A simple hotel... But one with a lot to offer in that tiny space!! Also, hello from Fukuoka! What shall we do while we are in Kyushu.... (leave me your thoughts below!)
Oh go see the Nyoirin-ji (Kaeru-dera) , the frog temple, it's near Fukuoka!!! I challenge you not to take pictures, lol, nah take pictures, you'll have a blast there!! Please let me know if you go!!!
Hi Norm We don't bother with fancy hotel's, if it's got a comfy bed tv and shower that's fine. But I must say love the phone idea, would come in handy if struggling to get a new SIM card to work in your own phone in Japan. And the usb socket to in the uk they have not upgraded the hotel room's to have on to charge your phone. 🤗😍💙👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🎎🍲
Stayed in various levels of hotel in Japan across the years. Tend to stay in more expensive ones in Tokyo as tend to be there for longer (think Keio Plaza, Hilton or Hyatt Regency in West Shinjuku). Outside of Tokyo tend to go for smaller cheaper ones although it varies on the deals available. If I remember correctly in Hokkaido I stayed in the Mercure in Sapporo which was fine whilst Fukuoka was the Ana Crowne Plaza. Osaka has been very varied including the Hotel Monterey Grasmere Osaka which is quite odd as there reception is on a very high floor but still has a large open area next to it with a full size English style church in it for weddings! The worst I had was a small business hotel in Nagoya, very small, hot and a huge step up into the unit bath which was a pain in the middle of the night. Best business hotel I stayed in was actually in Kyoto, south of the station. When I stayed there, about 7-8 years ago now, it had just opened and was clean and quiet being slightly away from the normal tourist areas.
I would add Holiday Inn ANA Kanazawa Sky was good in Kanazawa, reasonably well placed, walkable from the station and an awesome panoramic view of the city from their reception. The last hotel I used in Osaka was good too but I'm not mentioning that as I want to use it again and it's only small 😜
A video of a guy in a hotel room, quite simple, but somehow Norm, you manage to make it entertaining and fun. Love the bloopers, you should make a compilation of bloopers from old videos. I have some hotel experience and i was amazed by the free cellphone service...never seen or heard that before. Thanks for the nice work as always, good luck ;D
Agreed- clean bed, clean bathroom, I'm happy. Bonus if there's a place to open a suitcase that's not the bed (I travel with hubby so it can get a little tight in some places while we are trying to pack, taking it in turns!)
Thank you for everything you do. You are one of the most talented J-Vloggers on UA-cam and it shows. I can see the passion that you have of both photography & Japan through each video and I'm so glad I get to enjoy the ride each week all the way from America. You are such an inspiration to me to pursue my dreams of being a digital creator and to travel to Japan. I hope one day we could nerd out about gear and Japan! Can't wait for the next video.
Loved the bloopers! Interesting tour of your room & hotel. I agree about the phone. Nice touch. I like the Japanese hotels. We have too much space in hotels here. Usually I don’t stay in the room. I’m ready to go out & explore where I go. The only time I spend time in my room is at the beach. It’s sitting on the balcony relaxing, people watching & the waves are soothing. Glad you are sharing your adventure & travels on your channel.
7:36 That switch for the WiFi is genius. Interference is a real thing and a reason why WiFi isn't as good in crowded cities as compared to more open areas. Sure you can change the WiFi channel you are using but as most people are technically inclined to set it up properly, and with limited channels to work with it slows everything down. By setting their access points to an on/off switch this essentially solves the interference problem and the network congestion problem by eliminating unnecessary devices on the network. I hope the internet in the hotel was quicker compared to most places.... they seem to be doing things right ;)
One of my favourite and unexpected hotel experiences in Japan was in Hakone. We had booked a standard room at the Hakone Hotel right on Lake Ashi in early April. When we checked in, someone escorted us to our room on the top floor, which I thought was very good customer service. We entered our room, and I immediately knew something wasn't right. This room had a foyer, a bar, massive living room, huge balcony overlooking the lake and Mount Fuji, a bedroom bigger than my condo and ginormous marble bathroom! I told the woman that she brought us to the wrong room, and she said no, our original room was taken by a tour company who booked out the whole floor, so they gave us a free upgrade. Best night ever! We got a free drink at their very lovely bar, and their onsen was fantastic. They have a restaurant as well, but we opted for conbini food to save some dough instead lol. The hotel is a bit old, but every room gets a lake view, and the amenities are great! I'd love to see more hotel videos!
I’m coming back to these older videos to try to plan a Japan trip, and also just because they are entertaining. Thank you for your help, I love your content!
I stayed in a couple of business hotels a few months back and first off..that room is lucky to have more than 2 outlets. Noticed that most "newer" business hotels comes with a smart phone you can bring around as well. I stayed in quite an old one as well at Ikebukkuro..wasn't fantastic as it was from the 70's but hey it was clean and I got to sleep.
Thanks for the tour and the live stream earlier, also a smartphone to use in your hotel room that's too awesome, and that food bar. Hopefully if you are out in the North Carolina area of the US I don't miss you again. Thanks for another amazing experience through your videos.
