On March 20, Hoshino Resort opened OMO Kansai Airport by Hoshino Resort, an airport hotel under the OMO brand (1-833 Rinku Oorai Kita, Izumisano City, Osaka Prefecture). This will be the second facility in Osaka Prefecture after “OMO7 Osaka by Hoshino Resort,” which opened in April 2022.
The OMO brand to date has defined its services by the number that follows the “OMO” (OMO1/3/5/7), but OMO Kansai Airport is a new positioning that does not belong to any existing category. This is also the first time that Hoshino Resort has undertaken an airport hotel.
Located in the center of Rinku Town on the opposite shore of Kansai International Airport, the hotel is directly connected to JR/Nankai Railway Rinku Town Station, one stop (5 minutes) from Kansai Airport Station. It takes about 1.5 hours from Kyoto, a popular tourist destination in the Kansai region, by JR. It also takes about 1 hour and 40 minutes from Kobe Sannomiya. The convenience of access to major tourist destinations in Osaka, Hyogo, and Kyoto in less than two hours is attractive.
The building is 22 stories above ground. The hotel will have 700 guest rooms of 8 types, starting at 16,000 yen per room per night. Facilities include a large public bath, sauna, and buffet restaurant. The hotel concept is “Sorachika, Fun Time. A shuttle bus will connect the hotel and KIX, providing “Sorachika” access. In addition to the convenience of an airport hotel, the hotel will offer “Fun Time” to those who travel to and from KIX, as well as to those who have just returned from a trip to KIX.
Before opening the hotel, Hoshino Resort conducted its own survey on usage trends of airport hotels. The results showed that 65% of the users were not dissatisfied with the airport hotel, and “price, accessibility, and cleanliness” were generally the selection criteria. The results revealed that airport hotels are “just a place to sleep” and that users do not expect much from airport hotels.
Yoshiharu Hoshino, the president of Hoshino Resort, who took the stage at last year’s launch, said, “I have never had a good night’s sleep at an airport hotel,” and the hotel aims to change this situation with the OMO brand, offering guests a new lodging experience based on Hoshino Resort’s interpretation of what an airport hotel should be. The hotel will offer a new lodging experience to guests based on Hoshino Resort’s interpretation of the traditional airport hotel.
A preview was held prior to the opening on March 20, and the entire building was unveiled to the public. The building was originally scheduled to open in 2020 as Hotel WBF Grande Kansai Airport, but was postponed and frozen due to a slump in tourism demand caused by the new coronavirus. Hoshino Resort acquired the management rights to the building, leading to the opening of “OMO Kansai Airport by Hoshino Resort.
Entrances are located on the 1st and 2nd floors, with 17 parking spaces on the 1st floor. The 2nd floor entrance is directly connected to JR/Nankai Electric Railway Rinku Town Station, which is a 1-minute walk from the station.
The first-floor OMO base can also be used as a co-working space, while the second-floor OMO base features a “Go-KINJO” map, as well as lighting motifs of passenger plane engine blades, objects of passenger planes, and other airplane-themed touches. and other airplane-themed displays throughout the space.
Check-in is conducted using a dedicated tablet terminal provided. Smart and speedy check-in is realized. The same floor also has a display showing flight information for KIX, and is fully equipped with functions that only an airport hotel can offer.
There are a total of 700 guest rooms in 8 types, including spacious queen rooms for single occupancy, standard twin rooms, and Japanese/Western-style rooms with tatami space for up to 4 people, providing rooms that meet a variety of needs. Each room is equipped with an independent wash stand, a shower booth in the queen room, and a spacious independent bathroom in the twin and Japanese/Western rooms.
On the third floor, there is a large public bath available only to hotel guests, complete with a half-open-air bath and a spacious indoor bath. The indoor bath is equipped with an electric bath, a carbonic acid bath, a dry sauna, a 1-meter-deep water bath, and an outdoor air bath space.
A guest room card key is required to enter the large bathroom, and a reader next to the entrance is used to enter. This way, the number of people using the large bathroom is clearly indicated, and you can see how crowded the bathroom is while you are in your room. This is a great service for those who wish to avoid crowds as much as possible.
Meals will be served at the Express Full Buffet, OMO dining room on the 21st floor, which has a wonderful view from the windows. Breakfast buffet hours are from 7:00 to 10:00 (last order 9:30). A variety of menu items are available, including miniature breads, salads, and Japanese dishes. Particularly recommended are the fluffy pancakes, which are offered in four varieties: bacon and eggs, onion salmon, eggs Benedict, and chocolate banana.
The dinner buffet is open from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m. (last order at 8:30 p.m.). Starting with Osaka’s typical Neapolitan cuisine, okonomiyaki served in the live kitchen is topped with Osaka’s famous kushikatsu (deep-fried pork cutlets) and doteyaki. The okonomiyaki sauce is an original sauce jointly developed with Kinmon Sauce, and mixed juice is added as a secret ingredient to fully enjoy Osaka’s unique flavor.
Food served at the buffet is also available for takeout, and customers can fill their own food in the prepared tecout kits and take it home.
In addition, the buffet customers’ flow is also designed to be smooth, with separate entrances and exits for the OMO dining room, allowing customers to choose their food first and then flow to their seats. This allows customers to enjoy their meal even in a short period of time.
At the Hoshino Resort Kansai press conference held in September 2022, the opening of “OMO Kansai Airport by Hoshino Resort” was set for the winter of 2023, but no definite opening date was set.
At the preview, Tsuyoshi Nakazato, General Manager of OMO Kansai Airport by Hoshino Resort, explained that the decision to open on March 20 was based on a last-minute assessment of the recovery in domestic and overseas travel demand. He cited last fall’s easing of border control measures and the government’s domestic travel support measures as reasons for the decision to open.
We are preparing for a further recovery in demand, and we can expect a large number of domestic as well as international customers in the lead-up to the Osaka Expo in 2025. We will make every effort to offer a good Kansai travel experience to both domestic and international customers using Kansai International Airport.
© Source travel watch
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