Exploring Shinjuku and Tokyo on a Budget: Affordable Accommodations and Must-Try Experiences

Tokyo is not only the Capital of Japan but it is also beautiful and colorful! There are surprisingly a lot of things you can do in Tokyo and Shinkjuku that are budget friendly! This includes many types of accomodations and experiences.

During my visit I was about to find a large hotel room (dated) for $58 a night and found many experiences that were free or under $10. There were many food options ranging from $5-$10 and I had a tea kettle, and large miniature fridge plus a complementary amenities kit included in my hotel. For reference, my hotel was next to the red-light district in Shinkjuku and located in a safe area close to everything I needed.

Transportation in Tokyo:

It is common that travelers buy the "JR travel pass" but I wouldn't recommend it if you are intending on staying in Tokyo. The local train rides were very affordable and that includes "outer Tokyo" which includes Shinjuku and Shibuya which are very popular areas. Local trains range from about $1.25-$2.00 per trip which is quite affordable considering the distance. The easiest way to remember the train system is that it is color coordinated circle with initials in the middle for the train route that are easy to remember.

The JR travel pass would save you money if you plan on going to several locations that are far away like Osaka and Kyoto. Currently this trip would cost you nearly 13,080 ($92.47) yen one way and a 7 day JR pass which includes this long trip is 50,000 yen ($353 as of December 13, 2023). It is important to note that the prices of individual one way train rides from these further locations can be as much as $160 during peak season. Another important note is that the local transportation isn't always covered by the JR pass because the JR line is only one of the train lines in tokyo. Feel free to ask questions below if you need help.

Tokyo Accommodation options:

You'll be happy to learn that there are many options for budget accommodations in Tokyo including Capsule hotels, hostels, and budget hotels.

The neat thing about Japan is they have capsule hotels which are essentially private hostel beds. Unfortunately there isn't much space provided. This is similar to a regular hostel which is focused on providing a community space for many people to use. The private sleeping area in the capsule hotels is a nice touch.

The hotel that I stayed at was dated as I previously mentioned but very clean none the less and the staff was very welcoming. If you are interested in the hotel I stayed at it is right on the edge of everything in Shinjuku. The rooms were dated however it was more important for me that we had more space rather than newly remodeled furnishings. The hotel room was very clean and the space made it worth it. The staff was kind and the location was perfect. It exceeded my expectations for what I was looking for but I do want to remind you that it is dated. Anyways here is my affiliate marketing link through Expedia or you can click on the next two photos for the hotel information, enjoy! I paid about $58 a night and it was the best deal I found for room size and location. Here is a sneak peak of what it looked like inside as well!

Back to exploring!! We were just in awe of the different fall colors all over the city. We went to walk the imperial palace garden but it wasn't open the day we went. Here's a friendly reminder to make sure you places are open before you go, haha.

If you are looking for a more unique accommodation you can follow my affiliate link to HomeStay which is a site where you can "find a home away from home" and stay with locals. There are a variety of options here that allow you a more culturally immersive stay option.

Budget Experiences in Tokyo

Exploring Shinjuku and Tokyo on a budget can appear to be difficult from the outside but we found that it was much easier for us to stay within our budget because many of the local attractions are priced fairly

Shinjuku Gyeon National Garden is a way that you can learn about the Japanese culture through nature. Within the garden there is a beautiful greenhouse and a traditional japanese garden for your enjoyment. The entrance price is 500 yen ($3.53).

Meiji Jingu Shrine which is located near Shibuya is another way to learn and enjoy the beautiful Japanese culture for free. There are additional shrines you can visit across Tokyo but be sure to observe local customs when visiting.

Shibuya Crossing is an iconic destination where you will see chaos work well since it is the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world.

Tokyo Ueno Zoo has an entrance fee of 600 yen ($4.23) per person for adults and additional discounts for seniors (300 yen) and students 13-15 years old (200 yen). Children under 12 can enjoy the zoo for free. We went to the zoo and were amazed at the size, layout, snack choices, and animals in the parks. They have several types of primates and panda bears that were happily eating their bamboo snacks!

Tokyo National Museum was incredible and had history from all over Asia and of course local Japanese artifacts and history. Adults can enter for 1000 yen ($7.05), University students can enter for 500 yen with ID, and persons under 18 and over 70 can enter for free. Aside from several buildings full of history you can enjoy different activities and you can eat on site in a traditional japanese garden tea house. There are also tea houses and a garden that you can walk around if you don't want to enjoy lunch here.

When you think about budget travel for Tokyo Japan consider walking the different gardens, parks, cafes, alleyways, shopping areas, and train stations are also free things you can do within the city and you will see so many different unique things that this might be the best part of your trip. It will also help you find great local cuisine outside of the tourist traps that have high prices.

The prices I shared are during November-December 2023 and a great travel tip is to travel to Japan outside of the tourist season. If you visit from November to March you will be able to find lower prices on flights, food, and accommodations. Because it was a warmer fall than normal we were even able to see the trees change colors during peak foliage season.

I would also like to note that there were water fill stations in the zoo and museum and we were able to bring in water bottles and snacks. This is a great advantage for travelers on a budget.

If you're looking for a Sim card to use throughout your stay I ordered mine ahead of time because I was staying longer than a few days and I didn't want to over pay at the airport. I purchased a 30 day sim card which is linked below for your convenience through my Amazon affiliate link. This particular one was very fast and efficient. It took about 5 minutes for it to activate on my phone and I had directions by the time I was through customs. I used this in Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto and had great service everywhere. This also came with a sim card holder with several slots as well as the sim card extraction tool. FYI this is for data only, not for text and calls. I use apps like Whatsapp and Social Media to keep in contact with people during my travels.

<- Sim Card

Thank you for reading my blog, don't forget to sign up for my email list for more travel tips and travel hacks around the world. Traveling doesn't have to be expensive so long as you plan and are resourcesful. Tokyo can be friendly for most budgets and you can find different ways to save money within the city. Let me know your best budget travel tips for Tokyo in the comments below and don't forget to subscribe to my email list for more budget travel ideas! Cheers!