Hokkaido is such a lovely prefecture, I stayed in Sapporo for 3 days on my last visit to Japan, and ended up meeting so many fun people. Truly one of the highlights of my trip.
Had a free to use smartphone in my business hotel in Osaka and Sapporo too last winter! We actually used it for directions on Google Maps, very convenient
Bless you! I think one of my favorite Japanese hotel provisions was the pillows on my Yuda Onsen "western" style bed. One side was soft, the other hard 😂 and neither was overly comfortable. Seems like they're offering more space and outlets in the business hotel rooms. Charging all the gear on previous trips has definitely been a challenge.
Love the WBF chain, they're pretty new so most of the time you're guaranteed to get a newish place to stay at. I think comparing the different chains is probably a more interesting way to see what ones are the "best" to stay in. Love your vids keep it up!
Yeah Mr. Norm! The blopers were great and what a really cool hotel! I really appreciate the walk around! We gonna get to see KiKi!?!? 🥰 and... Still waiting to watch you play Shamisen!! 🧐
I love these videos! I’ve stayed in my fair share of hotel rooms around the world, and those Japanese hotel rooms look quite nice. Certainly nicer than some of the inexpensive hotel rooms I’ve rented in places like London, Paris, or Berlin. After college, I met up with three friends in Berlin for a week. We figured we could get a decent room if we pooled our money and got one big room instead of getting separate rooms. The room was a decent size - it had three narrow single beds and a sofa that was about the same size as the beds - but the problem was the bathroom. There was a toilet, there was a shower, there was a sink. What wasn’t there was a wall. The toilet, shower, and sink were right there in the room. Not ideal for four college friends. Amy hotel room that has walls around its bathroom is a nice hotel room, as far as I’m concerned!
on our two previous stays in Japan, my wife and i stay at AirBNB's, so u can stay in truly local places nestled deep into suburbs of Japan. Drawback of AirBNB was getting cancelled on three times in 2018 on our second trip, but we were able to secure new places to stay. We ended up with a massive reservoir of coupons though thanks to these cancellations, and enjoyed a local holiday in Australia with them. Staying at an AirBNB again this sept, just 3km from Shinjuku along the Keio Line
I never stayed in a Hotel in Asahikawa because I have a house, so I was not aware of the features of this hotel, I love the station it is quite new, I remember the old one falling apart and the great mall.
Hey Norm! Great video and would say this is hotel is slightly above average of the business hotels I’ve stayed at in Japan. I’ve stayed at APA, Sunroute, Toyoko, and Super Hotel and also stayed at a couple smaller chains: - Hamacho Hotel in Tokyo; bigger rooms but the same modular bathroom. Very close to the Tokyo City Air Terminal so easy to get to Narita and Haneda by limousine bus - Shizutetsu Hotel Preizo Hakata; small room but the washroom was huge and an amazing buffet breakfast (no ice cream though). About a five minute walk from JR Hakata station You can get some great deals at all the chains and for me the added feature I like is they laundry machines which is great when you’re travelling with only carry on. Keep up the great videos!!
In general my experience with Japanese westerhotels are modern and good looking, The Tokyo room (3 *) was quite small, but outside Tokyo it was more wide rooms! Nice to you visit differents spots. Keep on going!
I love hotels with onsen! This looks perfect if you're on your own. What I find tricky while hunting for Japanese hotel rooms to share with my partner, though, is that hotels will often advertise this size bed as fit for two people! And as we are not tiny Japanese people, we have to be really vigilant about bed width...
My wife and I have visited Japan many times, but it was the last two years we did some extensive travelling. (Note: She was born in Kyushu, so we mainly visited her hometown.) The last two years though we traveled extensively and only spent four days in her hometown (eight days total over two years). While we were travelling we spent nights only in business hotels. Every room was very tight on space with very little room on the floor to open suitcases. It was interesting to see the available floor space in the hotel room in this video. I've only seen a couple of your videos about hotel rooms, so I wondered if the spacious hotel room in this video was unique. All of the hotels we stayed at limited floor space. Thanks. (Thumbs up on the video.)
I'm enjoying this hotel room series. I used those free phones on my last visit because I was picking up my ivideo wifi the next day and the hotel rooms general wifi wasn't working. You should do a typical business hotel in Asakusa as that's the best area for inexpensive hotel rooms in Tokyo IMO. Maybe add a capsule hotel and one with bunk beds to cover all options for folks coming to Japan.
Just now catching up on all the videos since my summer job just ended, seems like it's been a hectically busy few weeks for you recently xD. Loving these bloopers in the past few videos!
