Published:
Sapporo Hotel by Granbell review: value stay near Sapporo Station with a public bath
Sapporo Hotel by Granbell is a clean, new-build hotel about a 10-minute walk from Sapporo Station, offering spacious rooms, a large public bath, and strong value — an easy pick if you want comfort over a Susukino-center location. We stayed three nights (Mon to Thu) with breakfast included and would happily return.
Where it is
The hotel sits at 2 Chome-2-2 Kita 6 Johigashi, Higashi Ward, about a 10-minute walk from Sapporo Station. (We traveled in March and there was not much snow piled up.) We usually used Exit 17, which has a big JR sign, though we could not find it on our first try — just follow the locals on a cold day and you will reach it naturally. Honestly, any exit takes about the same time, so it does not matter much which one you pick.
We chose this hotel even though it is neither inside Susukino nor extremely close to Sapporo Station, for a few reasons: it is a clean new building with relatively large rooms, it has a public bath, we had booked a tour departing from Sapporo Station, and we judged it to be excellent value.
The room
The room was as roomy as we had hoped. The twin room had plenty of space for two adults with no complaints about size. Ours was well cleaned and tidy, with no unpleasant smell — and our travel companion, who is sensitive to odors, did not mention anything. Self check-in and self check-out are available (passport required); we used self check-in to skip the line. You can leave luggage before check-in and after check-out, so just ask the staff if you need to — they are friendly.
The public bath
The large public bath has a shower area, a hot tub, an open-air hot tub connected to the outside, a cold tub, a dry sauna, and a wet sauna. The facilities are the same on the women’s and men’s sides.
Breakfast
The breakfast quality is good. The photos show mostly seafood, but there is also Western food — bread, omelette, sausage — on display, and you can even make your own soup curry. The yogurt is delicious. If you do not include breakfast in your booking, it costs about 40,000 KRW per person; it is perhaps not quite worth paying that on the day, but skipping it feels like a missed chance, so if you eat breakfast it is worth adding when you reserve. Our seafood-sensitive companion found a slight fishy smell in the seafood and stuck to omelette, bread and bacon, so note that if you are sensitive — though they happily ate everything else. I love seafood, so I did not notice any fishy smell and ate without fuss (I do skip oysters, though). On the day of our Biei tour leaving from Sapporo Station, having breakfast at the hotel first kept us full and set up — without it I would surely have struggled. I would include the breakfast option again next time.
Verdict
My personal satisfaction with the hotel is 4.5/5. I would revisit, and it would be lovely to come with my parents. The only downsides I can think of are that it is far from Susukino and not super close to Sapporo Station — but my stay was satisfying enough to offset them. There are quite a few families staying here too, and a hotel that families can come to is, in my view, a good one.
One more plus: the hotel is close to the famous, great-value Toriton conveyor-belt sushi. I waited in line half-doubting, but after eating I left convinced you simply cannot get sushi of this quality at this price back in Korea. A little further on is Ippin, a beloved Tokachi butadon (pork rice bowl) spot; we went around 9 p.m., waited about 10 minutes, and a Japanese staff member with great English kindly looked after us.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Sapporo Hotel by Granbell?
It is at 2 Chome-2-2 Kita 6 Johigashi, Higashi Ward, Sapporo, Hokkaido, within about a 10-minute walk of Sapporo Station. Exit 17 (marked with a big JR sign) is the handiest exit, but any route takes a similar amount of time.
Does Sapporo Hotel by Granbell have a public bath?
Yes. The large public bath has a shower area, a hot tub, an open-air hot tub connected to the outside, a cold tub, a dry sauna, and a wet sauna. The facilities are the same for women and men.
Is breakfast worth including at Sapporo Hotel by Granbell?
The breakfast quality is good, with seafood plus Western options like bread, omelette, sausage and bacon, and even build-your-own soup curry. Adding it costs about 40,000 KRW per person if not pre-booked, so it is best to include it when you reserve.
What is a good restaurant near the hotel?
Toriton (conveyor-belt sushi) is a famous, great-value sushi spot a short walk away, and Ippin serves a well-loved Tokachi butadon (pork rice bowl) nearby.