Okura Akademia Park Hotel

Larger hotel near Kisarazu station. Traditional western style. Bit dated but otherwise pleasant stay. Friendly staff.

We have stayed at the Okura Akademia Park Hotel on two occasions, February 2020 and September 2020. Our experience was consistent both times (well, factoring in that COVID was not an issue back in February 2020 in Japan). First of all, it is difficult to recommend this hotel if you don't have a car, and very easy to do so if you do. There are very limited dining options at the hotel, particularly at the moment with the COVID situation. It is rather isolated (part of a large academic/conference complex) so there is nothing within walking distance except a convenience store, and even that is not that close. The restaurants close early and there is no room service to speak of, nor does the hotel itself have any kind of shop that sells food or drinks. It does have a lot of drink vending machines. If you do have a car, then the hotel is easy to recommend . . . sort of. It's good value for the money most times, not at all crowded, and quite pretty in a slightly faded, early 1990s Japanese bubble period kind of way. It has nice grounds and lots of free parking and the staff is very kind and helpful. The location is good if you're looking for base to go to places like Mother Farm and Tokyo German Village, which we were. It feels like it's in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by greenery, which is a blessing at times like this. It feels relaxing just because it is so different from Tokyo. The rooms . . . are fine. They are reasonably spacious but there isn't anything special about them and they could use a refresh, but that probably isn't happening anytime soon. There is a balcony, which is nice. For a business traveler or a couple I think the rooms are good, for families they can seem a bit tight without many features. Overall, my family and I like this hotel and will most likely visit again, but mainly because we travel by car and find this a useful base camp for doing stuff in the area we want to do, and it is not like this is an area where there are lots of options in terms of family-friendly hotels. I would not call it particularly great value for money in Chiba, and if you don't have your own car I couldn't recommend it as the property itself is not that interesting and not close to public transportation.