Sun 8 (サンエイト)

Sun Eight is a clean, discrete and practical hotel in Shibuya - no frills, no crazy sex themes, just a business hotel atmosphere with a love hotel location and price.

Outside

We tried to choose a room at a another love hotel just up the street, but they sent us away, apparently offended by our lack of english skills. We kept walking and found Sun Eight down the hill a bit. It has a welcoming orange and pink sign at the front entrance.  In Tokyo, Osaka, or any of the big cities, we don't think it's worth making any kind of a stink if you're getting a bad vibe from anyone at a love hotel before you check in - there are too many other options and life is short :)

Lobby

Sun Eight had a photograph screen of rooms, most of which looked like typical hotel rooms from Southern Florida.  The available rooms were lit up.  Prices for rest and stay were indicated in the bottom corner of each photograph, along with room numbers so we could specify our request.  There was no privacy screen between customers and hotel staff.  It was very much like a standard hotel.  We went to the desk in the lobby and when we announced our selection the proprietress removed our room key from a rack.  We said we wanted to stay and paid in cash.  Rooms were down the hall with a number that matched the room key.

Inside

The room was very much like a typical Western hotel room.  There was a big window and gauzy curtains, a decent sized bed, and a small, efficient bathroom with built-in shower.  What made the room a love hotel was the discrete vending machine of pornographic material, the ample selection of pornography on the TV and the set of male and female nightwear on the bed.  The bed was comfortable and the room was big enough to include a love seat and coffee table in front of the TV.

In the morning, we received a phone call to see if we’d made any room charges.  This is a pretty standard conversation: you answer, they say some greeting and ask if you have purchased anything in the room that now you need to pay for.  You say no.  They say thank you, you say thank you, voila.  We packed up and left the room by 10 am.  The phone call is an indication that it is time to go.

Leaving

When leaving the room, signs indicate the exit is the opposite end of the hallway from the lobby.