The Strings is only 3-min walk away from the Shinawaga Station, but it took us a while to get to because the station is big. Huge, in fact. Shinagawa Station is one of the major stations in Tokyo railway system. With an average of 400,000 passengers daily, it's not hard to imagine what it's like during rush hour. That's when we arrived.
There was bento shops, snack stores, book stores, supermarkets and coffee shops both inside the station and attached to it. We were quite distracted by the beautiful displays in stores. I asked a couple station staffs and finally found someone who directed us to the Konan exit that eventually led us to the hotel.
There are limited restaurants outside of the station. Mostly just office buildings and what look like residential buildings. No wonder there are so many options inside the station. That is where most commuters buy food and groceries.
The Strings is inside a skyscraper office building. We took the elevator to the 26th floor, where the lobby is. A front desk agent came to greet us and led us to the front desk. The lobby floor is quiet and clean with a view of the city. There are two restaurants on the same floor. One of them has breakfast buffet setup ready for the next day. We asked if our luggages had arrived form Hotel Gracery in Shinjuku. A front desk lady went to look for them but could not find them. After 15 minutes of back and forth checking, luggages were finally found. The manager insisted delivering the luggages to rooms for us.
Guest rooms are from 27th to 32nd floor. There are separate elevators behind secure double doors that go up to guest floors. Guest room key cards are required to open the doors. The hotel itself is very quiet and clean.
We were separated to different floors, which was okay. My sister and I shared a corner room on the 30th floor. It was very spacious with huge closets, 2 beds, a standard TV on the wall, large windows to see Mt. Fuji. The bathroom had a big bathtub, a smart toilet, and all the essential amenities. There was automatic blinds with buttons by the beds. In the cabinet, there was a small fridge, minibar, clean coffee mugs and wine glasses, tea and coffee amenities, and a bottle of complimentary red wine. Bose bluetooth speak was a bonus.
We stayed at The Strings for 3 days but never saw a single Housekeeping staff. They did serve the rooms for us and did a fantastic job, but we never saw a cart or a person anywhere. Finally, we decided they were probably like the house elves from Harry Potter.
The Strings is very convenient due to its location so close to the train station. There is also a bus stop to Odaiba located to the right of Konan exit. N'EX (Narita Express) also stops at Shinagawa Station. That was why we stayed at Shinagawa. It's easier to get to the airport on our last day.
If you have questions on N'EX and what other stops it has, check out its website here. It's cheaper if you purchase round trip tickets when first arrive at the airport. Reserved seats cost more, but you are guaranteed to get a seat on board. One way ticket available at Shinagawa Station. Don't forget to check out stores before leaving Shinagawa.
Comments