If you find yourself in nearly any part of urban Japan, chances are a love hotel isn't far away. These hotels offer a discrete, inexpensive, and occasionally hilarious way to stay on your travels through the Land of the Rising Sun.
Despite their often gaudy obviousness, love hotels are part of "hidden" Japan for most foreign travelers. While not totally inaccessible (like the flower and willow world) and not incomprehensible without years of study (like a tea ceremony or kanji), there are a special set of barriers that make love hotels difficult to enjoy for most travelers in Japan.
To begin with, despite that fact that a cheesy name in English - ahh, "Elegance Hotel Glass Chateau" - is a sure giveaway that the lodging is lovely, there is usually little or no English available to explain any part of the process. Love hotels are not something discussed in polite conversation and they are not generally accustomed to hosting tourists. Some places discourage non-Japanese speakers, and may go so far as to turn gaijin away.
So, if you want to enjoy the experience of staying in a love hotel during your travel, you need an insider's advantage. Because, unlike the ryokan, onsen, and flea markets of Japan, the literature on Love Hotels is a little thin. Hopefully, this site will go a long way towards helping English speakers experience the wonderful, bizarre experience that is a Love Hotel stay (or rest!).
What is a love hotel?
Love hotels - in Japanese, "rabu hoteru" (ラブホテル) or to the more hip, "rabuho" - have reportedly been around in one form or another for hundreds of years. In modern Japanese society, space and privacy are something of a luxury - ask any college student who still lives with his extended family or expat cursed with paper-thin apartment walls. Necessity, of course, is the mother of amorous invention. Today, these fine establishments (you'll also hear them referred to as "fashion hotels," "couples hotels," or "boutique hotels") vary from the pedestrian to the incredible.
At a love hotel, you can "rest" (休憩: kyuukei) - check in for a few hours during the day - or "stay" (宿泊 shukuhaku) - spend the night. Usually the "stay" only begins after 10 p.m. and you've got to be out 12 hours later. Some places will let you "stay" somewhat earlier in the evening - the sign outside or in the lobby will generally display hours and rates (which change on weekends and holidays).
Rest and Stay rates vary quite a bit from place to place, but it's not uncommon to pay slightly less than you would at a nearby business hotel. Some of the fancier hotels have a wide variety of rooms - you can pay substantially more for quite elaborate offerings. Of course, it's always cheaper to 'rest' than to 'stay,' but a rest is limited to only a few hours.
Due to the often delicate personal situation of a typical love hotel guest, the architecture reflects a focus on privacy and discretion. At many places you can check in without seeing anyone at all by choosing a room at a vending machine or on a lighted board of choices. In the morning you might pay by pneumatic tube or slip a few 10,000 yen bills into a computer to unlock the exit. The Love Hotel Directory explains the ins and outs of specific love hotels throughout Japan.
Why should I stay in one?
There are lots of reasons! First, they are typically a good value. For less than a tiny efficiency at a business hotel, you can get a decent sized room, a queen bed and a luxurious shower and bath. Even better, because the love hotel is intended to accomodate spontaneous - and secret - getaways, you're not expected to have an overnight bag. To compensate, you'll often find pajamas for you and your friend, hair products, face creams, toothbrushes, and bath and shower necessities. It's easy enough to leave your backpack in a train station locker, spend the day out, and crash at a love hotel without having to carry a ton of stuff with you.
Did we mention you'll get free movies on your TV? Okay, sometimes the selection is limited to censored porn, but the upscale places have on-demand movies, video games, karaoke, and other entertainment. You might get pachinko in your room, or special lighting effects with mood music. Many love hotels feature a pretty extensive menu of food, drinks, and fetish toys you can order for delivery or purchase in your room. Condoms are provided bedside, but we can't vouch for their safety - the word is that they are locally made and probably not too reliable. Pack your own! Update: A reader points out that in general, Japanese-manufactured condoms are very high quality. We agree, but will stick to the brand name condoms when it counts - the no-name condoms commonly found bedside in a love hotel still leave us feeling uncertain.
Bathing is important in Japan and love hotel shower rooms are like mini-onsen. Most have standard Japanese showers with the little plastic stools, and a bathtub built for two nearby. More fun places will have rain showers, Jacuzzi tubs with colored lights, aroma and bubble bath options, or a TV facing the tub.
Needless to say, if you're traveling with a paramour, love hotels are worth checking out. However the same romance-focused elements that could make it a sexy getaway for you and a partner might make it a little awkward with a friend. Many hotels use glass between the bedroom and shower room (not to mention mirrors on the ceiling) so privacy is hard to come by.
Some travelers have reported that hotel proprietors may not be willing to sell a room to a same-sex couple. To the extent that we receive reports about hotels that are gay-friendly and "lovely," we'll happily post them, but be aware that same-sex couples might be turned away.
But, are they clean?
Absolutely! Love hotels wouldn't be successful business enterprises if they were not hygenic - the Japanese are fastidious about cleanliness. The rooms in each hotel get quite a bit of business each day and therefore quite a bit of cleaning, which is more than you can say for most business hotels and hostels (the roaches at Kyoto's Tani House hostel made us long for a love hotel). Sure, there are some places that are a little run-down - cheap linens or an old TV - but we've never run across any place that was dirty. If a love hotel isn't up to your standards, let us know and don't stay there!
How do they make money?
"According to self-styled love hotel consultant Vitamin Miura, there are 37,000 of the short-stay inns across Japan catering to 1.4 million couples a day." And they can be quite profitable. "Each of the 43 rooms at Hotel Colorful P&A in Kabukicho averages three occupants a day, generating $8,600 in revenue a month. Additional services, including rentals of school uniforms, doctor and nurse costumes, and other fetishistic accessories, add another 10% to sales. For customers with a bit more money to burn, VIP rooms on the top floor sport rooftop baths with transparent bottoms revealing all to anyone who is in the bed directly below."
"Love for Sale" by Tim Kelly June 5, 2006 Forbes.com