The Dormy Inn reflects a mostly-business focus with quite small rooms and minimal 'extras', but the location is great for seeing the Bikan historical district. Therefore I'd recommend it to tourists.

Like most Japanese hotels, you'll find the room compact but clean. The layout of the room is a little unusual, with a shower/toilet unit on one side of the entry hall, and the sink on the other. I was in a double room, and while there was plenty of space beside the bed (which is pushed into the corner) there was no real furniture to speak of. The staff were friendly. There's a laundry room with a few machines in it as well as in-room internet.

The Bikan area is about 2 minutes walk away. The Ohara Museum of Art (recommended) is also just a couple of minutes away. There's a convenience store just outside the hotel, and the walk from the station is flat and takes about 10 minutes. Plenty of restaurants nearby, including in the Bikan area if you're after real atmosphere.

Recommended.

We stayed 2 nights in this hotel. The hotel seemed to be brand new. The reception staff speak little English (as stated by earlier reviewers), but they were friendly and did try their best to help you. They have handy printed leaflets in English which they handout when checking in. The rooms are new, clean and well equipped. The onsen on the 11th floor is well worth a try: the female onsen consisted of a bath and a sauna inside and the is a small, beautiful outside bath. Mayor plus: This hotel has a green policy on housekeeping: you can opt for complete change of all bedding and towels, only for emptying the trash bins or no cleaning at all. I really liked this green environmental approach.

Kurashiki has a quaint old area with shops and restaurants along a canal. This seems to be it's main attraction. Hotel is close to this and within walking distance of the train station. Tourist info just outside train station was very good and spoke good English.

Hotel was clean and room was small (usual for Japan though). Hotel had an onsen which we did not use and we did not take breakfast either as it is was not included in our rate. All in all a decent place to stay for a night to see the old town.

Like other Dormy properties we stayed in they only give you one room key which is a bit of a pain. The key is used in the room. You have to give it back when you leave and ask for it again when you come back. Hotel staff did not speak much English (barely enough for check in etc) but were very friendly, tried their best and seemed to be genuinely helpful.

The ugly modern box shape of the Dormy Inn contrasts badly with the beautiful 1793 Ohashi House next door. However once inside it is a different story - the hotel rooms are spacious by Japanese standards, very clean and functional. The Dormy has two cute onsens (male and female) free laundry (washing) coin drier and free internet.

Kurashiki mainly caters for Japanese tourists (we did not see any other foreigners in two days) and so it is with the Dormy Inn. The reception staff speak enough "check in" English but once in your room everything is in Japanese only including the instructions to operate the TV and the air conditioner. The hotel will only provide one room key which is rather inconvenient at times.

We didn't try the hotel food as there are several very reasonably priced restaurants between the hotel and the station (the meal prices along side the picturesque canal are much dearer).

Overall we would certainly recommend the Dormy Inn for a one or two night stopover between Osaka and Hiroshima