Staying at a Business Hotel in Japan

Although I try to seek out small and privately run accommodations with traditional rooms when I visit Japan, sometimes those are not that easy to come by. So, my fallback is a business hotel.

Not that I do much business when in Japan, but these convenient, cheap hotels, often in strategically clever locations like major transport hubs, are a great way to rest in comfort, and to travel with ease.

If you are moving around a lot, have an early flight the next day, take day trips by train… these are situations when staying in a Business Hotel will probably reduce stress and save time.

And sometimes, sitting and sleeping on the floor, lounging in yukata while slurping your green tea can become a bit unfamiliar, and you just want your creature comforts, Western beds , private bathrooms – so only a hotel will do.

They are reasonably cheap, but not the cheapest – to pay less, you can try a hostel or a capsule hotel.

What are Business Hotels?

Growing up in Europe, a “Business Hotel” was something quite fancy and international – the now defunct “Interhotel” chain of Eastern Germany, or, later a Hilton or Steigenberger group hotels. Big hotels by international chains, four stars and up, and always expensive.

But a Japanese Business hotel is different. Yes, they were initially designed for salarymen going on business trips away from home. The rooms were small but quiet and comfortable, and came with lots of amenities. Often, a breakfast or at least free tea and coffee would be served. They have been in existence since the early Showa Era and became very popular during the 1980’s Economy boom.

Advantages of a Business Hotel

There are many – I am listing the ones that have let me decide to stay at a business hotel.

• Locations very convenient for public transport, often next to major railway stations
• The price – very competitively priced
• Uniform (usually high) standards of hygiene and cleanliness
• Very good Check-in hours, often late into the night, often self Check-In but staff on site
• On site laundry, lots of amenities

Disadvantages of a Business Hotel

I cannot think of many, to be honest. Of course, a business hotel isn’t a full-service hotel but at the price points, that comes without saying.

• English not always spoken but professional staff open to using translation apps.
• Smoking Rooms in some hotels – double check you book Non-Smoking if you’re not smoking.
• The rooms tend to be on the smaller side, yes. But I always found them large enough for two people.
• Due to room size, may not be suitable for small children.
• They can be a bit featureless and bland in decor.

My first business hotel experience

On my first trip to Japan, in 2004, internet booking of hotels was possible, but cumbersome. Normally, I’d book through a tour operator, and usually get a tourist hotel. When I first visited Japan, I asked friends of friends for hotel recommendations and managed to book a modern ryokan – probably by email or fax – and I Also booked a four-star hotel through an operator. I remember that I made many hotel reservations either directly on the hotel web sites, or by email or fax.

I felt pretty bold, going to Japan not speaking the language at all, not going on an organised trp, but I had support from a friend of a friend who met me in Tokyo, took me to museums and cafes and helped me buy cheap Shinkansen tickets and book a cheap hotel in Kyoto which was my first business hotel stay ever. I was slightly in shock when I entered the room. It was so small! However, I slept well, and it really was cheap. And in central kyoto.

The year after, travelling with my then partner, we wound up at a Toyoko Inn, pretty much the archetype of the classic cheap clean business hotel. We had a very strange room, two connecting roomlet with a single bed in each, and a connecting corridor with a bathroom – meant for two business people travelling together. It’s a classic Toyoko Inn feature called “Business Twin”.

Features of a Business Hotel

Business hotels often run on quantity so are often quite large, with many small rooms. The standard room is a single, which is equipped with a 110-150cm wide bed. And it’s small. A double would be a larger room with two beds – what you won’t find is the Kind Size bed of the upper Western style hotel.

It will always have a private bathroom, often with a minuscule but deep bath tub. The rooms are well equipped with a refrigerator, coat hooks, slippers, a TV, clock, radio, WIFI and often cable LAN as well, room spray. There is usually a small desk with a relatively comfortable chair to work on

Usually they are open 24 hours a day, and will usually be staffed, if somewhat minimally, expecting travellers to use the Self-Check-In- Machines. Luggage storage is usually available before and after your stay, and usually free. Likewise, receiving and forwarding luggage is possible with most business hotels.

The lobby will have a functional seating area somewhere that doubles as a breakfast room and a cafe during the day. There will be an ice machine and drinks vending in prominent position as well as on several floors, and laundry facilities are always available.

My favourite Business Hotels

Business hotels are usually part of a chain, of which APA Group, Dormy (Dormy Inn and Onyado Nono), Prince, Sotetsu (Fresa, Pocket and Sunroute) and Toyoko Inn are the most well-known Japanese Business Hotel chains. Are they the best? I couldn’t tell, you , since I have only been to a few, but I can certainly recommend my personal favourites.

You can normally book Business Hotels using third-party booking sites. I use Booking.com as my preferred booking site, but let me tell you, when it comes to Japanese Business Hotels, especially in low season and on weekends, you may make substantial savings by booking directly. Not all their sites are that easy, but they normally offer an English option, but note that not all reservations on direct bookings are refundable – so if you want to take advantage of the Free Cancellation option, I still recommend Booking.

Toyoko Inn

Good old Toyoko Inn is the stalwart of cheap but decent business hotels Founded in the 1980’s, they provide comfortable and utterly reliable accommodation for solo travellers as well as groups.

I have stayed in a few now, and for the money, they provide excellent value. They are extremely homogenous, starting with their build style of beige monoliths with quadratic windows, and the blond wood and blue room styling. Very often, they will also operate a free shuttle service from major railway stations.

I really like that even though they are cheap, they offer quality – their bed linen and pyjamas are made from good cosy fabric, the mattresses are good quality, and bed lights, kettle, TV – everything is within easy reach and works.

What I don’t like any more is their breakfast – it really wasn’t good last time I stayed. And of course, these hotels are huge.

Their old logo has a 4&5 on it, signifying that you can get rooms for 4000 and 5000JPY. This may not be the case any more, but I have booked rooms for about 6000 Yen in very central locations.

So far, I have stayed at the following Toyoko Inns: Most recently, I needed somewhere convenient to crash in Nagoya after arriving at KIX; and stayed at Toyoko Inn Nagoya Meieki Minami. Huge hotel, free shuttle bus from Nagoya Station, extremely functional and tidy rooms – only the breakfast was a letdown. In Osaka, I stayed at Toyoko Inn Osaka Namba some years ago. If you want to explore Dotonbori, it’s the best location, reliable hotel, breakfast I remember as excellent. Last not least, I also tried the Toyoko Inn Shin-Osaka Chuo-guchi Honkan. It’s an older property, but excellent if you are coming off the Shinkansen and have a flight the next day since it’s very close to the station and the Airport Express (Haruka) stops at Shin-Osaka. If you prefer to book directly, you can do in English on the Toyoko Inn Offical Website.

Indies: New Nagano NeXT

Although most business hotels you come across are part of a chain, don’t discount any independent hotels you might come across. If you are in Nagano, I very highly recommend this hotel – one minute from the train station, cheap, a very friendly place with comfy roms which easily wins top price for the most amenities.

What I really love about this hotel is that it’s relatively small but has ultimate comfort in its small rooms. A bath you can actually sit in, an extremely well designed comfortable bed with nice linen, a little desk, and enough room for luggage.

The small downstairs lobby is stuffed with shelves with all the amenities you can think of, and there is an actual shampoo bar, so if there is a shampoo you always wanted to try, this is the place. Also, you get a shelf full of different pillows, something I only know from pricey hotels, and then, when you are standing wide-eyed in front of the amenity bar, the personnel will hand you two tokens to be used in the hotel’s own vending machine. Being next to Nagano Station, you get a cluster of hotels including some decent chains like Dormy or Toyoko Inn but I would book the New Nagano NeXT if I were to stay in Nagano again. You can also book directly on the hotel website.

Dormy Inn

Dormy Inn is well known for the one that will have hot spring baths attached – free to use for guests. Not just a shared bath, but a proper natural spring (onsen). It proved the major attraction to me, too, so when I finally booked one, in 2024 in Fukui, it was mostly to make the most of the onsen.

