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Japan abounds
in accommodations, both westernstyle and domestic. Types
of accommodation vary widely in terms of sue and price.
You can choose to stay in the familiar comforts of a western-style
hotel, or enjoy the comfort and personal attention of
a traditional Japanese inn. |
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Western-style
Hotels
All of Japan's cities have plentiful western-style hotels,
with famous-name chains well represented in all larger
cities. Particularly in these hotels, the staff will speak
English. Especially in peak tourist seasons, it is best
to book far in advance.
Over 400 member hotels of the Japan Hotel Association
(JHA) have consistently high standards of service and
facilities. These hotels will generally have western restaurants,
though better-quality Japanese restaurants are also common
within them. Some hotels also have a few Japanese-style
rooms as well as beautifully landscaped gardens on their
grounds. |
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The majority of these
hotels will have the same amenities as any western establishment,
including the basics of heating, TVs, air conditioning
and swimming pools, with the possible additional services
of interpreters and shopping centers. While the prices
in hotel restaurants tend to be more expensive than elsewhere,
larger hotels may offer as many as 10 separate eateries,
with both western and various types of Japanese cuisine
represented.
In Tokyo, a few deluxe hotels now have unique "executive
salons" for their guests on international business.
For premium rates, these salons provide complimentary
secretarial services, including access to computers and
facsimile transmission equipment. Most of Tokyo, Osaka,
Kyoto, Kobe and Sapporo's deluxe and first-class hotels
have direct airport connections in the form of limousine
buses.
For example, in Tokyo, rooms at first-class hotels are
from a low of V15,000 to Y30,000 for a single with bath,
and Y25,000 to Y45,000 for a twin with bath. The entire
accommodation charge per person per night is subject to
a tax of 5% when Yl5,000 or less, or 8% when over Y15,000.
Service charges are 10% at first-class and deluxe hotels. |
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Business
Hotels
One fairly recent addition to Japan's lodgings which
the cash-conscious tourist will appreciate are Business
Hotels. Found in all major cities and many mid-sized
ones, business hotels are no-frills lodging aimed
mainly at traveling Japanese businessmen. Generally
clean and comfortable these hotels are usually smaller
and offer much fewer amenities than their upscale
brethren-don't expect room service, for example.
But most hotels offer drink and snack machines on
each floor, and usually have a restaurant on the
premises. Furniture and style are western, with
individual baths being the rule. |
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| Business hotels
are most commonly found conveniently close to train
stations. English is usually not spoken at these
hotels, but check-in and -out procedures are the
same ones you'll be familiar with from home. Charges
will average about Y5,500 to Yl0,000 per person;
rooms usually come only as singles. |
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Ryokan
For a stay in the same Japan
as experienced by the most elegant Daimyo of bygone days,
a night in a Ryokan, or Japanese inn, is a must. A room
in a Ryokan is usually a single large, undivided room
floored with traditional rice-straw Tatami matting, with
only a single low table as furniture. Doors are Shoji
screens, and decoration will usually be one or two simple
ink brush drawings or scrolls. Guests sleep on Futon bedding
laid out in the evening by maids. |
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Most Ryokan will have a
communal bath, which is generally for separate sex bathing.
Numerous superb hotspring resorts, known as Onsen, are
in fact Ryokan built on the site of a hot spring. Your
room charge will include one meal, invariably a feast
of delicious, locally found ingredients, and a simple
breakfast. Ryokan meals are generally served by the maid
in the guest room. After the meal, your maid will return
and clear your table, and then lay out your Futon. The
typical lounging wear of a Ryokan, a blue and white-pafterned
cotton robe called Yukata, is also provided.
In partaking of all that is considered elegant and refined
in gracious living in Japan, a stay in a Ryokan requires
following a few rules that differ from western hotels.
For one thing, guests remove their shoes at the threshold
of the inn and don slippers while in its hallways. These
slippers are in turn left outside the guestrooms: only
bare feet or stockinged feet are allowed to tread on Tatami.
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When bathing
in a Japanese communal bath, always scrub down before
dipping in at provided spigots, taking care to wash off
all soap suds. Japanese baths are for soaking, not scrubbing,
and are an ideal place for warm, relaxed talks between
good friends-or even total strangers. Japanese bathers
will often alternate scrubbing with soaking to stretch
out the pleasure and benefits of a hot bath as long as
possible.
Ryokan are found all across Japan, though for the best
experience, you'd be wise to seek out one in a quiet residential
district. Most Ryokan are small buildings of no more than
a dozen or so rooms, often built facing a small garden.
There are some 80,000 Ryokan in Japan, of which more than
2,100 are quality establishments belonging to the Japan
Ryokan Association.
Although Ryokan rates vary greatly, with a few very exclusive
establishments charging high rates, charges are usually
in the range of Y12,000 to Y20,000 per person, including
two meals and excluding tax and service charges.
For the budget traveler, Japan isn't a complete disaster.
Some 80 inns belong to the Japanese Inn Group, which specializes
in welcoming visitors from abroad. These inns are also
quite economical, with room rates averaging around Y5,000
per person, excluding meals.
JNTO has listings of all these inns, which are scattered
throughout Japan. |
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Minshuku
Another unusual way to cut
costs while traveling in Japan, as well as have a chance
to get below the surface of the daily life you're passing
through, is to check into a Minshuku. The Japanese equivalent
of guest-home type lodgings, Minshuku are family-run businesses,
with the rooms rented out being part of the owners' own
home. They are often found in choice resorts and vacation
spots, and feature moderate rates.
As befits their "home industry" status, Minshuku
offer considerably fewer amenities than strictly professional
establishments. Guests, for example, are expected to fold
up their bedding in the morning and stow it away in a
closet, just as a family member would. Minshuku also don't
provide the kinds of courtesies you can expect from a
hotel or Ryokan, such as towels and Yukata.
Minshuku costs are usually about Y6,500, which include
two meals, usually served family style. |
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Pensions
Usually found in areas popular
for sports, such as near ski resorts and in mountains,
pensions are often run by younger people. They will also
often be near sports facilities like boating, swimming,
tennis, hiking and cycling trails and so on.
Pensions are not set up for foreign guests especially,
but their open-spirited philosophy and unrestricted management
styles are usually very accommodating to anyone who's
adaptable. Their accommodations generally fall somewhere
between the homey atmosphere of a Minshuku and the more
pampered amentities of a hotel.
The average cost for one night, without meals, is Y8,000;
or Yl0,000 with two meals. |
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Other Accommodations
Even more off the beaten track
are Buddhist temples, some of which take in overnight
guests. While some temples will allow guests to join in
Zazen meditation, others provide the rooms simply as space
for paying guests.
There are some 360 Youth Hostels in Japan, offering clean
and simple places to sleep at very low rates. A number
of them are open to the public. But others are privately
run and require membership in Japan Youth Hostels, Inc.,
or the International Youth Hostel Federation. You can
join the latter either in your home country or through
its Tokyo national headquarters.
Despite the name, there are no age limits on youth hostel
guests. Compared with other forms of accommodation, however,
there are many more regulations. A youth hostel will usually
cost about Y2,500 to Y3,000 per person, without meals.
In a number of popular resorts and parks, local authorities
have established guest houses called People's Lodges,
which are very reasonable at about Y6,500 a night per
person, with two meals.
Welcome Inn Reservation Center: The Center, operated by
International Tourism Center of Japan, makes bookings
for accommodations that cost less than Y8,000 per person
a night excluding the tax and a service charge. About
730 "Welcome Inns" in various cities, ranging
from Ryokan and Minshuku to business hotels, pensions
and People's Lodges, participate in the program. |
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