We stayed at Shinjuku Granbell for a few days at the end of a 3-week trip to Japan. Hotel: It was a modern hotel that served a very international crowd- including some young, professional, hip, Americans. Our room was spacious with a beautiful large very modern bathroom with separate tub and shower and toilet. The rooftop bar was a fun scene every night until late at night (except the one night when it was closed). There was also a cafe on the first level that served espresso, tea, truffle popcorn, hot dogs, and some good local food options. The breakfast scene was very cool, with incredible views of Tokyo along two windowed walls, a generous buffet was laid out that seemed designed to serve Japanese, Korean, Chinese, European and (to a lesser extent) American breakfast preferences. The staff worked hard and kept everything available and fresh. They had an espresso machine, several juices, yogurt and fresh fruit sauces, cereal, granola, hard-boiled or fried eggs, miso soup and rice and pickled vegetables, noodles and rice, salads, kimchi, shumai, boiled bacon and sausage and a selection of fresh pastries and bread. Amenities: The hotel has laundry machines and also laundry service. There are many vending machines on the first floor where you can get food, beverages and ice cream. The front desk staff will call cabs for customers, store your luggage, and recommend good local places to eat. The neighborhood: The hotel is centrally located at the intersection of a few neighborhoods, shopping/dining/"red light"/gay: where Shinjuku, Kabuki-cho, Harajuku meet. The time of day and the direction you head from the hotel made for very different experiences, all exciting, fun, wildly lit, and slightly confusing. We were not approached or solicited in the red light district, perhaps because we were a couple. And we felt totally safe everywhere we went, as we did in the rest of Tokyo and Japan. A lovely, well-run larger hotel in a great location for exploring Shinjuku and Tokyo.…