Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa Review: Great Location and Extensive Breakfast Buffet

When visiting Kanazawa, there are several excellent accommodation options depending on your travel style and preferences. If you are looking for an upscale hotel located in a convenient area for sightseeing, I recommend Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa. Here’s my review of our stay at this hotel in May 2024, highlighting why it is a good choice for visitors.

Note: Do not mistake this hotel for Kanazawa Hakuchoro Hotel Sanraku.

Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa has a very convenient location for sightseeing and we could take easy walks to a number of attractions. Despite its central location, the surrounding area is pretty quiet.

Located just under a 10-minute drive from Kanazawa Station, this hotel lies north of Kanazawa Castle Park and Kenrokuen Gardens. From the hotel, it took us under 10 minutes to walk to the Otemon Entrance of Kanazawa Castle Park. We enjoyed the serene walk through the park to Kenrokuen Gardens as much fewer people approached Kenrokuen through this path. Another favorite spot of ours, Oyama Shrine, is just a 15-minute walk from the hotel.

Right across the street is Omicho Market which is worth visiting. I didn’t enjoy Tsukiji Market in Tokyo but Omicho Market is much less crowded and still has a local feel.

It’s also possible to reach Kazuemachi District and Higashiyama District on foot within 15-20 minutes (though we opted for taxis to save time and manage our daily walking distance). For other main attractions in the city, such as Nagamachi District, Myouryuji temple and D.T. Suzuki Museum, it’s easy to get there in about 10 minutes by taxi.

Kanazawa’s sightseeing loop buses provide a convenient and affordable option for getting around the city. If you plan to use these buses, the nearest stop to the hotel is Musashigatsuji Omicho Market, just a 6-7 minute walk away.

From my view, Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa features traditional Japanese aesthetics that seem to reflect local culture and history. The use of strong tones of red, golden and purple colors remind me of Kanazawa’s rich artistic heritage, particularly its gold leaf craftsmanship. The dark wood accents and slightly dim lighting contribute to an old-world charm that, while not entirely to our personal taste, adds a distinctive character to the space.

There’s a lush courtyard garden with a lot of green foliage and meticulously placed stones that create a serene and natural atmosphere. The sound of clear water gently cascading over the rocks further enhances the peaceful setting. A number of guest rooms offer views of this garden, and it can also be viewed from several tables in the breakfast restaurant.

We booked a Superior Twin Room which was about 32 square meters (344 square feet) in size. Overall, I think the guest rooms are well-maintained and still in good condition as the hotel opened only a few years ago.

While the room’s square footage is quite reasonable, the interior decor, particularly the thick headboard attached to the wall, made our room feel much smaller than its actual size. Additionally, the luggage rack was on the smaller side, which added to the sense of limited space.

On the positive side, the bathroom was decently sized and very functional, providing all the essentials we needed for a comfortable stay. The bedding was plush and comfortable, meeting the basic expectation for an upscale hotel that some of those from international chains like the Swissotel Nankai Osaka and Hilton Osaka had disappointed us.

The most standout aspect of Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa is perhaps the extensive breakfast buffet. IIt’s the most diverse spread among all the breakfast in Japan we’ve had and the quality is pretty decent across the board.

We were particularly impressed by the numerous local Kanazawa specialties, such as Kaga boucha porridge, oden and jibuni. You will also find other Japanese dishes, such as freshly fried tempura, curry, and various Japanese pickles and sides. There was also a good selection of Western options, and I even noticed a champagne station.

The breakfast room can get crowded at times, but it was never overly busy or noisy during our stay. We never had to wait for a table and staff refilled all the food stations and cleared the plates pretty promptly.

The service at Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa was reflective of the typical standards of Japanese hospitality — courteous and efficient. We did notice that the English proficiency of the staff was somewhat lower compared to hotels in larger cities along the Golden Route, but this didn’t present any major issues during our stay.

Basic procedures, such as check-in and check-out, were handled quickly and smoothly. We had no trouble asking the entrance staff for walking directions or help with hailing a taxi. The staff in the breakfast restaurant were especially polite and diligent.

When we checked in, they mentioned that every day we could choose whether to have our room cleaned or not. If not, we would receive a small credit to spend on food or souvenirs. However, we preferred to have our room cleaned daily.

I saw that the hotel had bus service to Kanazawa Station but didn’t enquire about it since it was just a quick and cheap taxi ride.

We paid a little under 30,000 yen per night for our stay in May 2024 and thought it was quite good value. Its convenient location, well-maintained rooms, extensive breakfast buffet, and courteous service make it a good choice for travelers seeking an upscale stay in Kanazawa. I think couples, solo travelers, families and small groups who want a peaceful and well-located base to explore the city will likely enjoy staying here.

The Hotel Sanraku Kanazawa
Booking.com Agoda.com

If you need suggestions on where to eat in Kanazawa, check out my list of must-try foods and restaurant recommendations. I also find the official Visit Kanazawa website helpful for ideas of things to do and places to visit in the city.

More Japan Travel Guides

Here are my other guides on where to stay when visiting Japan: