Where to Stay - NipponStays

The view from the terrace at 98WINEs in Yamanashi, looking out under a deep eave across the Kofu basin to the mountains beyon

Japan

A Yamanashi Winery Day Without a Car: Sleep at Isawa-Onsen

One station serves both of Yamanashi's best wineries, and the town to sleep in is two stops away. Train, taxi, and nobody has to be the driver.

Hakodate

Hakodate vs Aomori: Which Side of the Strait to Sleep On

Hakodate fills two days and has the hotel depth from Y18,898. Aomori is the base for Hirosaki and Hakkoda. The Shinkansen links them in about an hour.

Beppu

Beppu vs Yufuin: A Working Onsen City or a Resort Village

Beppu is a city you bathe in cheaply; Yufuin is one ryokan night where meals are included. How trip length and having a car decide it.

A kaiseki course served on a bamboo leaf in a dark lacquered bowl, garnished with a flower

Japan

Ryokan With Meals vs Room-Only: Let the Town Decide

In a small onsen town the alternative to the set kaiseki is a convenience store. In Kyoto it is the whole city. How to read the price gap properly.

Kyoto

Ritz-Carlton Kyoto vs Four Seasons Kyoto: A River or an 800-Year-Old Garden

A gap of about Y62,000 a night at the floor. The Ritz-Carlton takes Bonvoy points and the Kamo River; Four Seasons has Shakusui-en and no points programme.

An evening spread in a hotel club lounge: a plate of charcuterie and salad, a gratin, fried pieces, soup, bread rolls and a b

Japan

Is a Club Lounge Worth It in Japan? Three of Its Four Jobs Are Already Done

Kyoto's two Marriott flagships have no club lounge at all. The Ritz-Carlton Fukuoka inverts it. Where the category still pays in Japan, and where it does not.

Okinawa

Naha vs Chatan: The Answer Depends on Whether You Rent a Car

Naha from Y21,404 works without driving. Chatan from Y38,036 is a beach strip that needs a car to be useful. For four nights, do both in that order.

Matsushima Bay from water level, with pine-topped islands scattered across the water under a heavy grey sky

Sendai

Sendai vs Matsushima: Where to Sleep Is a Question About Evenings

Matsushima is a half-day, so the case for sleeping there is dawn and dusk without the coaches. Sendai from Y35,420 has the evenings. They are 40 minutes apart.

The curved gable entrance of Takegawara Onsen in Beppu, a wooden municipal bathhouse, with a red postbox, two benches and a s

Japan

Onsen Town vs City Hotel With an Onsen: The Answer Changes With the Season

The water is not the difference. A city onsen night is one you were paying for anyway; a town night costs travel at both ends. In winter, pay it. In summer, no.

Ginza

Ginza vs Tokyo Station: Count Your Shinkansen Mornings

A 10-minute walk apart, so this decides evenings not access. Ginza from Y24,538; Marunouchi from Y58,880. The rule is how many Shinkansen mornings you have.

Kanazawa

Kanazawa vs Toyama as a Hokuriku Base: Sights or Mountains

Kanazawa from Y12,300 has the gardens and the hotel depth. Toyama from Y13,042 is where the Alpine Route starts. They are 20 minutes apart.

Japan

Hoshinoya vs Ritz-Carlton Kyoto: A Boat Settles It

HOSHINOYA has no parking and no shuttle, and the boat to the property runs 14:30-17:45. At the floor the two cost within a few thousand yen of each other.