WHAT TO EXPECT IN A JAPANESE HOTEL

As the author of Frommer’s guides to Japan for many years, I’ve inspected more hotel rooms than anyone in their right mind should ever have to see. But even I’ve been flummoxed about what to expect in a Japanese hotel. Over the years I’ve been challenged trying to find the master control for switching off room lights, work a toilet, engage the bathtub stopper, or even operate an electric kettle.

On my very first night in Japan, I started bawling in my hotel tub because I couldn’t decipher the Japanese words for shampoo and conditioner (I chalk it up to jet lag and the fear that it would only get worse from there). When a house cleaner accidentally gathered my special pillow (I was pregnant) along with the bed linen, to my embarrassment she bought a replacement. The carpets in one Hokkaido hotel were so psychedelic, I thought I might be having a flashback.

While not everything can be anticipated (isn’t that part of travel?), this blog tries to give a general overview of what to expect in a Japanese hotel. Because that hotel experience can differ greatly depending on how much you spend, I’ve also included a few reviews on specific hotels from inexpensive to luxury in Tokyo, along with a couple of properties in rural Aomori for contrast.

Hotels for the prince to the pauper

It goes without saying that you get what you pay for. You can be treated like royalty, with all your wishes at everyone’s command, or you can bed down in a “capsule” hotel, which rather resembles coffins lined two deep in rows.

Japanese hotels and chains used to dominate, with names like Okura, New Otani, Miyako, Tokyu, Nikko, Prince, Mitsui Urban, Toyoko, Dormy Inn, and Sunroute among the most well known. Nowadays, international brands are also part of the market, including Hilton, Mandarin, Holiday Inn, Bulgari, Four Seasons, Marriott, Hyatt, Aman, and Ritz-Carlton.

What to expect in a Japanese hotel

Perhaps the biggest difference between hotels in the U.S. and Japan is room size. Unsurprisingly, luxury hotels boast the roomiest quarters, where even in Tokyo prooperties like The Peninsula, Mandarin Oriental, and The Ritz-Carlton offer guest rooms with more than 500 square feet for lounging and leisure.

Otherwise, I’d say that guest rooms in Japan come in three sizes: barely adequate, small, and miniscule. That means international travelers might find Japan’s compact quarters not only enlightening but the impetus for getting creative. I’ve seen rooms so tiny that if you can’t stow your luggage under your bed, you might have to sleep with it. Or take a flying leap to reach your bed.

Another thing I might mention is the view. In urban settings, mostly there isn’t one. Exceptions are upper-range hotels in big cities like Tokyo and Osaka, which. because of constricted space, occupy the upper stratospheres of skyscrapers, which naturally reveal surreal panoramas of a sprawling cityscape. Likewise, hotels located in resort areas might have calming vistas of forest or the sea.

But for the most part, hotel windows look unceremoniously onto other buildings. Some rooms are even “interior” ones, meaning they face a small, inner courtyard; I was told by one hotel employee that some guests preferred them because they were quiet and dark, but in my review I suggested springing for a cheerier room unless you’re Dracula.

But no matter where you stay, two things are consistent in what to expect in a Japanese hotel. Upon check-in, you’ll be asked to present your passport for photocopying. And you’re sure to experience heart-felt hospitality and service, for which the Japanese are legendary. There’s a word for it: omotenashi. That’s what makes foreign visitors almost universally fall in love with Japan. Oh, and a million other things. Like the fact that there’s no tipping in Japan, including for hotel stays and at restaurants.

A word about what to expect in a Japanese hotel regarding room rates

Many hotels offer a variety of rooms at various prices, usually based on demand and the season, room size, decor, and floor height. Corner rooms are usually more expensive, as well as rooms on higher floors, especially those with great views of Tokyo Tower, Tokyo Bay or Mount Fuji. But don’t expect big bargains. The US dollar might be favorable compared to the yen, but the high influx of tourists and resultant demand keep room rates high.

