Thursday, July 2, 2015

Thank God for Airbnb - Lodging in Japan

By the grace of God, (dear God, I hope this doesn't count as using your name in vain), someone told my mother about Airbnb.

At first, she brushed it aside and began checking hotel prices. When she told me they costed around RM200 a night, I decided to check out Airbnb. And lo and behold, I found so many wonderful places at a much cheaper price. 

(Btw, click HERE to sign up and get 25$ off your first Airbnb stay. Yes, it's a referral link. I benefit from you signing up and booking a stay. Just being honest.)

So, where will I be staying in Japan? Here are my chosen (and already booked) places:

*No pictures because you can see them all on the listing's page.

Tokyo2 Bedroom Apartment in Shinjuku
My first booking went unlisted a month ago, so I had to look for another place to stay. Airbnb gave extra credits and I managed to find this place.

Ena
(for Nakasendo trail): Bed and Breakfast
You should check this one out. The design is so unique!

Kyoto
: Family Apartment
The best I could find. Finding a nice and cheap place to stay in Kyoto was quite a challenge, since I wanted one near the station.

Osaka
: Namba Colourful House
Looks small, but mother says it looks nice. Best I could find too. There weren't many choices in Osaka for separate bedrooms, which is something I really wanted.

On average, it is RM130 a night. That's RM70 cheaper than hotels! 

Yes, no free breakfast (except for the one in Ena). But we get a whole apartment to ourselves with portable wifi. 

The host for my stay at Ena offered free rides from the train station to lodge (and back) and to the Nakasendo trail (and back).

Kyoto host is waiving the rental fee for the portable wifi. Which is awesome. (He's the only host that actually charges for rental. The rest don't. But hey, he ended up offering it for free anyway.)

Even though all hosts stated a late check-in time, they allow to leave the luggage first if needed. The only problem I foresee is the little hunt for each lodging location upon arrival. Since they are not hotels, they provided me with instructions on where to find their apartments and how to retrieve the keys. You need to punch in secret codes and all that, just to access the place. A new experience, I guess.

Honestly, I wished someone told me about Airbnb last year. Holidaying is S.Korea could have been so much cheaper (not that it wasn't cheap already). This year's Japan trip is definitely way more expensive, but I'm glad I manage to save on accommodation.

Anyway, I'll write another post on these places once I get back. That's when we'll see if my expectations were met. Till then, I'm quite happy with my choices and I'm looking forward to my stay :)


Check out my other posts on Japan:

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