APA Hotel & Resort Yokohama Bay Tower is one of those stays that forces you to recalculate your expectations of what budget-hotel money can buy. I paid approximately ¥7,050 (around $47) for a single room that included a 50-dish breakfast buffet in a restaurant with views of Yokohama Landmark Tower and the Minato Mirai skyline. The hotel opened in 2019 and remains impeccably maintained — 35 floors, 2,311 rooms, and the scale of a small self-contained city. From the row of 18 self-check-in machines in the lobby to the 4th-floor public bath with natural hot spring effects, every detail reflects APA’s resort-type ambition executed at a price point that genuinely surprises.
Room & Amenities
My room was an 11-square-meter single on the 6th floor. The bed is 140cm wide — significantly larger than you’d expect in a single category — and APA’s original mattress is noticeably comfortable. The bed sits elevated, with suitcase storage built underneath, which keeps the room feeling less cluttered than the footprint might suggest. There’s no wardrobe, but wall-mounted hooks with hangers run along one wall and work well for stays of two or three nights. A wide desk handles both laptop work and dining, with power outlets positioned at the desk and bedside for convenient charging.
An air purifier with a humidifying function is standard across the rooms — a genuinely thoughtful feature for Japan’s dry winter. The mini fridge has a manual on/off switch (remember to turn it on at check-in and clear it before checkout). Free mineral water is provided, along with a kettle, a TV with screen mirroring, and a TV remote with a hygiene cover. The room wear is a yukata; L size is available on request at the front desk. Two types of slippers and a light over-jacket for the walk to the public bath are included.
The bathroom is clean and modern, with APA’s characteristic egg-shaped bathtub and a water-saving auto-fill system. The orange toilet paper holder is the brand’s signature in-joke — I’ve come to find it charming rather than odd. Amenities include toothbrushes, razors, cotton swabs, and a comb; women’s skincare products are available in the public bath area. Shower pressure was excellent. When heading to the public bath, remember to bring your towel and yukata from the room — towels are not provided downstairs.
Hotel Facilities
The 4th floor is where the resort side of the equation becomes undeniable. “Genyo-no-Yu” features an indoor bath with Komyo-seki stones for a natural hot spring effect, plus an outdoor bath — genuine relaxation infrastructure that most business hotels couldn’t dream of. The fitness room is free for guests and open from 6am to 2am; bring your own gym shoes and towels. A seasonal pool operates in summer. All guest corridors require card key access, which adds a reassuring layer of security to a hotel this large.
Inside the building: a ramen shop open until 2am, an acai bowl and smoothie bar (closes at 9pm), and two convenience stores. The 1st-floor café “Vee Sweets CAFE YOKOHAMA,” opened in 2025, serves 100% plant-based, gluten-free food and Fairtrade coffee in a bright 4-metre-ceiling space with canal-view illustrations and generous natural light — a lovely spot to start or end the day. The top floor houses a French and Western restaurant with floor-to-ceiling windows framing Red Brick Warehouse and Bay Bridge, ideal for a special dinner. Trouser presses are available in the guest corridors.
Dining & Breakfast
Breakfast at “La Veranda” on the 3rd floor was the clear highlight of the stay. Served from 6:30am to 2pm — a remarkably wide window that accommodates even serious late risers — the 90-minute buffet draws on local Kanagawa Prefecture ingredients across 50+ dishes. The live kitchen produces freshly made omelets to order: your choice of mushroom, ham, or cheese, finished with one of four sauces. Charcoal-grilled himono (Japanese dried fish) is the standout Japanese item — butterfly-cut, washed in seawater, and grilled until the skin is crisp and the flesh deeply tender. Shishamo smelt, natto, and rice from an automatic portion-dispensing machine round out the Japanese section.
Western options include bacon, sausage, eggs, and freshly baked croissants using premium high-quality dough — the kind that top hotels use specifically for that fresh-baked aroma. A salad bar sources seasonal Kanagawa vegetables; the drinks bar offers banana soy milk smoothies and fresh-fruit detox water. The APA President Curry — a rich Kanazawa-style beef curry — makes its dependable appearance. Desserts include Ashigara tea soft-serve ice cream. Dining with Landmark Tower and the Cosmo Clock 21 Ferris wheel visible through the breakfast room windows, morning sun pouring in, is the kind of experience that makes you want to linger well past a sensible hour. For non-guests, the same buffet costs around ¥3,000 on weekdays — excellent hotel brunch value.
Location & Access
Bashamichi Station (Minatomirai Line) is a 3-minute walk from the hotel; JR Sakuragicho Station is about 9 minutes. The hotel sits squarely in Minato Mirai, Yokohama’s gleaming waterfront district — Landmark Tower, Red Brick Warehouse, the Cosmo Clock 21 Ferris wheel, and Bay Bridge are all within easy reach on foot or by a short train. The Yokohama Air Cabin ropeway (Unga-Park Station) is a 4-minute walk, offering a 5-minute aerial crossing of the harbour with views of the full Minato Mirai skyline from 40 metres up — a memorable way to spend a post-checkout morning. The hotel itself appears prominently in the Minato Mirai panorama, which is a satisfying way to appreciate where you’ve been staying.
Even arriving after midnight — which I did — the promenade outside the hotel is beautifully illuminated and the area feels safe and lively. Yokohama is about 30 minutes from Tokyo’s Shinagawa Station, making this a genuine alternative to staying in Tokyo: the journey is easy, and the price-to-quality ratio in Yokohama is consistently better. The hotel’s location within Minato Mirai also means you’re well-placed for day trips to Shin-Yokohama (Shinkansen access) or further into Kanagawa Prefecture.
Final Verdict
APA Hotel & Resort Yokohama Bay Tower delivers one of the most complete hotel value propositions I’ve encountered in Japan. The combination of a generous room, a 50-dish breakfast buffet with Landmark Tower views, a natural hot spring bath, a free fitness room, and a prime Minato Mirai location at approximately ¥7,050 (approx. $47) is genuinely difficult to fault. The room is compact and lacks a wardrobe, which is worth factoring in for longer stays — but the design is smart enough that it rarely feels restrictive. Book “Minato Mirai view” or “Bay Bridge view” rather than the base option, and the experience steps up another level. Rates vary by season — check current prices on Agoda. For anyone visiting Yokohama and wanting something that feels like a resort without the resort price tag, this hotel earns an easy recommendation.
