[Travelhappy.info] Japan Love Hotels

[Chris]

If you want to see the real Japan, stay in a Japanese love hotel. They give an authentic slice of Japanese life that's not sleazy but is surprisingly affordable in the land of astronomically priced accommodation

The Sydney Morning Herald has a well written piece on the merits of Japanese love hotels and how they can give you more bang for your buck, both financially and culturally:

Those searching for the "real Japan", fret ye not. The temples and teahouses of Seven Samurai live on, but in modern Japan they do so against the backdrop of a facet of Japanese culture that is seldom discussed and much less considered, but still viable: the Love Hotel.

Forget dirty weekends in seedy Vegas motels. This is an authentic slice of modern Japanese culture in all its neon glory, not to mention a solution to perhaps the biggest headache for visitors to Japan: accommodation. The inaccessibility of the language and the associated difficulties often leave visitors feeling they have no choice but to shell out for an "I could be anywhere in the world" chain hotel.

Contrary to what you might expect, most Love Hotels are scrupulously clean and reasonably priced, and even though you don't have to know a word of Japanese to stay in one, you will be experiencing an aspect of Japan as authentic as sumo and sushi. [read more]

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Posted by Chris to Travelhappy.info at 6/21/2006 12:01:48 AM