Zac Z.
Google
A deeply disappointing experience that overshadowed our stay.
On the night of our incident, around 8:50 PM, my wife and I walked to the convenience store located about 30 seconds from the hotel entrance. We were wearing the hotel-provided pajamas and slippers, with our own down jackets over them. As we passed through the lobby, we even greeted the front desk staff politely with a “good evening.”
However, just seconds later—while we were waiting at the traffic light outside—the front desk staff suddenly ran out of the hotel, confronted us, and scolded us for wearing the hotel pajamas and slippers outside. My wife was frightened, and we were both completely shocked. This is our first trip to Japan, and we had already reviewed multiple traveler guidelines and cultural etiquette notes. None of them mentioned anything about not being allowed to step outside in hotel pajamas or slippers.
The staff escorted us back inside and told us it was “for safety reasons,” yet nowhere in the hotel’s guest information, room signage, or written materials is this rule stated. We were simply walking to a convenience store 10 meters away to buy necessities.
To verify, we even asked the convenience store staff afterward, and they confirmed that this attire is not an issue at all in Japan, and no one would care.
Originally, we were willing to be understanding about the hotel’s aging condition—
• the noticeable odor in the room,
• the strong smell from the toilet,
• and limescale built up in the bathroom.
Since the building is older, we didn’t complain.
But tonight’s experience was truly unacceptable and left us feeling extremely uncomfortable.
Additional Note
In the past week, we stayed at multiple hotels in Osaka, Kyoto, and near Mt. Fuji. None of them ever treated guests this way. Some hotels even clearly state in writing that pajamas and slippers are “for in-hotel use only” — which we fully understand and always respect.
Because your hotel provided no written guidelines at all yet still chose to reprimand guests publicly and abruptly, the entire situation felt unreasonable and unnecessarily distressing.
This incident unfortunately overshadowed our stay and left a very negative impression.