurant, and convenience stores within a stones throw, so you’ll have plenty of choices. The Hanzomon subway station is located directly across the street, but BEWARE, when you get off at Hanzomon there are apparently three exits which can take you topside a few blocks away. This confused the heck out of us late one night. My suggestion is to take note of how things look when entering the station across the hotel so you can choose the correct exit topside. It’s a long flight of stairs and is a pain in the behind to have to go back down and figure it out after a long day.

The verdict: I can’t fault this hotel for anything. It truly is a great place, upscale, very clean, located centrally, and affordable.

---------Tips for Tokyo--------
If you go to Japan, don’t bring a lot of stuff because there just isn’t room for tons of suitcases and junk (that will be true in trains, hotels, and even cabs).

I recommend a small guide book that indicates the subway stop for places you want to visit. I also recommend a small compass so you know what direction to walk when you get topside. Most stops have big tourist maps that are topside to help you get your directio0n, but some of the less popular stops do not.

I recommend a day pass on the subway (10,000 yen or approximately $10 USD). This will save you money and time. At every transfer you need to re-purchase a ticket, but daily pass holders zip right through.

The subway was not crowded on the weekend, and actually quiet and clean. Plan accordingly because I heard weekday rush hour is murder, especially if you don’t like umbrellas pushed into your back by people trying to get off the train. The trains get so crowded you may want to have a back-up plan in case you get separated from your party.

If you’re looking for nice gifts to take back home, I recommend some of the nicer department stores. In addition to having all the floors dedicated to the latest fashion, they have floors dedicated to house-wares where you can buy china, wood and bamboo sets, art, etc. The prices are good, they usually offer shipping to your home country, and the service is fantastic and very personal.

If you’re out shopping and want to find an affordable place to eat, try the basement floors of department stores. There are great sit-down places to eat with low prices.

Tsuki-Ji Fish Market was dead on Sunday. The place appeared vacant, so plan for any day except Sunday.

Akihabara Electronics District was different. Avoid this district unless you like the New York Times Square feel, with tons of cheapo looking stores, neon lights, and absolutely no bargains. If you like shopping at Best Buy or Circuit City, this place will be a disappointment, and it’s more expensive. It was also the dirtiest place I saw in Tokyo.

Tokyo Tower was a good lookout point that allows plenty of great cityscape viewing and pictures. Visiting the tower helped us get a better idea of how big Tokyo really is…and it’s enormous! They pack small groups into elevators and whisk you to the middle section of the tower. There are good picture angles from there. If you want to go to the top, it costs like 900 Yen more, and you wait in line for another elevator. Overall a good experience, but it was winter and the crowds were small. You may want to plan for more time in summer. Also, they have a weird agenda of returning you streetside by dropping you off at two different floors on the way down (Probably to get you to spend money on stuff). Just take it all in stride, enjoy the views and people watching. You’ll be up and down from there in about an 1 – 2 hours. The pictures will be amazing, and you’ll have a better idea of how big Tokyo really is.

A lot of the time we check into large international style hotels and pay for a room rate which caters for facilities that we do not use, or did not know existed e.g. a pool/fitness centre, business centre, 24 hour room service, etc. But for those of us who don’t use these things, simply put it is just a rip-off. The way hotels are rated is on their facilities, such as those mentioned above, and not on the cleanliness, age or quality of the hotel. So this is why this hotel is only rated 3.5 or 3 stars, since it lacks the concierge desk, the pool, etc, etc, etc. In fact, lobby life is quiet most of the time, so I’m glad I’m not indirectly paying for a pianist in the lobby lounge whom I’d walk by to the lift and never listen to again.
This hotel is barely 2 years old, so it feels very modern and contemporary, with new fittings such as a flat-panel Panasonic Viera TV in each guest room and a good Japanese style toilet. Rooms are relatively small, but we could fit 2 people in each room comfortably in 2 single beds (the single beds are very wide, so I’d say more like 1.5 sized bed). Each room comes with a STACK of free amenities, so not only the soap, but also moisturising cream, toothbrush sets, body sponge, shaving kits, women’s sanitary kits, hair combs, Japanese bathrobe, slippers, the list goes on! The room also has a neat little Japanese style kettle where you press the button to dispense the water. Provided daily is Green tea bags, Darjong tea bags and instant coffee mix. The excellent thing about the hotel is despite its 3.5 star rating, there is free internet access via LAN cable (provided) in the room – not even large international hotels in Singapore offer this free service! There is, however, no in-room safe but you can use the hotel’s safe deposit boxes instead.
Beds have only 1 pillow each, but feature a heavenly comfortable doona so was ample for the few nights we stayed. The toilet is of course Toto (as is pretty much all of Japan) and features a warm toilet seat, bum and binet spray with adjustable pressure and of course half and full flush. If you have never used a Jap toilet before it takes a little getting used to! Just don’t press the spray button and get up as the high pressure will spray the wall – as we found out! The TV has pretty much all Japanese stations, only channel 5 is BBC World, but this is also annoyingly translated in Japanese so you can really even watch it.
We did notice, however, that there were already stains on the carpets of both rooms we occupied. The toilet doors offered absolutely no sound-proofing whatsoever, as evident by the very large gap under the toilet door. The rooms are also quite small compared to the standard Western-style hotel, I cannot compare to other hotels in the area though since this was my first trip to Tokyo – maybe all hotel rooms are of similar size in Tokyo.
Staff spoke broken English and if you are patient and can repeat your question maybe a few times more slowly you should have no problems at all. The proximity to the Tokyo Metro is excellent - literally across the road from Hanzomon station. We took a train all the way from Narita Airport on the JR to Tokyo station, then changed to the Hanzomon line with all of our luggage, then literally walked up and across the road. Didn’t even need directions at all. Japan itself is pretty safe, but the local area is filled with Embassy/Consulate type offices so there is good security and general age of locals tends to be older. There is also a really great Japanese noodle store nearby where you order from vending machine, submit the order and they serve you hand-made noodles for like 600 Yen per bowl (about $AUD6).
Would I recommend this hotel? Yes. But would I actually stay here again? Without hesitation. Rooms are relatively cheap, location is good, and rooms are new with good furnishings.

After reading positive reviews at multiple sites, I tried the Hotel Monterey Hanzomon my last trip and loved my stay! Quiet area, close to the Imperial Palace (with gorgeous 5k paved path around the grounds). Staying again soon (business + running the Tokyo Marathon), since this is my favorite small hotel. For one person, the single rooms and bathrooms are just fine - and the non-smoking ones (my only experience) are clean, fresh, and quiet. Everything is new, staff is friendly, and you can get along fine with English only. Hotel kept my bags for two days when I checked out for a side trip to Osaka, so that was an "extra" that was helpful. Breakfast is traditional buffet (Japanese + Western items) with plenty of juices, coffee, tea, and milk. Several small coffee shops and cafes nearby, but the GREATEST convenience is the location - directly across the street from Exit #5 of the Hanzomon stop on the Hanzomon subway line. Even my Japanese clients agree this hotel is a gem for the price! Highly recommended for tourist or business travelers. Practical hint (my Japanese staff helped me with this part): from Narita airport, take the Hotel Limousine bus to the Hotel New Otani, then hop a taxi (720 yen) to the Hotel Monterey Hanzomon (just take a printed map for the taxi driver, showing either the hotel location or Exit #5 of the Hanzomon station).