If it’s a chain, it pays to see whether there’s a loyalty membership program you can join, which can bring such perks as early check-in or rate discounts. They’re usually free.

You should also know that Japanese hotels charge by the person, not the room, so sneaking in that extra person….

What amenities to expect in a Japanese hotel

One of the things I appreciate most about what to expect in a Japanese hotel is its amenities. As part of that omotenashi, hotels offer much more than their American counterparts, which means I can leave some items at home.

Typical in-room amenities include ensuite bathrooms (closet-sized in budget hotels) with high-tech bidet toilets and deep tubs, shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste and toothbrush (some hotels have switched to bamboo to reduce plastic), hair dryer, alarm clock, TV (many with CNN, streaming services like Netflix, and paid video on demand), telephone, refrigerator or minibar (but no microwave), flashlight (in case of an earthquake), free Wifi, pajamas that might not be big enough for larger sizes (I miss the days when traditional cotton robes called yukata were the standard in-room sleepwear), facial tissue, a water kettle or coffee maker (with complimentary tea but increasingly also with coffee), slippers (to be worn only in-room), USB charging terminals, air conditioner, and a handy spray fabric freshener to waken up road-weary clothing.

Other items you might find in your room include an air purifier/humidifier, razor, hairbrush, cotton swabs, shower cap, free bottled water, and, my favorite, a retractable clothesline over the bathtub. In business hotels, if there’s not a trouser press in your room, there’s probably a communal one in the corridor somewhere (a leftover from the days when business travelers were mostly men). Note that while the two-prong plug is the same as in the United States, you’ll need an adapter for a three-prong plug.

Anything your room doesn’t have is easily obtained at the front desk, hotel vending machines (mostly for drinks and snacks, including beer), or the ubiquitous 7-Eleven or other convenience store sure to be just around the corner.

Other perks include either laundry service or laundry machines, and, for those weary travel bones, in-room massage.

In any case, the grander the hotel, the grander its amenities. Most hotels post a list of their in-room amenities on their websites.

Inexpensive hotels

For years, inexpensive hotels meant so-called “business hotels” that catered almost exclusively to Japanese businessmen. No-frills accommodations, they were often sad, dingy, and tobacco-smoky affairs, the kind of place you didn’t want to hang out in. Thankfully, budget hotels are now a mainstay, hotels are either entirely smoke-free or offer non-smoking rooms, and are popular also with women and overseas tourists.

Facilities are limited, often with vending machines in place of restaurants and no-nonsense tiny rooms that nonetheless contain everything you need. Some might offer amenities only at the front desk, so you can take what you need. Nation-wide chains include APA  Hotels & Resorts, with more than 850 hotels across Japan; Sunroute; and super budget-priced Super Hotel.

Examples of budget accommodations in Tokyo

My favorite budget chain is the dependable Toyoku Inn, a chain of business hotels founded in 1986 and now with more than 30 locations in Tokyo and 330 hotels nationwide. They’re all pretty much the same so you know what you’re getting. Best of all, they’re usually conveniently located next to train stations. But what I love most about this company is that staff is mostly female (call me biased), with women making up almost 97% of its hotel managers. Even its CEO is female. Breakfasts, included in the price, often feature local specialties, such as potatoes in Hokkaido or shumai (dumplings) in Yokohama. As with other chains, if you become a Toyoko Inn member, you get rate discounts.

Otherwise, if you prefer not to stay in a chain, in Tokyo there’s Hotel Asia Center of Japan, an old-timer with a dormitory-like atmosphere but a central location.

More choices: As for those capsule hotels, I’ve never stayed in one, mainly because I enjoy my privacy and don’t relish trekking down the hall to use the communal bathroom. Individual compartments, generally no larger than a bed and often stacked two-deep along a corridor, come equipped with TV and electric outlets. A cut above the rest is First Cabin, which offers cabins only 47 square feet but with room to stand. With locations in Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Nagasaki, they’re tiny but would be luxurious first-class cabins on an airplane. Perhaps it’s just a matter of perspective.

