I have a trip planned May 2022. Everything is free cancellation/refundable in case it doesn’t work out.
I am traveling in a group of potentially 8 people. I have a room reserved with 8 bed and 2 showers at Playsis East Tokyo and this is currently our most expensive option ~$2700.
Next option I have is 2 rooms with four people in each. This is at Playsis in Asakusa and is the cheapest option at ~$2050
Last option I have is staying at Imano Tokyo Hostel. Again this would be 2 rooms with four people in each and using the shared bathrooms. This price is in between the other two at ~$2400. I liked this location mostly because of its location.
I have looked at Airbnb’s but they are either way high compared to my current options or they may feel a bit cramped for 8 people.
Based on the options I gave above, which would be the best for a group of 8 people based on price/location.
Oh! All the prices stated above are for 15 nights and would be split between 8 people.
13 comments
Would be worth mentioning what the relationship is between the 8 people.
With 4 of you to a room you are going to be cramped anywhere you stay. Accommodations in Tokyo are already cramped with 2 people to a room. Read all the reviews from multiple sources on these places. If they all seem the same to you then I’d just go with the cheapest. If you care about location I think the hostel in Shinjuku area will be most fun because Golden Gai is nearby and late night yokochos… which means less time in your room anways.
I’d try to talk some people out of this trip. 8 is a lot of people to travel with in Japan. You will waste a lot of time planning, agreeing, meeting up, commuting, getting into restaurants, etc.
Check out [Unplan in shinjuku](https://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/UNPLAN-Shinjuku/Tokyo/294428). Really cool hostel very near to Kabukicho. They offer private rooms or shared dormitories.
IMO Large groups can get tiresome especially if everyone is lodging together.
I might consider pairing compatible groups of 2 up in a large double room and/or find a place with a good public area.
A couple of air Bnbs would be cool and flexible and cost-effective in my experience Tokyo hotels get cramped real quick.
I think either of those options would be similar in cost to the $2700 you mentioned.
Unless some of those people are children, or you’re staying at a suite in the Park Hyatt, four people to a Japanese room is gonna get old very fast. This may be my personal bias showing, but I can’t think of eight people I would go anywhere with for 15 days sharing rooms.
I am a huge fan of business hotels, and a single room each would still be cheaper than your big option. Cheaper but central neighborhoods I have enjoyed include Gotanda, Meguro, and Ueno.
For me a business hotel was fine, but it did smell like cigarettes a little.
Don’t know what each persons budget expectations are like, but the last trip I did in Q4 2019 was 19 nights, group of 8 and it came to $920 – $980 pp and that was staying in upscale business hotel chains like Mitsui Garden and Hotel Granvia. This is for 3x twin rooms and 1x double. Could be cheaper if you went to places like APA or Dormy Inn but I liked the location of the others better.
Was worth it for us since most of the places had free guest bath facilities, generally located right next to good train stations (Yamanote line, Shin Osaka, Kyoto Station). It’s also good not to have so many people cramped together since the rooms are generally small and it’ll get old pretty fast.
Based on location, the first is close to Asakusa, so depending on what you want to do, this is actually one of the popular sport that do have relatively good connection with the city despite not being close to the Yamanote. It depend on what you want to do, but this is not a bad location at all.
Second is close to Yurakucho station on the Yamanote, so pretty convenient.
However, I do not think those are the only two options you have.
So the question is, what is important for you ? if you want to go for comfort and privacy, yes, for sure the first option. If you want to go for price, then go for the hostel option, even if you rend a full dorm in a hostel it will be as comfortable as going alone, but at least if there is just 8 beds in the dorm, you know all the people who are there, so no people coming back late.
If you find an AirBNB with 8 beds, it should not be more crammed than a hotel room or a hostel, but big and cheap places might be a bit out of the central Tokyo area, but you can still check.
For people who suggested business hotels, I do not thing they saw you quoted the price for the group. Someone else gave his price for business hotel and it was at least twice of what you plan.
It’s also a bit early to book something, I would guess that some only open reservations 3 to 6 months in advance. So if you can cancel your booking, then choose one now and do a new search around December or January to see if there is not anything better.
So, you mean 1 person 1 night costs just 2,500 JPY. It’s quite cheap. It amounts to just less than 40,000 JPY for 15 nights a person. In this price range, you can choose just what you want.
But I think staying only at Tokyo for 15 nights is a bit too much. How about considering other areas like Osaka, Kyoto, Hokkaido etc.?
I wish you the best of luck navigating restaurants with an 8 people party. Hopefully ya’ll are planning to do separate excursions and stuff!
Some unsolicited advice: if you’re not VERY good friends with everyone in the group,
1) strongly strongly consider setting clear expectations beforehand around travel style, how you’ll handle situations where 3 people want to do 1 thing and 5 people want to do another, etc.
2) for the love of god, don’t stay 4 people in a room. Just save up a bit more and target closer to $50/night.
You don’t want to spend your extraordinarily valuable time in Tokyo not doing what YOU want and feeling like you have to go along with what the group wants. I’ve been on trips where I can’t leave the group, and wasn’t feeling the vibe, and it’s horrible.
Are you expecting japan to be back open then?