At first glance in a dreary, wet, cold Nagoya Winter morning, this hotel looks modern, warm and inviting.

And indeed it is. I am greeted by a friendly European doorman with an oversized top hat who immediately upon seeing me rushes over to assist with my bags. I politely decline and ask where the elevators are.

I make my way to room 2608, on the Executive floor where my partner has already checked in. The room is a little tired, and quite small compared to other Hiltons I have stayed at recently but everything we need is here, albeit slightly cramped and visibly worn.

The Executive lounge is serviced by a friendly team showing off their top-notch service. We request help with train timetables and reserving a tour of the Toyota car plant an hour or two away from the city and they come back with 3 options for getting there and reservations made. Cocktails and canapés are a tasty prelude to dinner later in the evening.

The pool/gym/spa is well appointed and the pool in particular is about 20 metres in length which gives you a good lap workout. The bathroom has a sauna, and large shared hot and cold bathtub. Shiseido amenities are provided.

We choose to have our complimentary breakfast in the restaurant on the 2nd floor. I am excited to see they have ‘Kishimen’ – a local long, flat noodle dish which diners can prepare themselves with instructions written in English and Japanese.

We check out in the Executive lounge and make our way our to enjoy the day! Next stop, Hilton Odawara – Hilton’s only ‘hot spring’ hotel in Japan!