5 coolest hostels in Tokyo: unique yet affordable accommodation

This friendly Kuramae hostel boasts some nifty interior design and a stylish ground-floor lounge and bar that seems to be as popular with local residents as it is with guests. Grab a cup of coffee with a sandwich or omelette in the morning, or come here in the evening to enjoy a few rounds of drinks with friends.

Mixed dormitories start at ¥2,600 per person, while a private twin room starts at ¥6,800 per night, with shared bathrooms, a kitchen and free wifi. There's no curfew, but the common areas all close at midnight, making it better suited to early sleepers. Nui is a short walk from Kuramae Station, and only a 15-minute stroll from Asakusa.

This hostel is a great base for visiting some of northern Tokyo’s top tourist attractions including Kappabashi kitchen town, Sensoji Temple, Ueno Zoo and Kanda Shrine. There’s also a stylish lounge that’s perfect for grabbing a coffee before heading out to explore.

You'll find the standard mixed dorm rooms here (from ¥3,500 per person, per night), but there are also double rooms (from ¥8,500 per night) for those who want a bit of privacy. If you want to work out during your stay, there's also the Concept Room (¥9,500 per night) equipped with Mirror Fit, a mirror that also acts as a fitness instructor with a range of activities such as dance, pilates and boxing. 

Despite being only a seven-minute walk from Akihabara Station, Cocts feels sheltered thanks to its quiet neighbourhood setting.  The hostel has a sleek wooden interior and you’ll find private rooms with tatami mats (from around ¥12,000 per night) for a traditional stay. Groups of up to eight people can book the Complex Room (from around ¥25,000 per night), which is like an indoor glamping site with tents and sleeping bags, plus a big screen projector and balcony.

Every ¥10 per booking is donated to the Stay for Two project, an NPO by the Refugee Assistance Society of Japan, which funds the living expenses of refugees in Japan. It also makes an effort to reduce waste by providing bamboo toothbrushes instead of plastic ones and creating its shop cards out of cloth scraps.

The hipster crew behind northeastern Tokyo guesthouses Toco and Nui are also behind this hostel inside a renovated 90-year-old house in Bakurocho. The exterior is more restaurant than hostel, and when you step inside you'll be greeted at a coffee stand that's open to guests and non-guests alike.

The basement houses a large restaurant and bar, which opens from 6pm and serves light meals that go well with select picks off the wine list. Weekend evenings get especially busy with DJ nights.

There are plenty of accommodation options at Citan, with everything from dorm rooms (from ¥2,200 per person, per night) through single rooms (¥3,800 per night) up to a quad room (from ¥6,800 per night) for up to four people with a library space and speaker system.

While technically not a hostel, this capsule hotel falls within budget and is definitely worth a stay. But be prepared to stay up all night browsing the extensive manga collection of over 5,000 titles, which are curated based on their artistic value.

Located in Kanda, Manga Art Hotel is so serious about its manga that each title comes with reviews and recommendations in both English and Japanese. So yes, there are English-language manga in the mix. All the manga here are also available for purchase in case you want to further your reading past checkout time.

There's also free wifi, shower rooms, in-room safes, comfy pyjamas made in collaboration with Nells (for sale), slippers, hangers and electrical outlets. Women and men are separated on different floors, as with most capsule hotels in Tokyo.