After three nights in Kyoto at the Westin, my partner and I boarded a Shinkansen to Tokyo for a friend’s 40th birthday party.
The previous year we had stayed at the Sheraton, so we were keen to try a nicer property this trip. Located in Chiyoda-ku, The Prince Gallery occupies the top floors of a commercial building.
The Prince Gallery is currently the highest-level Marriott Bonvoy Category 8 hotel, so you can book a base room for 85,000 points per night (or 70,000 for off-peak nights or 100,000 during peak when they are introduced).
Average room rates start at ¥ 53,900 (AUD 700) for the base room.
Lobby & Check-in
We arrived at midday, before our room was available, so after the pre check-in formalities were taken care off, we ate in a café downstairs. By the time we finished lunch, we received a call advising our room was ready.
The lobby is beautifully decorated with floor to ceiling windows looking over central Tokyo and a central fireplace to separate the reception and lounge area.
It also looked great at night.
There is a small business center located off the lobby.
The staff advised us that the hotel was fully booked during our stay, so a Platinum member suite upgrade wasn’t possible for both nights of our stay, however, they offered to move us to a Grand Deluxe Corner King on our second evening that we happily accepted.
Deluxe King
Room
The 42-sqm ’base‘ Deluxe King room is stunning. A long bench seat ran along the window allowing you to sit and admire the Tokyo city views.
Although the ensuite is exposed to the bathroom, the glass can be switched from transparent to opaque at the press of a button.
A desk sits on the wall opposite the bed with a 55inch TV on the wall and Bluetooth Bose speaker.
A Nespresso capsule coffee machine is included along with a kettle and tea set.
Bathroom
The bath is in a wet room which also houses the shower with huge rainwater shower head.
Laboratoire Remede bathroom products are supplied along with drawers full of every possible amenity you could think of.
Grand Deluxe Corner King
Room
After a day of exploring Tokyo, we returned to the hotel and were given our new room keys.
The 58-sqm Grand Deluxe Corner King was even more impressive. A brown leather feature piece lines the wall behind the bed and continues across the ceiling. This is contrasted by the crisp white sheets and a pop of colour from the red throw on the bed and the yellow in the carpet.
This room also had a corner lounge suite, work desk and Bose speaker.
An iPad was available which allowed you to control all lighting and shades, order room service and to read about the hotel facilities.
The corner windows provide phenomenal views and is perfect for that photo for Instagram:
Bathroom
The bathroom, much like in the Deluxe Room, also had a wet room for the shower and bath. However, this room had a much larger bath with amazing views to central Tokyo and the Tokyo Tower.
Restaurants
The Prince Gallery has two restaurants; the Japanese Washoku Souten, and casual Mediterranean, Oasis Garden.
Bonvoy Platinum status and above members receive complimentary breakfast, worth ¥4407, which is served either in the Oasis Garden, or the Club Lounge.
We decided to take breakfast at the Oasis restaurant as we assumed it would have a larger selection of options.
The Club Lounge, which is available for guests staying on a Club Lounge level or Bonvoy Platinum and above members, was located on level 34 with views across central Tokyo.
The Club Lounge is open from 7-10am for breakfast, then afternoon tea from 2:30-4:30pm and evening cocktails between 5-7pm, with drinks served between 7am-9:30pm. Club guest may invite a maximum of three visitors per room.
Like the rest of the hotel, the Club Lounge has amazing views.
The hotel also has an impressive bar located down the stairs from reception which features double-height ceilings.
And looks spectacular at night.
Facilities
The spa facility features a large indoor swimming pool, spa and a mens and womens onsen.
Also, with spectacular views.
The 24-hour gym, Fitness Kioi, has the latest cardio equipment and an extensive free weights section.
Did I mention the views?
WiFi had a solid 18.8 Mbps download and 59.1 Mbps upload.
Local Area
The hotel is a brief walk to either Nagatacho Station (Namboku and Hanzomon Line) and Akasaka-Mitsuke Station (Yamanote Line) making it easy to get around Tokyo.
You are spoilt for choice for restaurants to eat in adjacent Akasaka and Roppongi.
Other Tokyo hotel reviews
Summary
This hotel is spectacular. It is beautifully styled, centrally located, has impressive facilities and the service can’t be faulted. It capitalises on the impressive Tokyo views from every room.
We absolutely loved our brief stay at The Prince Gallery, we just wish we had the opportunity to stay longer.
$700 AUD for the base room is exorbitant, even in Tokyo
Consistently high occupancy rates results in few decent room upgrades for loyalists
Many people consider the buffet to be sub-par compared to other leading hotels in Tokyo. The a la carte option is great; however, they have now removed for Plat+
Breakfast area is often not big enough for the number of guests during high occupancy, resulting in waiting times for a table
Club lounge is too small relative to the volume of rooms; often there are no seats available at happy hour and they have to walk guests, offering to call them room when some space frees up
The Points Guy recently reviewed this property and included many of these points in his review. https://thepointsguy.com/reviews/prince-gallery-tokyo-kioicho-luxury-collection/
All my reviews are my thoughts and my thoughts alone and they aren’t swayed based on what others have written, on stays they’ve experienced. I can only write about my experiences. You can see from my photos how empty breakfast was during my stay. You can also see how empty the Club lounge was. So I couldn’t possibly have complained that they were too small.
In terms of value, that’s a very personal perception. Concidering I used points for stays at other properties and for the flights to/from Australia on this trip, I personally didn’t mind paying that rate for a hotel I really wanted to stay at, in a location close to my mates birthday celebrations.
Cheers,
Greg