Japan: where to stay to maximise budget and experience
Updated: 6 days ago
Want to still stay in cool places but not break the bank? This is your guide to staying budget savvy on accommodation in Japan without compromising on experience. Read more for tips on how to book you Japanese accommodation wisely, as well as exactly where we stayed during our two week trip to Japan in order to maximise our budget and experience - a mixture of authentic stays in the right places and keeping costs low in others.
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Most important - where to book what
There’s so many options for accommodation in Japan - machia townhouses with sliding paper walls, ryokans, quirky stays and capsule hotels. We wanted to experience a variety, so we chose a mixture but we were mindful about where we booked which type of stay. We were also BUSY in Japan - our itinerary was packed so we were mindful about how much time we’d actually spend in the accommodation - there’s no point in having a beautiful hotel with stunning facilities if you’re not going to have time to make use of them.
Tokyo and Kyoto notoriously come with the highest prices, so we opted for very basic accommodation and prioritised location over comfort (although our “cheap” hostel in Kyoto was surprisingly lovely). We saved the more traditional or specific experience options for lower cost locations.
Plan your itinerary wisely around accommodation prices
Ok, so you shouldn’t just plan the itinerary around hotel prices but make it a significant consideration for how long you spend in each location.
For example, Osaka was cheaper to stay in than Kyoto. There’s a number of day trips that could be done from either Osaka or Kyoto, such as Nara, Himeji or Hiroshima. Due to cost, we opted to base ourselves in Osaka for longer and make as many day trips from there as possible. We even went directly from Osaka to Fushimi Inari in Kyoto and began our time in Kyoto there (dropping off the bags at a luggage locker in Kyoto train station) to avoid staying an extra night in Kyoto.
We wanted to stay at a ryokan and knew this would be the most expensive hotel of the whole trip - but it also counted as an experience. However, the compromise was that we did only stay 1 night, and checked in as early as possible to maximise our time there.
Location matters
It can be overwhelming to work out where exactly you want to stay in big cities but I generally try to prioritise location - that doesn’t necessarily mean staying right in the centre, but it means thinking about transport links.
In Kyoto, we stayed in the Higashiyama district, which was walking distance to Ninenzaka, but also 2 minutes walk from the nearest metro station.
Tokyo is HUGE, and the area you stay in will impact cost, vibes and how far you are from key sites - although be aware, that because it’s so huge, you are probably going to be far from something, so it’s also important to plan your days by areas. The other thing to consider is that taxis are EXPENSIVE, and public transport (metro) stops at midnight. So if you’re a late night party animal, staying in the nightlife districts (Shinjuku/Shibuya) may be worth the higher prices in what you’ll save in taxis. Whereas, Asakusa is a more laid back district with a more traditional vibe and lower prices. It’s also right on the metro which goes to Haneda airport.
For Tokyo, we actually had a great compromise for this - read more about that below.
In Osaka, we stayed walking distance from Dotonbori but also 5 minute walk from a couple of metro options.
Book in advance
For some locations, last minute bookings can save money, and you might be limited on how far in advance you can book if you’re backpacking but in Japan, it’s a huge gamble. Rooms book up fast, especially if you’re travelling in Spring or Autumn when there’s more tourists.
If you want to make the most of your time in Japan , you NEED to be organised - sorry to the type B planners out there. As soon as you know your itinerary, get your accommodation booked. We booked the ryokan around 4 months in advance, and the other hotels/stays around 2-3months in advance, and even then some rooms weren’t available - we stayed in a dorm in the hostel in Kyoto because the private rooms were fully booked, and had bunk beds in Takayama because the double or twin rooms were booked out too.
Experiences over hotels
Because we usually have quite an active itinerary, often we consider a hotel as a base and simply a bed to sleep in. The caveat to this is if the hotel in itself is the experience, for example a spa hotel, or on a beach holiday (neither of which are normally us!). In Japan, 2 hotels fitted this bill - the ryokan and the capsule hotel - read more about these below.
While capsule hotels actually offer a very affordable option in Tokyo, we hadn’t stayed in any before and were unsure on what to expect (the standard and facilities can hugely vary) - so we only opted for 1 night here but afterwards, we would happily have stayed longer.