The phones are a fantastic idea - if they continue with this it will mean you won't have to go through the issues of renting one! :) One of the most interesting stays in Japan was when a group of us stayed the Mt Daisen area, in Tottori prefecture in Western Japan. It was really cheap ( about 1000 yen a night) . It was apparently a school camp with dormitory accomodation and it was freezing! Our university professor had to go back to the local discount store to get us a towel each because had none.And pretty much all that was available for breakfast was various styles of rice.( As well as miso soup and pickles.) A couple of our classmates went for a walk to find some alcohol , got lost and ended up near some sort of shrine where they got a fantastic breakfast from the locals, which left us green with envy! So I think your hotel stay is lovely and comfy by comparison. Hope your head is feeling ok! :)
Lot more room in there than normal business hotels 😂 stayed in numerous business hotels ... and a few fancy onsens ... my new reality is living here, it changed my perspective immensely
Thanks for the tip for Asahikawa. I’m in Fukushima but I plan on traveling around Hokkaido soon! Ive found Business hotels are usually pretty good/cheap. But be careful to specify “non-smoking” when booking.🤣
OMG!! 😂 I just commented on your last video that I was planning on heading north next time! That’s awesome! Thank you for sharing 😁 I usually stay at hostels, but sometimes do splurge on an actual hotel room when I can find one at a decent price. Can’t wait to see your Fukuoka adventures ❤️
Fairly basic business hotel i would say. But i love that its got a lot of room to walk! And the slide door is new to me!! I always stay at the same business hotel that’s almost everywhere in JP n seeing how big a room is outside of tokyo always amazes me. I’m not sure if APA hotel is considered business hotel but the first and last time i booked a room was in the asakusa area, the room was so fancy it made it to my top fav jp hotel rooms😅 Anyway, thanks for the bloopers! Hahaha! お疲れ様でした！
I stayed on the cheapest APA hotel room.. it was soooo small! I squeezed in my suitcase and I sometimes stepped on my bags. Service was AMAZING and the free water and PJs was nice. But the room was small, but I can't ask for much when I spent like $60/night lol
Hahaha I understand the "It's one of those days" feeling. I was wondering why there were drastic cuts in the video and the bloopers definitely solved that mystery. Super funny! xD
1,000-yen to rent a computer is really not a bad price. For a “standard” hotel, this is really a cute little room and would be a great place to crash for a few nights. I was shocked by all that floor space 😮
Oh wow Norm!! You were in Asahikawa Hokkaido!! My dad lives 2 hours away from Asahikawa (although I’ve lived in Canada for most of my life)!! I wish you could show more of the actual city sights-to-see... Do you have more footage of Asahikawa to share later??? ~Peter onomeisterより
One thing you will notice is the hotel rooms in Asia don't have mirrors facing the beds. It's due to feng shui principles. I ended up having to cover the mirrors with blankets when I stayed at the hotels in Europe or the United States. Sometimes the front desks ignored or reluctantly obliged my request to cover or remove the mirrors.
Hotel Villa Fontaine Kayabacho in Tokyo is a decent Hotel, the breakfast menu might not be the best for some but it does have variety, but i really like the rooms they have its also a business hotel like the ones in this video
that phone seems like it would be really useful! The last time I stayed in a "hotel" it was more of a hostel, but like...a nice hostel? I shared a room with four other girls in my group, so at least there were no strangers, but it was in new york in early spring and the heat in the hostel was unbearable to the point where we opened our window at night, and one girl put her drink on the outside of the window ledge to cool it down and I was terrified it was going to fall. But we were like half a block away from Central Park and we could see it from the window, so that was fun.
That water on the chair blooper really cracked me up. I normally don't care about the size of the hotel room as it mainly a place to sleep before you set off the next day but some tokyo hotels (at least the cheaper ones I went to) make me a bit claustrophobic. I refuse to put my suitcase on the bed so I like it when there is at least enough room for it.
I believe they do the TV pass cards, because many business people are staying in the hotel at their company's expense. The pass card allows the salaryman to purchase whatever TV or movies they want, without it showing on the company expense bill. Thus maintaining privacy, which is even more important in Japan.
I recently stayed in a small hotel called the Hotel Route Inn Ichinomiya Ekimae when I visited my friends hometown. It was small like yours, but it was absolutely perfect. It was right next to the train station and it even had an onsen on the top floor. If you ever get a chance to visit Ichinomiya I highly recommend it!! Try to make a trip to visit Inuyama castle too, great history to that one!! 😊❤️
As usual, good, practical information presented in an entertaining way. You have certainly found your calling! A lot of people seem to require something extraordinary in a hotel room, but the point is that you're going to be sleeping there, and not much else. The people who designed the layout gave a lot of thought to what people might need and what would be superfluous. The small touches are wonderful and very interesting. If you were going to stay in Hokkaido and wanted good, basic accommodation, who would need more?
Nice video, on my last trip to Japan I tried Airb&b, good and cheap option, on our last day in Tokyo tried APA Hotel in Shinjuku next to Godzilla Head, very modern inside but limited space if you got lot of luggage...
I didn’t expect to learn so many things about Japnese hotel rooms, love it! And thank you for the bloopers xD While I felt bad for you because you bit your tongue, sat on a wet chair and hit your head...it did make me laugh
Once again, thanks for the entertainment mate and I know how you feel, just one of those days haha 😆 These two hotels are pretty well what I’ll be using for my trip, but hopefully I can stay at just one ryokan 🤞🏻Take it easy bro ✌🏻
I stayed at the B.Conte Asakusa last october and they offered that same cell phone in the room. Had pocket wifi so I didn't need it but it is a great addition to a room.