The Dormy Inn Fukui is a “Premium” property, and I did like my stay there. Its communal areas certainly looked very upmarket, and the onsen on the floor of the hotel was very nicely done, with a couple of indoor baths and an outdoor bath. there was also a little relaxation room full of manga, and the usual free ice cream one gets at these onsen.

Aside from that, my room was very plain, a bit bigger than a Toyoko Inn room, and comfortable but I would not stay at a Dormy Inn for its rooms – but being able to walk to the onsen in my lounge wear is worth the extra price the Dormy Inns usually cost. Be aware that there are different categories, from the simpler “Express” to the uparket “Onyado Nono” properties. You can also book through their official website.

New Breed and Hybrid Business Hotels

In recent years, especially with tourism increasing in Japan, and more travellers travelling individually rather than with a tour group, a be style of business hotel has sprung up – or rather, a kind of “hybrid”, combining the features of business hotels with amenities desirable by tourists – city centre locations, slightly larger rooms set up for two people travelling together. Some are completely new offshoots, others are established chains that have had some rebranding.

Examples of such hotels are Candeo, Richmond Hotels, Washington Hotels -and the hotels below, which I have personally tried and would recommend.

Prince Smart Inn

This offshoot of the smart “Prince” hotel chain was founded in 2020 and offers pared-down modern style in city centre locations. Everything is staffless, from Check-In to Luggage Storage, so reception is tiny but what the hotels do have in common is a large bright cafe and coworking areas.

I stayed at the Prince Smart Inn Kyoto Sanjo, and I loved it. Firstly, the hotel is in one of the best and most accessible locations near Kyoto City Hall – with a good tourist infrastructure but not too much. Some of my favourite shops like Kyukyodo or Misuyabari Needle are just around the corner, and for a more mainstream taste, you’ll have Uniqlo, Loft and Don Quijote less than five minutes walk away, too. The rooms are good, too! Vers simple in their decor, but extremely well thought out, with daylight, extremely comfy large beds and high quality bed linen. And the best for me was that they had lots of free bicycle parking for their guests! They have a second hotel in Kyoto, the Prince Smart Inn Shijo Omiya, which is great for the Hankyu Line to Osaka and for the Randen tram to Arashiyama, as well as a generally decent and not too touristy Downtown location and transport hub. Their Tokyo hotel, the Prince Smart Inn Ebisu, looks even grander, nd Ebisu is a great upmarket location, both on the Yamanote train line and on the Metro. If you want a more detailed review, I have published one here.

S-Peria Hotels

This chain became a fast favourite when I spent a week in their Nagasaki city centre property. In walking distance from Nagasaki Station and with a tram stop less than a minute walk away, this might not be the most scenic Nagasaki address, but definitely one of the most convenient.

My room was newly renovated, with the traditional Japanese bathroom-separate-from toilet setup, with a huge bathroom (for a business hotel) and a more spacious room setup than standard. I was studying a lot during this time, and was comfortable to spend days on end in that room. But if you are sightseeing, you can easily walk to the port, Dejima, Glover Garden, and you have a direct tram to the Atomic Bomb Museum at your doorstep, so S-Peria Hotel Nagasaki is a great choice for sightseeing, too. You can also book on their official website.

Also, if you stay there, give Hiroshimatei across the road a try – the the nicest okonomiyaki I have had the pleasure to eat and the nicest proprietors ever. And at the back, you have Kariomon Coffee, and indie roaster and lovely quiet cafe with sweet staff who will take you through their extensive coffee menu.

The Small Print

This post reflects my personal opinion and experience based on several Japan trips between 2005 and 2025. They are not a statement of fact about any of the hotel groups mentioned in this post but come from my personal experience. This post was not sponsored, and I did not receive compensation, discounts, or special treatment in exchange for writing it.

This post contains affiliate links to Booking.com. If you book a hotel using my affiliate links, I may make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Please refer to my blog’s Terms and Conditions for further information.

However, I also would like to point out that sometimes you may be able to book rooms at more favourable prices and conditions by booking on the hotel site directly. Some also offer membership for free or a small fee, which may give you further discounts and perks. I tend to use Booking because I sometimes keep my itinerary flexible and I love the no-fuss “Free Cancellation” option on Booking.com.

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