Another option are the so-called “love hotels,” located mostly in entertainment districts like Shinjuku and Shibuya and catering to couples with hourly rates. Many offer overnight rates as well, sometimes at such a reasonable price that friends who have found themselves stranded far from home have checked in, solo. There are also many budget Japanese-style accommodations.

Medium-priced hotels

Mid-range hotels comprise most of Japan’s accommodations, and because they’re popular with vacationers, they’re clustered in cities and tourist destinations throughout the country. Because service is a Japanese trademark, you can expect friendly service as well. Many are locally owned or part of a small regional company, but national chains dominate the market. These include the Hotel Monterey Group, which operates lodgings in the center of major Japanese cities and is popular with Japanese women for its European Old World décor, and the more utilitarian JR Hotel Group, whose 80-some member hotels are located next to train stations all over the country.

Facilities are generally limited to a restaurant or two and maybe a bar. I might add that hotel breakfasts have greatly improved over the years, especially buffet spreads that offer Japanese, Western, and Chinese fare. Timed right, you might be able to save on lunch. Don’t hesitate to ask the front desk for maps of the surrounding area or directions to the closest subway stations or famous sights.

Examples of Tokyo medium-priced hotels

The Park Hotel Tokyo

The Park Hotel Tokyo bills itself as an art hotel (“Where Every Stay is a Masterpiece”), and rightfully so. More than 400 changing works of Japanese contemporary art adorn the hotel–on the walls of the soaring atrium lobby, in corridor galleries nestled on every floor, and–most astounding of all–inside more than 45 rooms decorated by Japanese artists, with more in the works. These “artist rooms” were created by artists who stayed in the hotel and took over a room as their own canvas, painting directly on walls. It’s the first time I’ve ever stayed inside an artist’s artwork! (Note: artist rooms are more expensive).

Competing with Park Hotel Tokyo’s artworks, many of which are for sale, are the expansive views. Rooms, which occupy the 26th to 34th floors and start at 237 square feet for a standard twin or queen room, overlook Tokyo Tower, Hama-rikyu Gardens and Tokyo Bay, or the sprawling city. The hotel overwhelmingly attracts leisure rather than business travelers, with 90% hailing from other countries, including 25% from the United States. Check the hotel website for immersive experiences, including a tea ceremony free for hotel guests.

Shiba Park Hotel

The Shiba Park Hotel opened in 1948 to serve mostly merchants, but renovations a couple of years ago turned it into a “library hotel.” (Any surprise it’s the sister hotel to the artist hotel above?). Indeed, more than 1,500 books can be found virtually everywhere, on shelves lining the Library Lounge, on a second-floor foyer, and tucked away in corners on most floors. About half the books are in Japanese and the other half in English, mostly related to Japanese culture from food to fiction to architecture. You’re free to browse them all.

Beginning at 226 feet, its 198 rooms don’t offer any views, but you’ll be reading anyway or exploring the surrounding residential neighborhood or nearby Tokyo Tower. The all-purpose restaurant is popular for afternoon tea, but it also wins kudos for vegan dishes, available a la carte or as a fixed-price dinner featuring Japanese, Chinese or Western dishes. A free tea ceremony is available to guests here, too, but if possible sign up for the kintsugi immersive experience, in which broken ceramics are glued together with lacquer and accented with gold. Kintsugi is the ultimate lesson in wabi sabi, a Japanese philosophy that finds beauty in imperfection.

More choices: Other medium-priced hotels I like are the sleek Hotel Century Southern Tower (for its convenient location near Shinjuku Station and the large Takashimaya shopping complex, yet far above the mayhem); and Hotel Gracery Ginza (for its great location yet reasonable prices in Ginza).

