Also see:
- Osaka: Bullet Train, Food, Nightlife, Aquarium, & Wanderings
- Tokyo: Cherry Blossoms, Microbars, Amazing Food, Views, & Wanderings
- Hotel Review: Hilton Tokyo Shinjuku
- Review: American Airlines First Class 777-200 Dallas to Tokyo-NRT
I should say up front: I really wanted to stay at the Hilton Osaka, but there wasn’t availability – paid or with points – for my dates.
And the Hyatt Regency Osaka wasn’t available, either. (Even if it was, it’s pretty far from most attractions, unless you want to be near Universal Studios Japan, which I hear is incredible.)
Lobby of the ANA Crowne Plaza Osaka
The only thing available as far as chain hotels was the ANA Crowne Plaza Osaka, an IHG hotel. It was between this and an Airbnb.
In the end, I opted to pay 50,000 IHG points for 2 nights here because:
- It was free
- I randomly earned IHG Spire Elite status and wanted to see if it made a difference
- IHG Spire Elite status comes with 25,000 bonus IHG points, so one of the nights was a total freebie
- I have a ton of IHG points and wanted to burn some of them
- The Chase IHG card gives you 10% of your redeemed miles back in your account
- The stay at the Hilton Tokyo was paid and I wanted to decrease the overall price of the trip