I’m gonna be staying in a hotel in Asakusa, from the photos, it looks a bit fancier and it also includes an open-air bath and a public bath free of charge for guests, which is awesome!! BUT I won’t be able to use them because I’ve got two pretty big tattoos which I can not hide😭 I’m excited to try out the japanese super toilet, that will be a first one for me lol😂
Nice hotels, interesting to see you get a phone to use. Also what went wrong more, the last podcast or this video ahaha, but it is a shame about the podcast stuff. Nice to see another video, keep it up :D.
Beware many unit baths! Some of them you have to step up in to and if you're getting up in the middle of the night there is the danger of stubbing one's toe(s) in a sleepy daze (he says from past experience).
WOW the free smartphone feature should be a must in every hotel in Japan 😂 Easy for us tourists to go around That feature reminded me of my stays in Kobe/Hiroshima (can’t remember which hotel though 😂) It really helps me a lot 👍🏻
They’re a bit pricier than a business hotel but I love ryokans . It feels very homey to me since when I was younger I used to sleep on a futon on the ground
Great video as always! I was wondering, what are your thoughts about Hostels?IMO they're great in Japan, and you can get a private room most of the time. I'm traveling to Hokkaido this September! Was there last September during the earthquake and it kind of ruined ALL my plans, so I'll make up for it this year. Such an amazing place, honestly.
I've stayed in them in the past! I travel with too much gear now to use them though~ gotta keep my cameras and whatnot safe lol. I hope this year's trip is amazing for you!
I travel with 1 camera and 2 lenses (35mm and a zoom lens most of the time) so I don't have any expensive gear left in my suitcase lol. Thank you! And have a good time in Fukuoka! Kyushu is the destination for a future trip to Japan (along with Shikoku).
Hope you went back to Onsen and chill! Oh by the way that's my nephew's town and if I ever go there nice info of your hotel...hope it was good stay!!!!! :))
Hi. Great video. We're booked into an ICI hotel in Tokyo later in the year. I'm assuming that it will be similar to this- do you have any experience/opinions of the chain? Thanks very much in advance. Kerry
Omg the accident-prone Norm is kinda endearing 😊 but I guess what I like most is your attitude, you just accept something went wrong and move on 😤. I'll try to follow your example and stay positive when travelling around alone in Japan !
![Inside a NORMAL Tokyo Apartment - [Not So TINY!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RMwwjoBc1UM/mqdefault.jpg)
A simple hotel... But one with a lot to offer in that tiny space!!
Also, hello from Fukuoka! What shall we do while we are in Kyushu....
(leave me your thoughts below!)
Oh go see the Nyoirin-ji (Kaeru-dera) , the frog temple, it's near Fukuoka!!! I challenge you not to take pictures, lol, nah take pictures, you'll have a blast there!! Please let me know if you go!!!
there is even a frog in their Goshuin "stamping"
Hi Norm
We don't bother with fancy hotel's, if it's got a comfy bed tv and shower that's fine.
But I must say love the phone idea, would come in handy if struggling to get a new SIM card to work in your own phone in Japan.
And the usb socket to in the uk they have not upgraded the hotel room's to have on to charge your phone.
🤗😍💙👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻🎎🍲
Stayed in various levels of hotel in Japan across the years. Tend to stay in more expensive ones in Tokyo as tend to be there for longer (think Keio Plaza, Hilton or Hyatt Regency in West Shinjuku). Outside of Tokyo tend to go for smaller cheaper ones although it varies on the deals available. If I remember correctly in Hokkaido I stayed in the Mercure in Sapporo which was fine whilst Fukuoka was the Ana Crowne Plaza. Osaka has been very varied including the Hotel Monterey Grasmere Osaka which is quite odd as there reception is on a very high floor but still has a large open area next to it with a full size English style church in it for weddings! The worst I had was a small business hotel in Nagoya, very small, hot and a huge step up into the unit bath which was a pain in the middle of the night.
Best business hotel I stayed in was actually in Kyoto, south of the station. When I stayed there, about 7-8 years ago now, it had just opened and was clean and quiet being slightly away from the normal tourist areas.
I would add Holiday Inn ANA Kanazawa Sky was good in Kanazawa, reasonably well placed, walkable from the station and an awesome panoramic view of the city from their reception. The last hotel I used in Osaka was good too but I'm not mentioning that as I want to use it again and it's only small 😜
A video of a guy in a hotel room, quite simple, but somehow Norm, you manage to make it entertaining and fun.
Love the bloopers, you should make a compilation of bloopers from old videos.
I have some hotel experience and i was amazed by the free cellphone service...never seen or heard that before.
Thanks for the nice work as always, good luck ;D
Thank youuuuuu (^-^)
I never understood the need for larger hotel rooms. In my , admittedly limited, experience. I really only need a hotel for bag storage and sleeping.
Spot on!
Also, love the bloopers.
I agree... I too was eager to explore all day. I got up at 4am... Thanks jet lag... but forced myself to stay up late. I am an early riser anyways.