The ryokan was quite a luxury experience for us, as we normally try to keep the budget as tight as possible, but it’s part of experiencing Japanese culture, so it was on the list of must-dos. The budget compromise was only staying for 1 night, whereas others may opt to stay for longer.
Where we actually stayed in Japan
For our itinerary, we did move about a lot but these are the exact places we stayed on our 14 day trip, and what we thought of them.
Osaka - HenNa Hotel Namba - themed hotel, 4 nights
Have you ever been checked in to a hotel by dinosaurs?
We paid £262 for 4 nights, double room with private bathroom.
The dinosaur check in was a cool gimmick but the hotel was great value and well located too. We opted for the basic double room, with private bathroom but without breakfast (we didn’t hear great reviews of the breakfast). There’s also a good spot right over the road (512 cafe) for brunch (get the wobbly pancakes). You can opt for a themed room or the robot concierge but we were very much on the go for the whole time in Osaka so it was essentially a bed to sleep in. There’s self service washing machines and microwaves in the little communal area. We found it ideally located for walking to Dotonbori at night and close to metro stations and many combinis for early breakfast options.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
Kyoto - Guesthouse Ga-Jyun - hostel, 2 nights
We paid £96 for 2 nights, 2x beds in a 4 bed dorm, shared bathroom, includes breakfast.
This family run hostel really surprised us - although we were in a dorm, it was only 4 beds and had a decent sized locker, with curtains around the beds for privacy. They do have private room options but these were fully booked. The communal area was nice, with some booths if you wanted a bit of privacy too. The location was great too, in the Higashiyama district - about 15 minute walk to Ninenzaka, some affordable tempura restaurants on the same street and a few minutes walk to the metro.
However, what really impressed us was the breakfast - it was the only accommodation we stayed at that included breakfast as standard (other than the ryokan) and it was phenomenal. Lots of fresh fruit, sandwiches, Japanese options (miso soup) and western options. In Japan, we found that a lot of cafes opened too late for us to get breakfast (especially if you’ve got busy days planned and need to be out early), and we often resorted to combinis eg. 7/11. So having breakfast (and such a great one) here was a bonus.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Hostelworld: Click here
Takayama - Hostel Miyagawa by Murasaki Ryokan, 1 night
We paid £30 for 1 night, twin room (bunk beds), shared bathroom.
Here, we opted for a guesthouse with traditional features - we had a private room but bunkbeds! It did have a huge floor to ceiling window with a lovely view of the river below and a cute little seating area with beanbags. The traditional tatami matting, paper walls and sliding screen door were nice until we realised that they were, indeed, paper thin (earplugs needed). Being the cheapest night we stayed in Japan, the value was great. I would still recommend this place, but just take earplugs. Takayama is small so anywhere in town will be close to various amenities.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
Kanazawa - Yuimaru East, 2 nights
We paid £109 for 2 nights, Japanese style room in a macho townhouse, private bathroom, shared kitchen.
This was an odd little set up - it was almost like a self contained apartment, with private bathroom and a seating/lounge area separate from the futon sleeping area, with traditional tatami mats, but there was a large shared fully stocked kitchen area with laundry facilities. The private room itself was huge and very comfortable, with Jinbei (Japanese pyjamas) available to borrow or purchase - I actually regret not buying some as they were so comfortable! I believe the kitchen was shared between 3 apartments and we only saw other guests once. All in all, great value and we’re glad we opted for a traditional machia townhouse style option here, rather than in Kyoto, which would have cost significantly more.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
Hakone - Masutomi Ryokan, 1 night
We paid £338 for 1 night, including dinner, breakfast and onsen.
