Best hotels in Okayama City

Okayama, the 'Land of Sunshine' sits between Osaka and Hiroshima on the Sanyo Shinkansen. Most travellers glide straight through without realising what they've missed, namely one of Japan's three great landscape gardens, a brooding black castle and the whitewashed canal town of Kurashiki, all just a ferry hop from Naoshima's contemporary art scene. Hotel Granvia Okayama, run by JR West, is the natural anchor for all of it. Attached to the station by a covered walkway, with nineteen floors of views over city rooftops and distant mountains, it's a large, reliable hotel whose greatest attribute is exactly where it stands.

Located just a 1-minute walk from Uno Station and a 3-minute walk from Uno Port, this conveniently situated location is ideal as a base for exploring the Seto Inland Sea and its islands, expanding the possibilities of your trip. The sea breeze and beautiful scenery are right beside you, as the hotel offers Superior Twin, Premium Deluxe, and Corner Suites that all feature balconies with ocean views. Enjoy the beautiful, ever-changing scenery of the Seto Inland Sea to your heart's content.

Okayama is one of those cities that rewards anyone who takes the time to stop. Known as Japan's 'Land of Sunshine' for its immaculate, clear skies, there's plenty to keep you busy: Korakuen, one of Japan's three great landscape gardens; a famously black feudal castle; easy access to the Seto Inland Sea's art islands; and a local cuisine built around sweet white peaches, Muscat grapes and some seriously good scattered sushi. In the middle of it all is the ANA Crowne Plaza, located directly beside JR Okayama Station and linked by an overhead bridge. The 20th-floor dining and lounge give it a useful edge.

A reliable, well-run business hotel two minutes on foot from JR Okayama Station, the Mitsui Garden sits squarely in the practical-but-pleasant sweet spot. Rooms are tidy and comfortable — Serta mattresses, in-room baths, free Wi-Fi — and the buffet breakfast pulls in a solid spread of Japanese and Western options to fuel a full day out.

The standout is the large public bath on the 10th floor: a hinoki cypress tub overlooking a small garden, open from 15:00 through to 9am. It's not a hot spring, but after a day on Naoshima or trawling Kurashiki's canal district, it does the job beautifully.