Agreed- clean bed, clean bathroom, I'm happy. Bonus if there's a place to open a suitcase that's not the bed (I travel with hubby so it can get a little tight in some places while we are trying to pack, taking it in turns!)
@@Gantorin I got up early the first time too, lol. Then I realized that Tokyo apparently doesn't open until 10am :P
Thank you for everything you do. You are one of the most talented J-Vloggers on UA-cam and it shows. I can see the passion that you have of both photography & Japan through each video and I'm so glad I get to enjoy the ride each week all the way from America. You are such an inspiration to me to pursue my dreams of being a digital creator and to travel to Japan. I hope one day we could nerd out about gear and Japan! Can't wait for the next video.
Loved the bloopers! Interesting tour of your room & hotel. I agree about the phone. Nice touch. I like the Japanese hotels. We have too much space in hotels here. Usually I don’t stay in the room. I’m ready to go out & explore where I go. The only time I spend time in my room is at the beach. It’s sitting on the balcony relaxing, people watching & the waves are soothing. Glad you are sharing your adventure & travels on your channel.
Thank you for including the bloopers, it's nice to know other people have a day like that too. Nice room, I liked the extra door.
7:36 That switch for the WiFi is genius. Interference is a real thing and a reason why WiFi isn't as good in crowded cities as compared to more open areas. Sure you can change the WiFi channel you are using but as most people are technically inclined to set it up properly, and with limited channels to work with it slows everything down. By setting their access points to an on/off switch this essentially solves the interference problem and the network congestion problem by eliminating unnecessary devices on the network. I hope the internet in the hotel was quicker compared to most places.... they seem to be doing things right ;)
I love this comment! Thank you so much for sharing that~
Hearted and upvoted because high value! lol
One of my favourite and unexpected hotel experiences in Japan was in Hakone. We had booked a standard room at the Hakone Hotel right on Lake Ashi in early April. When we checked in, someone escorted us to our room on the top floor, which I thought was very good customer service. We entered our room, and I immediately knew something wasn't right. This room had a foyer, a bar, massive living room, huge balcony overlooking the lake and Mount Fuji, a bedroom bigger than my condo and ginormous marble bathroom! I told the woman that she brought us to the wrong room, and she said no, our original room was taken by a tour company who booked out the whole floor, so they gave us a free upgrade. Best night ever! We got a free drink at their very lovely bar, and their onsen was fantastic. They have a restaurant as well, but we opted for conbini food to save some dough instead lol. The hotel is a bit old, but every room gets a lake view, and the amenities are great!
I'd love to see more hotel videos!
I’m coming back to these older videos to try to plan a Japan trip, and also just because they are entertaining. Thank you for your help, I love your content!
As I work in a hotel, I enjoy seeing different hotels and the varieties! Thanks for sharing!
I stayed in a couple of business hotels a few months back and first off..that room is lucky to have more than 2 outlets. Noticed that most "newer" business hotels comes with a smart phone you can bring around as well. I stayed in quite an old one as well at Ikebukkuro..wasn't fantastic as it was from the 70's but hey it was clean and I got to sleep.
"AAAAA, I forgot its wet!" is the highlight of this video. LOL
a truly terrible moment lol
At least he knew it was just water and not a mystery wet seat on the bus 😂
Thanks for the tour and the live stream earlier, also a smartphone to use in your hotel room that's too awesome, and that food bar. Hopefully if you are out in the North Carolina area of the US I don't miss you again. Thanks for another amazing experience through your videos.
Hokkaido is such a lovely prefecture, I stayed in Sapporo for 3 days on my last visit to Japan, and ended up meeting so many fun people. Truly one of the highlights of my trip.
Had a free to use smartphone in my business hotel in Osaka and Sapporo too last winter! We actually used it for directions on Google Maps, very convenient
Bless you! I think one of my favorite Japanese hotel provisions was the pillows on my Yuda Onsen "western" style bed. One side was soft, the other hard 😂 and neither was overly comfortable. Seems like they're offering more space and outlets in the business hotel rooms. Charging all the gear on previous trips has definitely been a challenge.
Yo Norm, a viewer from Bosnia, been a subscriber probably from the beginning of the vlog. You never fail to entertain, love the bloopers man! haha
I have stayed in Toyoko Inn and APA Hotel in Japan, and the Hokkaido hotel is definitely a step above these! Thank you for sharing, Norm!
I loved some of the hotels I got to stay at while they were doing the Go To Travel campaign. 4 star hotels for hostel prices. Was amazing!
Somehow missed this video but glad I found it! The bloopers at the end are the best!!
Love the WBF chain, they're pretty new so most of the time you're guaranteed to get a newish place to stay at. I think comparing the different chains is probably a more interesting way to see what ones are the "best" to stay in. Love your vids keep it up!
Yeah Mr. Norm! The blopers were great and what a really cool hotel! I really appreciate the walk around!
We gonna get to see KiKi!?!? 🥰 and...
Still waiting to watch you play Shamisen!! 🧐
KiKi content coming very soon!
