Hotel Listel Shinjuku

The breakfast was the best part, and the staff were friendly and helpful. We stayed three nights, and this works as a cheap place to sleep, shower, and use the toilet while you’re out exploring Tokyo. Staying in the room during the day isn’t so pleasant, though. It’s small, and the AC never worked for us. I don’t know if it was on a timer. We left the window open at night, but the room got hot in the daytime. Shinjuku Station is a walk away, not right nearby. Tokyo places generally open around 10 am, so plan for that. If you just need an inexpensive base, this is an option.

7eleven is right in front of the hotel, which was handy. The room itself was old, with peeling wallpaper, yellowish stains on the walls, and old, discolored furniture. The bathroom looked yellowed too, with mold stains and visible dirt and marks on the walls. At least there wasn’t a bad smell in the room. We couldn’t keep food in the fridge because it didn’t get cold, and things could spoil. In late April, when the weather wasn’t even that hot, our room was still extremely warm. Setting the AC to 18°C didn’t make it comfortable. The elevator and outdoors were cooler. There was no wall-mounted heat pump, just an old, dusty ventilation duct. When we told the front desk, they only suggested opening the windows or using a portable fan. From our experience, I wouldn’t recommend staying here in summer, or booking a long stay just because it’s cheaper. Quality comes at a price.

We left the booking early and found a better room for the same price. This place wasn’t even cheap, and the whole experience felt insulting. The listing said there was AC, but there wasn’t. They tried to dodge responsibility when we raised it. The room was disgusting too. The bathroom walls had mold, the bedroom ceiling was water damaged, and I didn’t want to touch the floor even with socks on. That’s on the owners cutting corners, not the cleaners. Whoever said this hotel was clean must have been paid. We could open the window, but people were smoking and we got secondhand smoke. A dog barked through the night and kept us from sleeping.

There are two entrances, a clear front one and a more hidden back entrance that’s handy. The hotel’s older and shows its age, but it’s good value. My room was a little bigger than the other rooms I’ve stayed in in Japan. There’s a reasonably priced buffet breakfast at the restaurant on site, and Shinjuku San Chome station is a short walk away. A solid pick for a work trip.