This time around, Hilton Tokyo Bay will be my abode in the city. The location isn’t ideal since I had no interest in visiting Disneyland. My plan is still to explore the city. Given how late this trip came by, prices are already really high up in the city. The value is much better here after comparing it to other hotels under the Hilton portfolio or even random business hotels. The value is much better here. I will also earn precious points and nights by staying here. Together with complimentary breakfast, I figure it will be worth the extra 30 minutes of journey to the city and the 500 yen of transportation. For my 4-night stay, I will easily save over 1000 SGD. I might even check out the nightly fireworks from Disneyland. It will be nice to check out another hotel in Tokyo. So far, I have only done the Conrad in Tokyo.

 

Booking Process & Pre Arrival 

I got some information prior from the hotel itself with regards to the transportation and the rooms. I booked directly from Hilton for this stay and will be staying here for 4 nights. This was rather last minute. While it might be a little weird to stay here for 4 nights without visiting Disneyland in mind, the cost saving during my travel period is well worth the effort. A couple of days out from my arrival, I can see from the app that I have been upgraded to a Celebrio Park Room. I requested a park view to know the resort and perhaps even the nightly fireworks. This room would have cost around 30,000 yen a night. Hilton Tokyo Bay is a huge resort with 828 guest rooms and suites across 12 categories. The room sizes are all the same with ocean-facing rooms being slightly bigger. You can check out the breakdown below. 

RoomsExecutive Lounge AccessBathtub Room Size
ParkNoYes35 Sqm
OceanNoYes40 Sqm
Celebrio ParkNoYes35 Sqm
Celebrio OceanNoYes 40 Sqm
Happy Magic ParkNoYes35 Sqm
Happy Magic OceanNoYes40 Sqm
Executive ParkYesYes35 Sqm
Executive OceanYesYes40 Sqm
Executive Select ParkYesYes35 Sqm
Executive Select OceanYesYes40 Sqm
Celebrio SuiteYesYes80 Sqm
Happy Magic SuiteNoYes80 Sqm

Checking In

I landed at around 5pm and took the Skyliner to Tokyo Station. Always buy your tickets ahead of time. I would recommend doing so via KKday. It is very fuss-free. The Skyliner and Metro combo is my favourite. It is so easy to make the metro pass worthwhile. We decided to walk around the area and grab dinner before heading to the hotel. Given the location, it doesn’t make sense to go to the hotel and head back out again to the city. I ended up only checking in at around 10pm. To get to Hilton Tokyo Bay, I got the JR train to Maihama Station and transferred to the complimentary shuttle bus that takes you directly to the hotel.

You can also take the Disney train but that will come at an extra cost. You can check out the shuttle bus schedule here. It can be unpredictable at times during rush hour and do take about 5 mins or so to walk here from the station. The place is very badly designed with only one elevator and the rest are stairs. Cater way more time with suitcases. It can get packed during the peak period which is around the time Disneyland close. If you are heading to the hotel, depart from the main entrance, bus stop No. 5. If you are going from Maihama Station, the bus departs from Bus Stop C.

I have no idea why but the late evening is the peak period at the hotel. Upon arrival, the lobby was packed. It is the worst queue I ever saw at Hilton properties in the world. You can’t check in at the executive lounge but thankfully they had a well-maintained elite queue and I just had about a handful of people in front of me. For the first time, priority elite check-in came in handy. I easily saved an hour or so. 

After a long day of travel, I want to return to my room as soon as possible. I was warmly helped by a polished and polite staff who reconfirmed everything and offered me all the details. My bags will also be sent up by the concierge along with the extra pillows that I requested. She went into detail to share about the breakfast since we can have it in two different restaurants and the executive lounge.

Curio Park View Room

I got a two-tier upgrade to one of the Curio Park View Rooms. I am not entirely sure about the difference between the rooms here as they have more or less the same space and view. Perhaps these rooms are recently renovated with a certain decor. It is slightly more quirky. This is a level above the base-level rooms. After seeing the crowd in the lobby, I am happy with the upgrade I got. Elite treatment is great here. I was assigned a room on the 9th floor. 

The room measures 35 Sqm. It is a decent size and nicely designed. Right after entering, you have the wardrobe area and luggage rack on the left. They share a sliding door. The wardrobe comes with a safe, an ironing kit, bath slippers and rubber slippers. Plenty of hangers are provided. 

The luggage rack could fit a mid-size suitcase nicely. There are also some hooks here that are suitable for your jackets. 

The bathroom is on the left of the entranceway. The space is decent, with a single sink and plenty of counter space. Dental kits and vanity kits are provided. As usual, you can find Crabtree and Evelyn amenities in large pump-size bottles. There is also a bidet toilet as per the norm here in Japan. 

The bathrooms comes with a shower and tub combo with a shower curtain. It is not perfect but gets the work done. Thankfully the water pressure was amazing and it comes with both a wall-mounted shower head as well as a handheld. That is all I needed after a long day of travel. I love that they had this little mood lighting in the bathtub. 

Moving on to the main space of the room itself, I opted for a room with a twin bed. It is spacious and night stand is found in the middle. The bedding is high quality and the same goes for the mattress which is on the firmer side. It offers excellent back support. The pillows were mushy though but we managed to get some extra pillows and even some really firm and beany ones. We had a good rest. Power outlets are found within reach. 

The minibar is found in the corner with glassware and a water tumbler. This is found alongside some packaged coffee and tea. I would love to have a proper coffee machine but with an executive lounge here, that is not that important. Below you can also find a mini fridge left empty for your use. Do note that due to environmental policies, they do not provide any disposable drinking water bottles in the room. They do have a water tumbler that has been sanitized for use in the room and a water dispenser on each level. 

