Muslim-friendly hotels in Japan with Tulu Tours
We handpick our hotels for Muslim guests in Japan,
and here’s why.
In this article we will elaborate what we classify as “carefully handpicked” when selecting accommodation for our guests. We put in quite a lot of effort and time in the selection of our accommodation, as we believe great accommodation can turn a night’s sleep into a truly unwinding experience.
The Tulu Tours Accommodation Criteria
We have outlined our criteria into hotel comparison and selection for our group and private tours. Read on and feel free to inquire in case you have any questions unanswered.
Location
Japan is generally safe, but we always look for hotels in the safest and busiest areas, so that our guests (especially women) can go out by themselves to explore the surroundings by themselves as well. Of course, proximity to interesting landmarks, activities, shops, restaurants, public transportation nodes et cetera are thought of as well.
Muslim-friendliness
There are no halal-certified hotels in Japan, and personally we don’t think that’s the most important part in looking for accommodation. We endeavour to look for hotels that have a larger-than-standard room size in Japan, so that you can roll out your prayer mat for your prayers.
Most hotels do not offer halal breakfast, and while sometimes there are vegetarian options available, it doesn’t always mean that it’s halal (there might be alcohol added). While breakfast at hotels isn’t our biggest focus, as there are options outside the hotel as well, we confirm with the hotel if there are halal options available. If there is, it’s a big plus for our guests who love hotel breakfast!
Rating
Fun fact: Japan doesn’t have any official hotel rating/ranking system, so hotels basically rate themselves according to their understanding of how many stars they are worth. To give these hotels credit, most hotels endeavour to provide similar standards as other countries with official ranking.
At Tulu Tours we care about what accommodation guests think and experience more than what the hotel states they provide. If we personally haven’t stayed at the accommodation yet, we surf the internet for reviews, ratings, experiences and pictures from guests, so we can create a final judgement regarding the rating.
Regarding private tours
Naturally, when booking a private tour (whether for leisure or business purposes), we select accommodation based on the theme of your Japan travel. If you are looking to showcase the history of Japan to your important Muslim business partners, we may opt for a more luxurious Japanese-style accommodation, such as a long-standing ryokan with private onsen baths, top-notch luxury hotels, or even a more unique Japanese castle stay.
For family travel, we always keep the family structure in mind, especially when you’re travelling with younger children, as they may be in need of more care and room to play. No matter your travel purpose to Japan, we will endeavour to accommodate you accordingly.
Cleanliness
You might think that this is a no-brainer – and you’re right. Japanese hotels are generally quite clean, but we put great emphasis on the cleanliness of the hotel. We also tend to select newer hotels, as the facilities will be newer and cleaner, but depending on the type of accommodation (e.g. long-standing or ancient accommodation types) it may not always be possible (and needed!) to opt for new.
Room size
Japanese hotel rooms tend to be much smaller than hotels in other countries. It’s not unusual to stay in a hotel room that’s 12 square meters in size, especially in larger cities such as Tokyo – and I’m not talking about capsule hotels, which are roughly 2 square meters for a personal capsule (of course utilities are shared in this case). As mentioned above, we select rooms that have enough room for comfortable prayers, and allow you to rest without feeling too cramped.
Beds may be smaller than what you are used to as well in Japanese hotels. We always select beds that are consistent with European sizing or bigger. If we stay in a Japanese-style accommodation, you may sleep on futons (a futon is a traditional Japanese style of bedding that’s laid out on the floor, typically in ryokans).
Overall vibe
There’s no quantitative selection criteria for this one! After comparing hotels on the above points, we just compare the final hotels to their vibe and uniqueness. From the smallest things as how Japanese-like it is and even if it’s Insta-worthy, to say so, we do look for the smaller details that may transform “a place to sleep” into “a place to enjoy and unwind”.
Regarding group tours
Whether it’s one of our mixed or ladies-only tours, with Tulu Tours we always travel in small groups. The reason behind this is to ensure quality time and equal attention for all our guests, as well as to make sure we can all participate in immersive activities at the same time and stay at the same accommodation.
Included in our group tour rate is a shared twin room, unless otherwise specified. This means you will stay with one other person of the same gender in one room. If you prefer sleeping alone, you can ask for a single room (there will be extra costs for this, which is stated in our trip outline). In case we stay at a Japanese-style accommodation (e.g. ryokan or minshuku), you might have to share the room with more people, as well as utilities such as toilet/shower. We only stay at Japanese-style accommodations when travelling with single-gender groups (all-female or all-male).
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Can’t wait to explore and get the most out of Japan, or do you have any questions?
Make sure to get in touch with us through our inquiries page. We’ll get back to you within 24 hours.
Business trip itineraties are also custom-made at Tulu Tours. Let us know if you have any business inquiries.