Awesome room tour, Norm! Did not know about the on-demand ticket machine stuff!!
I love these videos! I’ve stayed in my fair share of hotel rooms around the world, and those Japanese hotel rooms look quite nice. Certainly nicer than some of the inexpensive hotel rooms I’ve rented in places like London, Paris, or Berlin.
After college, I met up with three friends in Berlin for a week. We figured we could get a decent room if we pooled our money and got one big room instead of getting separate rooms. The room was a decent size - it had three narrow single beds and a sofa that was about the same size as the beds - but the problem was the bathroom. There was a toilet, there was a shower, there was a sink. What wasn’t there was a wall. The toilet, shower, and sink were right there in the room. Not ideal for four college friends. Amy hotel room that has walls around its bathroom is a nice hotel room, as far as I’m concerned!
on our two previous stays in Japan, my wife and i stay at AirBNB's, so u can stay in truly local places nestled deep into suburbs of Japan. Drawback of AirBNB was getting cancelled on three times in 2018 on our second trip, but we were able to secure new places to stay. We ended up with a massive reservoir of coupons though thanks to these cancellations, and enjoyed a local holiday in Australia with them. Staying at an AirBNB again this sept, just 3km from Shinjuku along the Keio Line
My entire weekend looked like your bloopers. Glad I am not alone.
I never stayed in a Hotel in Asahikawa because I have a house, so I was not aware of the features of this hotel, I love the station it is quite new, I remember the old one falling apart and the great mall.
Hey Norm! Great video and would say this is hotel is slightly above average of the business hotels I’ve stayed at in Japan. I’ve stayed at APA, Sunroute, Toyoko, and Super Hotel and also stayed at a couple smaller chains:
- Hamacho Hotel in Tokyo; bigger rooms but the same modular bathroom. Very close to the Tokyo City Air Terminal so easy to get to Narita and Haneda by limousine bus
- Shizutetsu Hotel Preizo Hakata; small room but the washroom was huge and an amazing buffet breakfast (no ice cream though). About a five minute walk from JR Hakata station
You can get some great deals at all the chains and for me the added feature I like is they laundry machines which is great when you’re travelling with only carry on.
Keep up the great videos!!
In general my experience with Japanese westerhotels are modern and good looking,
The Tokyo room (3 *) was quite small, but outside Tokyo it was more wide rooms! Nice to you visit differents spots. Keep on going!
I love hotels with onsen! This looks perfect if you're on your own. What I find tricky while hunting for Japanese hotel rooms to share with my partner, though, is that hotels will often advertise this size bed as fit for two people! And as we are not tiny Japanese people, we have to be really vigilant about bed width...
My wife and I have visited Japan many times, but it was the last two years we did some extensive travelling. (Note: She was born in Kyushu, so we mainly visited her hometown.) The last two years though we traveled extensively and only spent four days in her hometown (eight days total over two years). While we were travelling we spent nights only in business hotels. Every room was very tight on space with very little room on the floor to open suitcases. It was interesting to see the available floor space in the hotel room in this video. I've only seen a couple of your videos about hotel rooms, so I wondered if the spacious hotel room in this video was unique. All of the hotels we stayed at limited floor space. Thanks. (Thumbs up on the video.)
I'm enjoying this hotel room series. I used those free phones on my last visit because I was picking up my ivideo wifi the next day and the hotel rooms general wifi wasn't working. You should do a typical business hotel in Asakusa as that's the best area for inexpensive hotel rooms in Tokyo IMO. Maybe add a capsule hotel and one with bunk beds to cover all options for folks coming to Japan.
Just now catching up on all the videos since my summer job just ended, seems like it's been a hectically busy few weeks for you recently xD. Loving these bloopers in the past few videos!
the bloopers killed me xD
nice video, I enjoy this kind of "hotel in Japan" series :D
The phones are a fantastic idea - if they continue with this it will mean you won't have to go through the issues of renting one! :)
One of the most interesting stays in Japan was when a group of us stayed the Mt Daisen area, in Tottori prefecture in Western Japan. It was really cheap ( about 1000 yen a night) . It was apparently a school camp with dormitory accomodation and it was freezing! Our university professor had to go back to the local discount store to get us a towel each because had none.And pretty much all that was available for breakfast was various styles of rice.( As well as miso soup and pickles.) A couple of our classmates went for a walk to find some alcohol , got lost and ended up near some sort of shrine where they got a fantastic breakfast from the locals, which left us green with envy! So I think your hotel stay is lovely and comfy by comparison.
Hope your head is feeling ok! :)
Lot more room in there than normal business hotels 😂 stayed in numerous business hotels ... and a few fancy onsens ... my new reality is living here, it changed my perspective immensely
Thanks for the tip for Asahikawa. I’m in Fukushima but I plan on traveling around Hokkaido soon! Ive found Business hotels are usually pretty good/cheap. But be careful to specify “non-smoking” when booking.🤣
I like the divider door and the phone, those are nice little extras
Poor Norm! I feel sad for all your little mishaps, yet extremely happy you shared them lol
OMG!! 😂 I just commented on your last video that I was planning on heading north next time! That’s awesome! Thank you for sharing 😁 I usually stay at hostels, but sometimes do splurge on an actual hotel room when I can find one at a decent price. Can’t wait to see your Fukuoka adventures ❤️
Fairly basic business hotel i would say. But i love that its got a lot of room to walk! And the slide door is new to me!! I always stay at the same business hotel that’s almost everywhere in JP n seeing how big a room is outside of tokyo always amazes me.
