Toyoko Inn Hokkaido Shinhakodatehokuto-eki Minami

Due to no other fault than my own, I missed my Shinkansen from Shin-Hakodate to Tokyo during one the busiest times of the year (New Year's holiday). I needed a place to stay near Shin-Hakodate station for the night until I could figure out how I would be getting back to Tokyo. Thank God I stumbled across this gem! Seriously, after booking this hotel, I am now looking for their chain hotels in other prefectures. PROS: Not only was it less than $50 a night (during peak holiday season) but it was like a 2 minute walk from Shin-Hakodate station, with Taxi's right outside the station if needed. The room was actually bigger than most budget hotels I've stayed at in Japan and it was kept very clean. Customer service was great. Ladies working the food area are extremely friendly. Loved them! They're able to hold your luggage before/after checkout. Oh! The food! Okay it's no breakfast buffet at the Ritz, but your breakfast is included AND they offer free curry and rice at night! If your aim is the save money, I would recommend this hotel in a heartbeat. With all the money you saved, you could treat yourself to an amazing kaisendon somewhere haha! CONS: I think the only drawback is, there's nothing really around the station. You would have to take a 15-20 minute train ride to Hakodate where there are more things to do, see and eat. But other than that, if you need a place to rest for the night before taking your Shinkansen, I would definitely recommend this place.

Fantastic view, minutes away from the Shinkansen and local Jr lines, ample parking space, There are not many food options around the local konbini closes at 20:00 so make sure to either make the dinner service come right away the delicious curry goes very fast, or bring some food with you. 10/10 would stay again

Amazing location, right outside of the Shin-Aomori station with access to the shinkansen and Hakodate line. Breakfast had quite the variety and vending machines are available in the lobby. I also saw laundry facilities for those packing light. Staff were polite and although not very fluent in English, they had a device for speech to text translation. Best part was the ease of check-in and check-out - all automated so there wasn't any concern with arriving late or leaving early.