I’ve read alot about the inconvenient location of Hotel Claska and most of it is unjustified. Sure, it isn’t one block away from the blazing lights of Shinjuku or Ginza but that’s the great thing about it.

If you want to be able to buy 20 pairs of shoes and walk back to the hotel to drop off your bags and go shopping again then Hotel Claska may not be the right place for you but for most travellers it offers an ideal balance of what Tokyo has to offer.

Gakugei-Daigaku train station (学芸大学駅) on the Tokyu Toyoko Line is just a short walk through the narrow streets of Meguro from Hotel Claska.

For most of your journey, you’ll stroll quietly through residential housing before finally turning left on to a small pedestrian mall.

It’s not 5th Avenue by any stretch of the imagination but rather a quaint snapshot of local life with grocery stores, banks, book stores and of course the ubiquitous pachinko halls.

The western side of Gakugei-Daigaku station (学芸大学駅) is a little more commercial with McDonalds, KFC and Starbucks but still well worth a look with plenty of small side streets to explore the more traditional Japanese shops and some great restaurants.

From Gakugei-Daigaku station, it is just ¥150 and four stops (Gakugeidaigaku -> Yūtenji -> Naka-Meguro -> Daikan-yama -> Shibuya) to the major train hub of Shibuya station (渋谷駅) from where you can connect to pretty much anywhere in Tokyo plus of course, Shibuya itself is a great place to dip your toes in to the frenetic Tokyo lifestyle.

Depending on your Tokyo destination for the day, it may make more sense to go 180 degrees in the other direction and head from Claska to Meguro Train Station (目黒駅), which is on the famous Yamanote line. There are several ways to get there from Claska with the easiest being by taxi. We never waited more than a minute or two out the front of the hotel for a taxi to come along – just look for the light on top of the cab and wave your hands madly – as per most places in the world.

The cost ranged from ¥800 up to ¥900 (US$8-$9) and the trip took about five minutes as they don’t hold back in getting you there!

To avoid any headaches giving directions to the taxi driver, I would suggest learning how to say “Meguro Eki” (pronounced Meh-goo-row Eh-kee) if you wish to go by taxi to the train station. We found most cab drivers knew very little English, which in the end is good thing as it forces you to learn a little of the local lingo but it could be prove frustrating to some travellers.

For your return trip, you should also learn to say “Meguro-dori” (pronounced Meh-goo-row Door-ee) as we only had one or two drivers who knew Hotel Claska and/or understood my Australian pronunciation of it so we told them the street name and then guided them from there.

On the night we first arrived from Narita Airport and caught the train to Tokyo Central, I made sure I had the Japanese pdf of the street address provided at the Claska website and just handed that to the driver. The next day once we knew where we were I just said Meguro-dori and then pointed out the hotel when we got there – it’s on the right when coming back from Meguro station and very easy to find.

The other option is to use your feet and walk to Meguro station, which is a superb way of seeing what the local area has to offer but you’ll be up for about a 30 minute walk each way so I’ll leave that up to your level of fitness.

By the way, I think the best option from/to Narita Airport to Claska is the Limousine Bus. The bus only costs ¥3000 and drops you off at the Sheraton Miyako Hotel Tokyo, which is about 10 minutes taxi from Claska and around AUD$15. After a long flight, this is the best of the options – trust me. (^_^)

Even if you only do it only once on your trip – it is very worthwhile especially if you enjoy antique or modern furniture and knick-knacks. Along the way you will also cross the stunning Meguro River, which depending on the time of year can be an awesome site with Cherry Blossoms or Fire-red Autumn leaves littering its surface.

How To Get There

Train and Bus

• 10 minutes walk from Gakugei-daigaku station’s east exit (Tokyu Toyoko Line)
• 5 minutes ride taxi ride from Meguro Station (JR Yamanote Line)
• 1 minutes walk from Shimizu bus stop / Take the bus going to Ookayama-Shogakko from JR Meguro Station’s west exit.

From Narita airport

• Limousine Bus stops at Sheraton Miyako Hotel. 10 minute taxi ride to Claska from there.

Hotel Claska
1-3-18 Chuo-cho Meguro-ku Tokyo, 152-0001 Japan
Tel: 03.3719.8121