This was the most expensive night of the trip, but it’s because a ryokan in itself is an experience - the cost includes Onsen access, a multi-course kaseiki dinner and a multi-course breakfast. We picked this particular ryokan due to the proximity to Hakone-yumato station (around 5 minutes walk), and for the option of a private Onsen session. We arrived early and were actually turned away - we could drop off luggage but weren’t allowed in the room until check in time (the Japanese do love to stick to rules), so we returned at the right tim, on the dot, in order to make the most of our stay. We tied this stay in with a long travel day from Kanazawa - it was nice to relax for the afternoon/evening after multiple train changes. Our room was gorgeous, with a raised futon area, separate seating area and private bathroom complete with the fanciest Japanese toilet (it even had a heated air drying setting!). Jinbeiri (pyjamas) were provided, as well as outfits to walk down to the Onsen in. The shared onsen was beautiful. Because the hotel was small, I never actually encountered another person while using the onsen, although Chrisy did say there were others in the men’s side when he went again in the morning. We also booked an hour in the private onsen on the rooftop, which was worth the extra expense. The food was sensational - definitely the poshest meal we’ve ever eaten. Usually travelling on a shoestring, we very much enjoyed the treat of a boutique experience like this.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
The Tokyo Hack
So, for Tokyo, we actually booked two sets of accommodation. We booked a hotel on Asakusa as our main “base” for 4 nights, but we also booked a capsule hotel in Shibuya for one night. These overlapped - so we effectively paid for one night in the Asakusa hotel that we didn’t actually sleep there, but it worked out cheaper to do it that way than booking 1 night and then another 2, as you’ll often get a discount for a longer stay.
Asakusa Kokono Club Hotel- 4 nights
We paid £293 for 4 nights, twin room, shared(ish) bathroom.
I think “hotel” is a stretch for this place - I would say it’s more like a fancy hostel. We had a twin room with shared bathroom and opted not to have breakfast, but there was a breakfast option. The room itself was basic and probably the least clean we stayed in, in all of Japan (this is being picky - the others were spotless and this was ok). There was a good sized lockable wardrobe, so we could lock both large backpacks away, which gave us extra peace of mind, especially as we left the room empty for one night. The bathroom, however, was spotless - there was a shared sink area, lots of toiletries, toothbrushes etc available and showers assigned by room - although the bathroom was shared, you technically did have your own shower, just not in the room. There’s also a large communal dining area.
We picked this “hotel” for the price (the most reasonable we could find in Tokyo) and the location - Asakusa is more laid back than busy Shinjuku but there’s still plenty of shops and restaurants around. And having stayed there, it was definitely less hectic than other parts of Tokyo and 10 minutes to a metro station, directly on the Asakusa Line to Haneda airport (ideal as we had an early flight from there on our last day). It did feel relatively far from some things but, honestly, I don’t think it matters where you stay in Tokyo, it’s so vast that you’ll always be far from something, so try to plan your days by area as much as possible.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
Shinjuku - First Cabin Ichigaya (Capsule Hotel), 1 night
We paid £80 in total for 2 separate capsules, shared bathroom.
We wanted to experience a capsule hotel and we also wanted a night closer to the nightlife, as public transport stops at midnight. We actually still did use the metro late at night - getting the last train, and this was the only time we saw any Japanese in a hurry - clearly not wanting to be stuck with expensive Tokyo taxis as the only option to get home. So, we hooked a capsule hotel in Shinjuku to, as they say, kill two birds with one stone.
The capsule hotel was airport/flight themed, with different “classes” of capsule - Chrisy had economy and I had a
business class one. As with most capsule hotels, floors are gender segregated so we parted ways to go to our relevant capsules. The business class ones were double the height of the economy ones, but Chrisy assured me he still had plenty of room and did not feel claustrophobic at all (and he's over 6 ft). The capsules were pretty soundproof, had a small lockable storage area and a TV. Outside of the capsules there were large storage areas for bigger suitcases/luggage, which could be locked. There was an extensive communal dining/seating area too - lots of people were remote working here.
Pyjamas and towels were provided and - we did not expect this - there was a gender segregated Onsen! I mean, it wasn’t as lovely as the ryokan, with the outdoor backdrop, but it was extremely clean and the bathroom also had several seated vanity areas with hairdryers, straighteners and lots of beauty products free to use. So if you want to experience an Onsen without going to a public one or the high price tag of a ryokan stay, try this capsule hotel.
We were seriously impressed with the capsule hotel and would definitely consider it as an option for a longer stay in Tokyo too.
Book this hotel via:
Trip: Click here
Expedia: Click here
Overall, I think we had a good mix of different styles of accommodation, accounting for location and price. What do you think?
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