A table stretched throughout the wall. This also acts as your working desk. The chair offers decent back support for short periods of work. The Wi-Fi connection is strong in the room and outlets are within reach. I love that they accept international outlets. Mounted on the wall, you can find a high-quality television. The size is decent for the room. It comes with a good number of both local and international cable TV channels. Left on the table is a welcome amenity.

At the side, there is another couch. This can be a sleeping area for the little ones too. I mainly use it as a storage area for my huge suitcase. It felt like the space could be better utilized as there is some space here and there around the couch.

The room comes with a view of the Disneyland Park nearby. It is not very near but you can still get a sneak peak of it. The park fireworks can be seen from the room too. Make sure not to miss it if you are around. It is not too shabby. You can check the schedule on the official website.

Fitness Centre

The gym is very well-equipped and spacious. It comes with plenty of different various types of gym equipment. It is open 24 hours and located on level B1. Everything looks very well maintained and they have multiple sets of each equipment. The coverage is comprehensive. You also have lockers and water available. They also have lessons available from time to time. Great facilities for those who want to have a workout during your stay here. They come in handy at any time of the day.  

Pool

The outdoor pool is closed and only open seasonally from mid-July to the end of August. The hotel also comes with an indoor pool which is open all year round. Surprisingly, this is chargeable for hotel guests. With the entrance costing a whopping 4,000 Yen. This includes the use of the bath and sauna. Silver members get it at 50% off. Thankfully, Hilton Honors Gold and Diamond members get it for free. This also includes guests staying in Executive rooms and above. The pool is open from 6am to 10pm with the last entry at 9pm. The pool is heated which provides a comfortable environment all year round. It is more for one for exercising rather than one for relaxing. Well maintained and clean. 

Executive Lounge

Surprisingly, this hotel comes with an executive lounge. It is located on the lobby level. The lounge is open from 7am to 8pm daily. Breakfast is offered until 10am and evening cocktails are from 5pm to 7pm. You can use the lounge from the time of check-in until check-out. The lounge is a very nice space and very different from the rest of the hotel. It offers much more privacy. Somehow, they do not do any check-in and check-out services in the lounge. You will be directed to the main reception priority line.

Here are some pictures of the lounge. I love that they also have an outdoor terrace which is amazing as the weather is perfect during this season under the shade.

Outside of the two main services, all-day refreshments are served. You can get non-alcoholic drinks which include coffee, tea, soft drinks and water. There are also some cakes and snacks. 

Evening cocktails are a more elaborate setting with draft beers, canned beers, spirits and mixers. Sadly, I am out most of the time and didn’t make it back most of the time given how far the hotel is from the city centre. I did make it back once just in time to get some drinks.

Breakfast at the lounge offers a much more exclusive and private environment than the two restaurants which are constantly crowded given how busy this resort is and the amount of rooms. The selection though is much more simpler. I came here on the second morning since I was in a rush. The selection is still pretty good if you want something simpler and the basics. All that you might expect to have is available too. Furthermore, I very much prefer the drinks in the lounge. They have much better quality juice and coffee. 

They also had this nice make-your-waffle machine which tasted pretty good. It is straightforward to make. 

Breakfast at Lounge 0

Given how huge this hotel is, they have two restaurants to handle the breakfast crowd. This will be fully open, especially on days with high occupancy. Breakfast is served from 6.30am to 10am and it costs 3750 yen for adults and 2300 yen for children. You can also enjoy the 25% discount for Hilton elite members here. Complimentary breakfast is offered for Gold and Diamond members. Breakfast is very very crowded throughout my stay. Expect to wait and there is most likely a line. Thankfully, they had a dedicated line for elite members. This is the first time I have found the elite status that useful! 

The restaurant comes with a good view of the surrounding area. We were ushered to a table and left with a Diamond place card. I love the little quirks that make you feel more exclusive and well-treated. There is also a special diamond drinks menu exclusively for you. 

It is crowded at all the stations but things move smoothly and orderly. The food quality is good with a nice combination of Japanese and Western options. There is even a cute kids’ corner. I love the Oyakodon. Here are some pictures of the food. My only feedback is the 10am ending time which is way too early for a resort but perhaps that is on purpose given the Disneyland plans for most groups. 

Breakfast at The Square

Besides Lounge 0, you can also have breakfast at The Square. Another restaurant that offers breakfast. The restaurant is by the side of the check-in counters. The timing for breakfast is the same. Similarly, the restaurant is packed but they have an exclusive line for members. I also prefer this restaurant to the above since they have an exclusive area for elite members to dine. It is very much more private here. 

You can find the special drinks menu for diamond members here too. The food is mostly the same and I will just share some pictures of the selections. They have done a good job with elite treatment and handling the crowd. That can be a bad aspect of resorts. 

Conclusion

Staying here was the best deal at the time of my visit given the cost savings there are over the city hotels. With the price I am paying, I can only get a tiny business hotel in the city. Here, I get more space and precious nights. I won’t say that the location is a barrier due to how convenient and affordable the transportation is. But you will be spending around an extra 30 minutes each way and probably around 500 yen per trip per person. You will find your elite status very useful over here. The value is unbeatable given how busy this resort is. You will be on the losing end if you don’t have and spend a lot more time waiting. The rooms are comfortable and very spacious. This will be a good base if you want to explore Disneyland or if you don’t mind the daily trek, you could save quite a fair bit over here. Hilton Tokyo Bay is cheaper than Hilton Odaiba which is also a slight trek. Rates are cheaper than the Conrad and Hilton in Shinjuku. As far as how resorts like these go, they have handled it properly and scored perfect marks. If time is of the essence or you only have a short trip, I won’t suggest it.