The Trip Base Roadside Station Project, a regional development project undertaken by Sekisui House and Marriott International, is based on the concept of “Quest for the unknown Nippon. The project is attracting attention as an initiative that offers an unprecedented style of travel, in which guests travel from one region to another while experiencing the culture, customs, lifestyle, and other attractions of the region from the roadside Fairfield by Marriott Michi-no-Eki Hotels located adjacent to Michi-no-Eki stations throughout Japan. The project was launched in 2020, and as of the end of July 2024, Fairfield by Marriott hotels have been established in 29 locations in 14 prefectures across Japan. This time, I participated in a press tour of three of these facilities located in Okayama and Hiroshima prefectures. I will introduce the details of my experiences at each location in a separate article, but this article will summarize Fairfield by Marriott.
All facilities have almost the same structure One of the major characteristics of Fairfield by Marriott is that the hotels and guest rooms are almost the same in construction. This time, I stayed at three locations: Fairfield by Marriott Okayama Tsuyama in Tsuyama City, Okayama Prefecture, Fairfield by Marriott Okayama Hiruzenkogen in Maniwa City, Okayama Prefecture, and Fairfield by Marriott Hiroshima Sera in Sera County, Hiroshima Prefecture. The structure is indeed almost the same in all three hotels. Entering the entrance, you will find the front desk, where you can check in and check out. Next to the reception desk is the “Market Place,” a sales area selling local products and snacks. The products sold in the marketplace differ from facility to facility, partly because they are local specialties, but the structure itself is the same. Incidentally, the accommodation charge and the marketplace fee are completely cashless payment. Behind the front desk is the lobby lounge, which guests are free to use. The lobby lounge is furnished with comfortable sofas, large low tables, and café-style tables that have power and can be used for work. Outside the large window next to the lobby lounge is an outdoor lounge space with tables and chairs. There is also a kitchenette in the back of the lobby lounge with a sink, coffee maker, microwave, toaster oven, and other appliances. Here, you can heat up your lunch or do a little cooking. The structure of the lobby lounge, tables, sofas, and coffee maker in the kitchenette space were almost the same. Therefore, once I stayed at one of these facilities, I was able to use it in exactly the same way no matter which one I stayed at after that. However, not everything is the same. The wall next to the lobby lounge is a good source of information, with photo panels of local attractions and local products, especially regional crafts, on display, so we recommend that you take the time to check this out when using the facility. In addition to this, a laundry corner is available on the flow line from the front desk to the guest rooms, with a washing machine and dryer. On longer trips, you may have trouble doing laundry, but you don’t have to worry about that. However, while the hotel and marketplace were cashless, the laundry corner is the only place where you need to use cash. 1000-yen bill exchange machines are available, but be sure to have 100-yen coins ready in advance.
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