All about love hotels in Japan
Do you know about Japanese love hotels? These are basically hotels where people cant rent rooms by the hour or 2-3 hour blocks. They are not the sleazy dumps on the edges of America cities though. They’re usually pretty nice and some even have romantic themes or dildo vending machines!
You might think that using a hotel would be self-explanatory. If it was I wouldn’t have to explain it to you. Don’t feel bad if this seems weird. My first time in a Japanese love hotel was confusing and odd. I even had odd experiences years later after I was already familiar with the system.
This is Japan. The Japanese can go out of their way to make things totally understandable and/or convenient. In the process they often over complicate things to the point that no one can understand them which creates greater inconvenience.
What is a love hotel?
Love hotels can be found all over Japan. There are usually at least a few near every train station. And there are train stations all over Japan. Some areas are literally filled with love hotels like Uguisudani and Shibuya’s Love Hotel Hill. The prior is where I fucked the super sexy Japanese MILF I told you about before.
These places are usually big, bright and flashy. Love hotels might be called love hotels, fashion hotels, or ラブホテル. They usually have hourly rates listed outside. It might say something like 1 hour rest 3,000 Yen, 3 hours rest 8,000 Yen, overnight stay 12,000 Yen. You can’t do an overnight stay until 10:00 PM or later in most love hotels. And you have to leave early the next morning.
The front doors of love hotels are obscured with walls and frosted glass. A lot of people use these to bang hookers or cheat on their husbands. Inside they will often have a wall of pictures with prices and buttons. The pictures that are lit up are the available rooms. You push the button next to the room you want. Then you go over to the window and pay.
But it’s not really a window sometimes. It can be a wall with a hole or even just a phone. The goal is that the customer never meets the hotel staff face-to-face. Again hookers and cheating are at play quite often. Others just don’t want to be seen coming in or out of what are basically fuck houses. Or to run into people they know. So this allows for discretion.
Ins and outs of Japanese love hotels
This is where the problems can start. Most love hotels will allow foreigners but they want to communicate in Japanese. So when you go to the window and they say something in Japanese you have to respond. If you don’t they might get worried and simply say sorry. Which means you can’t stay there. Then you go on the internet and complain about the racism you faced in Japan.
If you manage the herculean task of exchanging money for the room key you are all set. Sometimes it is a real key. Other times it’s just a square with a number on it. When you get to the room the number above the door will often be flashing. That means your room is ready.
Inside the rooms are usually decent to very nice. They can have big beds, huge TVs that play Japanese porn, vending machines that sell condoms and sex toys, and more. I was in one that was set up like the inside of a doctor’s office. That was pretty creepy but it could be cool if you were into it. Most of the rooms are a lot more normal. And soundproof too. So you don’t hear the lady in the next room going “uh, uh, uh.”
I did run into weird stuff from time to time. Once I overstayed without noticing. My door was locked and I couldn’t get out. A phone rang and the guy said some stuff I only half understood. Then a vending machine near the door beeped and blinked. I kept putting 1,000 Yen notes into it and eventually the door opened. At least the hotel wasn’t on fire! Another time a cleaner entered the room while I was fucking a chick. But she stopped at the little shoe room in the entrance then quickly apologized and rushed out. Oh well it’s all part of the fun!