I’m not sure if APA hotel is considered business hotel but the first and last time i booked a room was in the asakusa area, the room was so fancy it made it to my top fav jp hotel rooms😅
Anyway, thanks for the bloopers! Hahaha! お疲れ様でした！
I stayed on the cheapest APA hotel room.. it was soooo small! I squeezed in my suitcase and I sometimes stepped on my bags. Service was AMAZING and the free water and PJs was nice. But the room was small, but I can't ask for much when I spent like $60/night lol
I think that that is a really super nice little hotel. I love the bath things that’s really cool!
Both hotels are really good. I do like that wifi switch. The bloopers had me laughing a lot.
Hahaha I understand the "It's one of those days" feeling. I was wondering why there were drastic cuts in the video and the bloopers definitely solved that mystery. Super funny! xD
lol yea... it just didnt go smoothly at all (-_-)
The smartphones are a great idea. The rooms look nice. It's all you really need when traveling.
So sorry about your close encounter with the door. Ouch! Thank you for the room tours. They were interesting and informative.
Malinda lol that door and I just did not get along 😂
1,000-yen to rent a computer is really not a bad price. For a “standard” hotel, this is really a cute little room and would be a great place to crash for a few nights. I was shocked by all that floor space 😮
Oh wow Norm!! You were in Asahikawa Hokkaido!! My dad lives 2 hours away from Asahikawa (although I’ve lived in Canada for most of my life)!! I wish you could show more of the actual city sights-to-see... Do you have more footage of Asahikawa to share later??? ~Peter onomeisterより
It’s good to see you got to Fukuoka okay! Saw your Instagram stories.
One thing you will notice is the hotel rooms in Asia don't have mirrors facing the beds. It's due to feng shui principles. I ended up having to cover the mirrors with blankets when I stayed at the hotels in Europe or the United States. Sometimes the front desks ignored or reluctantly obliged my request to cover or remove the mirrors.
Hotel Villa Fontaine Kayabacho in Tokyo is a decent Hotel, the breakfast menu might not be the best for some but it does have variety, but i really like the rooms they have
its also a business hotel like the ones in this video
that phone seems like it would be really useful!
The last time I stayed in a "hotel" it was more of a hostel, but like...a nice hostel? I shared a room with four other girls in my group, so at least there were no strangers, but it was in new york in early spring and the heat in the hostel was unbearable to the point where we opened our window at night, and one girl put her drink on the outside of the window ledge to cool it down and I was terrified it was going to fall. But we were like half a block away from Central Park and we could see it from the window, so that was fun.
Fukuoka is such an amazing place, if you haven't been to Dazaifu it's a very picturesque temple.
I'd love if you went to Wakanai up north... There are some cool fortifications and people also!
That water on the chair blooper really cracked me up. I normally don't care about the size of the hotel room as it mainly a place to sleep before you set off the next day but some tokyo hotels (at least the cheaper ones I went to) make me a bit claustrophobic. I refuse to put my suitcase on the bed so I like it when there is at least enough room for it.
Yes! I love the bloopers! Glad your head is okay though.
I believe they do the TV pass cards, because many business people are staying in the hotel at their company's expense. The pass card allows the salaryman to purchase whatever TV or movies they want, without it showing on the company expense bill. Thus maintaining privacy, which is even more important in Japan.
I recently stayed in a small hotel called the Hotel Route Inn Ichinomiya Ekimae when I visited my friends hometown. It was small like yours, but it was absolutely perfect. It was right next to the train station and it even had an onsen on the top floor. If you ever get a chance to visit Ichinomiya I highly recommend it!! Try to make a trip to visit Inuyama castle too, great history to that one!! 😊❤️
Thanks Victoria!! It has been added to my list!
Tokyo Lens Awesome!! I’ll definitely look forward to watching the video on that!! 😄
I kinda want to grab some pens and colour in that fancy wall!
Laughed so loud when you sat on the wet chair! 😂
Dee I want to colour in the wall too 😂
As usual, good, practical information presented in an entertaining way. You have certainly found your calling!
A lot of people seem to require something extraordinary in a hotel room, but the point is that you're going to be sleeping there, and not much else.
The people who designed the layout gave a lot of thought to what people might need and what would be superfluous.
The small touches are wonderful and very interesting. If you were going to stay in Hokkaido and wanted good, basic accommodation, who would need more?
it really was the perfect little spot
super close to the station
small without being too small
and big without being too big!
Nice video, on my last trip to Japan I tried Airb&b, good and cheap option, on our last day in Tokyo tried APA Hotel in Shinjuku next to Godzilla Head, very modern inside but limited space if you got lot of luggage...