Expensive hotels

If you’re paying top yen, your hotel will rival upper-range hotels anywhere in the world. The Japanese are experts at anticipating needs before you even know you have them (that omotenashi thing), so expect service at an expensive hotel to be top-notch, whether it’s at the front desk or concierge station, in restaurants, or from room service. Some even go a step further with executive floors, which offer such perks as private lounges with free breakfasts and cocktails and other privileges.

Larger top-end hotels usually have shops or a shopping arcade and a health club, spa, and swimming pool (for which there might be an extra charge). The 1,479-room New Otani in Tokyo, for example, is like a city within a city, outfitted with 37 restaurants, Tokyo’s best hotel Japanese garden, an outdoor pool, a spa and gym, a shopping arcade, a tea ceremony room, a nursery for childcare, a photo studio, salon and barber shops, dental and medical clinics, and a post office. I suspect some people check in and never find their way out.

Examples of Tokyo luxury hotels

Andaz Tokyo Toronomon Hills

Andaz Tokyo Toranomon Hills is a Hyatt property that occupies the top floors of a 52-story skyscraper in central Tokyo. After a sit-down check-in, you’ll be escorted to your room, which measures more than 500 square feet, half of which is taken up by the massive bathroom and dressing area. I love the bedside switch that operates the window shade, revealing the spread of Tokyo first thing in the morning. I also like the couch that extends the entire length of the floor-to-ceiling window, the perfect place to peruse the encyclopedic volume of prints by artist Hokusai placed in my room.

Hotel standouts include the spa with its 20-meter indoor pool, saunas, and gym (all free for hotel guests), the rooftop bar, and the nightly presentation of complimentary drinks and snacks in the hotel lounge for staying guests. To combat jet lag, I suggest a stroll to the nearby Imperial Palace and its East Garden.

More choices: Other luxury Tokyo properties I’d recommend, all with good city views, include:

What to expect in a Japanese hotel outside Tokyo and big cities

I’m a sucker for historic hotels. Fujiya Hotel, founded in 1878 in Hakone, is hands down my favorite hotel in Japan, both for its outstanding architecture and its location in a small mountain town. Other historic hotels I love are Nikko Kanaya Hotel and Nara Hotel, both located next to World Heritage sites. [Note: Nara Hotel is undergoing extensive renovation, with an expected reopening August 2026.]

Other options include Japanese-style inns (ryokan) and minshuku (Japanese-style lodging in a private home, mostly in small towns and rural areas). You can even stay in a Buddhist temple (see my article on Shinshoji Zen Temple and Garden for an example of what it’s like) or Japanese castle.

Examples of accommodations in Aomori Prefecture

There is no end to the possibilities for overnight stays in Japan. As a contrast to what to expect in a Japanese hotel in Tokyo, here are a couple of examples from my trip to Japan earlier this winter, in rural Aomori Prefecture at the north end of Tohoku on Japan’s main island.

Kai Tsugaru

Kai Tsugaru is a contemporary hot-spring ryokan located outside Hirosaki. It has all the traditional markings of a Japanese inn, including expansive kaiseki dinners fit for an emperor and spacious tatami rooms simply decorated with shoji screens and hanging scrolls featuring local koginzashi needlework. Standouts for me include the live Tsugaru shamisen performances and the opportunity to learn koginzashi stitching. But the highlight is the open-air hot-spring bath, which became magical during my nighttime soak with gently falling snow.

Hotel Hakkoda

Hotel Hakkoda is a wooden mountain lodge located in Towada Hachimantai National Park, surrounded by forests of beech. Although it looks like it’s been here a century, it was constructed in 1991 using red cedar from Canada and pine from Oregon. Works by Shiko Munakata, one of my favorite Japanese artists, adorn the log-cabin walls in public spaces, and the old-fashioned-looking dining hall serves Japanese kaiseki and French fixed-price dinners using local seasonal ingredients. Naturally there are hot-spring baths. When I visited in winter, snow depths reached more than four feet high, making it seem like the end of the world very far from Tokyo.