Thanks for the room tour! I’m sorry, but the bloopers really made my day lol Always love your content 💕
Looks bigger than the one I stayed at in Hokkaido!
I LOVED going there! It's a great escape from the Tokyo July weather
Reeeeeeeally is!!
I didn’t expect to learn so many things about Japnese hotel rooms, love it! And thank you for the bloopers xD While I felt bad for you because you bit your tongue, sat on a wet chair and hit your head...it did make me laugh
I stayed in Shinjuku-higarashi... Apa Hotel... Love the floor space.
Watching this on my new phone, and hearing the intro song just sounds great.
lol Thanks Timothy!
That WiFi switch in your Fukuoka hotel is pretty neat, first time seeing something like that in a hotel room.
Yes I'm also noticing the mobile phones in the hotels now days more too Norm!!
Once again, thanks for the entertainment mate and I know how you feel, just one of those days haha 😆 These two hotels are pretty well what I’ll be using for my trip, but hopefully I can stay at just one ryokan 🤞🏻Take it easy bro ✌🏻
I stayed at the B.Conte Asakusa last october and they offered that same cell phone in the room. Had pocket wifi so I didn't need it but it is a great addition to a room.
It really is
And it’s starting to pop up everywhere!
Kinda love it!
Call me crazy but I really love how small Japanese business hotel rooms are... You don't need anything more! It's functional!
I’m gonna be staying in a hotel in Asakusa, from the photos, it looks a bit fancier and it also includes an open-air bath and a public bath free of charge for guests, which is awesome!! BUT I won’t be able to use them because I’ve got two pretty big tattoos which I can not hide😭 I’m excited to try out the japanese super toilet, that will be a first one for me lol😂
you should put bloopers in more often. they're hilarious!
loved this so much :) please make more :D
Nice hotels, interesting to see you get a phone to use. Also what went wrong more, the last podcast or this video ahaha, but it is a shame about the podcast stuff. Nice to see another video, keep it up :D.
hahaha yea it was a heck of a day!
actualy recorded an entire podcast episode after this
and lost it LOL
@@TokyoLens Oof, now that hurts
Another neat video! Thanks norm!
Beware many unit baths! Some of them you have to step up in to and if you're getting up in the middle of the night there is the danger of stubbing one's toe(s) in a sleepy daze (he says from past experience).
Haha loved the bloopers, that's real life right there
what hotel chain do you recommend for people visiting to stay at?
WOW
the free smartphone feature should be a must in every hotel in Japan 😂
Easy for us tourists to go around
That feature reminded me of my stays in Kobe/Hiroshima (can’t remember which hotel though 😂)
It really helps me a lot 👍🏻
They’re a bit pricier than a business hotel but I love ryokans . It feels very homey to me since when I was younger I used to sleep on a futon on the ground
Oh man, those bloopers were so funny :D
Looks like a great place.
That extra door is good to cut down the noise when taking a dump.
Great video as always! I was wondering, what are your thoughts about Hostels?IMO they're great in Japan, and you can get a private room most of the time.
I'm traveling to Hokkaido this September! Was there last September during the earthquake and it kind of ruined ALL my plans, so I'll make up for it this year. Such an amazing place, honestly.
I've stayed in them in the past!
I travel with too much gear now to use them though~ gotta keep my cameras and whatnot safe lol.
I hope this year's trip is amazing for you!
I travel with 1 camera and 2 lenses (35mm and a zoom lens most of the time) so I don't have any expensive gear left in my suitcase lol.
Thank you! And have a good time in Fukuoka! Kyushu is the destination for a future trip to Japan (along with Shikoku).
Hope you went back to Onsen and chill! Oh by the way that's my nephew's town and if I ever go there nice info of your hotel...hope it was good stay!!!!! :))
Blooper reel was hilarious!
It's a cute little hotel, it has all the basics covered.
Just red line it! ;)
Yeah those free smartphones are popping up in more and more places in Japan.
happy to see it!
love the bloopers as always :) Bless you! Why can you make a call on that phone and not Canada that's sad :( I'd have to use my own phone to call home
The sneeze opened a portal to another dimension...the hotel rooms dimension.
lol missed editing opportunity (>_
Hi. Great video. We're booked into an ICI hotel in Tokyo later in the year. I'm assuming that it will be similar to this- do you have any experience/opinions of the chain? Thanks very much in advance. Kerry
Beautiful hotel! ❤
Another cool video, Thank you! I so want to move to Hokkaido...Weird question though, what brand t shirt is that? I like it.
Hmmmm I think it was H&M? Maybe! Lol
Those places look way better than the Tokyo hotel chain from your another video 😃for sure way safer 😁
Norm with another hotel review! I dig it :D
"Ah I forgot it's wet!" Hahahaha best line from the video, please include the bloopers in more of your videos 😂
Omg the accident-prone Norm is kinda endearing 😊 but I guess what I like most is your attitude, you just accept something went wrong and move on 😤. I'll try to follow your example and stay positive when travelling around alone in Japan !
Have, in your travels, seen those little phones in other countries? It's a brilliant idea.
Bless you!