For a number of years now, I’ve been doing a lot of work with a brand called Weave Living as my digital marketer and online media buyer alter ego. The company provides hassle-free accommodations to expats as well as Japanese individuals who don’t want to go through all of the rigmarole of renting an apartment the normal way. Fully furnished, these premium units strike the perfect balance between convenience and price. As I was looking at my ad performance one day though, it struck me that rental properties like the ones offered by Weave Living would also be great for travelers planning extended stays in Japan.
Now, anyone who has read this blog for any length of time will know that I am a huge proponent of getting off the beaten path in Japan. While it’s entirely possible to do so on a shorter trip if you’re coming from Asia, most travelers visiting from North America or Europe would be better served by opting to stay a little bit longer. Doing so allows you to dial back the frantic pace of your travels while also providing ample time to dive deep into the local culture. Thankfully, more and more people in recent years are coming around to the fact that anything less than one month in Japan is just too short.
Previously, whenever friends, followers, and family asked for suggestions on where to stay in central Tokyo for long-term stays, I would usually suggest that they look into an Airbnb or a share house for the duration of their trip. Unlike with traditional hotel facilities, these alternatives have all of the requisite amenities required for daily life (e.g., kitchen, washing machines, etc.). Since working with Weave Living though, I can safely say that their listings are by far the superior option on the market. Moreover, the apartments can be leased entirely online, something that is a first for Japan.
Later in this article, I’ll cover how Weave Living’s furnished apartments work for a month or more in Tokyo, including the difference between the furnished and unfurnished lines. Before that though, I want to quickly cover some of the unique market conditions that contribute to making those units my go-to recommendation for anyone looking to stay in Japan for longer than a month.
Why Use Monthly Rentals Over Hotels
Unlike in some other countries, the prices of hotels in Japan are usually set based on the number of guests and not per room (e.g., you’ll be charged 150% of the nightly rate if it’s for two people). This means that couples and families need to pay a lot more than they otherwise would overseas. Of course, in the context of longer stays in Japan, this means that staying in a handful of hotels during your trip can often be prohibitively expensive. As a result, almost anyone looking to visit for at least a solid couple of weeks is going to want to rent a property somewhere in the city center that is furnished.
Though hotels charge on a per pax basis, Airbnbs in Japan tend to have a flat fee per night. What’s more, just as is the case with Weave Living’s apartments, these units come equipped with most of the facilities that one would need for daily life in Japan. Still, while you won’t need to worry about having a room without a kitchen, Wifi, or any furniture to relax on, visitors making use of Airbnbs for weeks on end are going to rack up quite the hefty bill by the end of the month.
By the way, since I know someone is going to ask it, know that ryokan will charge you the full price per guest. So, while you are indeed going to be sharing a large room with friends or family when lodging at one of these traditional Japanese inns, the total cost will be billed based on the number of people staying with you at the property. The reason for this difference is that ryokan serve both dinner and breakfast and thus the fee is set based on the number of mouths that need to be fed.
While it’s anyone’s guess, likely the aforementioned pricing policies that you see at hotels are a historical holdover from ryokan. As is often the case with a lot of things in Japan, no one bothered to update the standard operating procedures as hotels became the de facto places to stay when traveling and the practice just stuck around… Either way, that per-guest pricing is what makes hotels such a poor fit for long stays, since the extra charge for a second or third person adds up with every night you stay.
Serviced Apartments & Key Money
Given that Airbnb is probably going to be cost-prohibitive for anyone planning to stay one month or more, a different solution is required. As you’ll see if you go to Google, Japan has actually long had a number of apartment alternatives for people not interested in the standard style of long-term lease. The kicker is that many of these so-called “weekly mansions” are either hard to reserve without the ability to read Japanese or cater to wealthy expats that are being temporarily sent to Japan by global companies like Amazon, Google, etc.
Since most readers are not going to get their job to foot the bill, the short-term rental offerings from a company like Weave Living are just what the proverbial doctor ordered. Though indeed priced a tad higher than one would pay for an unfurnished apartment, you can skip paying the agency fee and multiple months of key money that one usually needs to fork over at the start of a contract. Moreover, since lease contracting can be completed entirely online, you can have a place before you even land at one of the two airports that serve Tokyo.
As noted above, the price for a furnished apartment at one of the many other players on the market can often be exorbitant. Despite being able to skip paying the agency fee and other upfront costs that normal apartment contracts are subject to, it’s still going to cost you a pretty yen. Thankfully, this isn’t the case with Weave Living’s many properties in Tokyo. Though the furnished apartments will indeed cost more than what you’d be looking for a standard two-year contract in Japan, the pricing includes all utilities and internet access. Thus, for visitors doing one month or more in Japan, the rent is actually comparatively quite cheap.
For those on a budget, there is also always the option of living in a share house. However, while you will indeed get a private room during your long-term stay, a lot of these properties have seen better days (at least according to many international residents of Japan on Reddit). While you’ll need to find someone else to hang out with in your spare time, having your own furnished apartment from Weave Living that is both safe and secure easily beats out the life in a share house for travelers planning an upcoming new adventure in Japan.
Introducing Weave Living’s Properties
Because I work with Weave Living on the marketing side, I see the building list change often enough that naming every property here would be stale by next quarter. What does not change is the offer that actually matters for a month or three in Tokyo. The furnished apartments can be contracted online before you land, they come with the furniture and kitchen basics you need to live, and the monthly rent already includes utilities and internet. You skip the agency fee, the key money, and the guarantor dance that a normal two-year Japanese lease demands.
On the site itself, do not treat every listing as the same product. Weave Place is the furnished, flexible line most travelers and digital nomads actually want, usually on a one-to-twelve-month term. Weave Base is unfurnished stock for people moving to Tokyo the ordinary way and willing to wait on furniture. Finally, Weave Residences is the smaller, more luxurious set of homes in Tokyo. If you book a Weave Base unit thinking you are getting a bed, plates, and wifi on day one, you are going to have a miserable first week.
The buildings keep spreading across central Tokyo. Most of the furnished stock sits a short walk from a station in neighborhoods that already work as a home base: Asakusa, Ryogoku, and Ueno if you want temples and day-trip trains; Waseda if you care about the university side of Shinjuku; Minato if you want the premium address and will pay for it. Check the live Tokyo page on Weave Living’s site for what is actually open when you book, and match the brand to the stay you want before you fall in love with a floor plan.
Digital Nomading in Central Tokyo
Most people who want three months in Tokyo are not on a special work visa. If your passport is on Japan’s visa-waiver list, you are usually looking at about 90 days as a temporary visitor. That window is long enough to live out of a furnished apartment instead of stacking hotel nights, and short enough that signing a standard two-year Japanese lease would be a waste. You use the place as a home base for the stay, then you leave when the stamp runs out.
Japan also has a digital nomad visa if 90 days is not enough and you need to work from Tokyo for a foreign employer or overseas clients. That one runs up to six months and does not renew. You need an annual income of at least 10 million yen, a passport from one of the eligible countries, and private health insurance that covers the whole stay. The country list and the paperwork move, so confirm both with immigration when you apply.
Either path still wants the same room. Hotel hopping for three or six months is a miserable way to work, and in Japan it also gets expensive because hotels bill per person. You want a desk, a kitchen, wifi that is already on, and a door you can close, which is the furnished Weave Place product. Pick a neighborhood that matches how you spend the day, book whatever is actually listed when you are ready, and use the extra time to leave the city.
Until next time travelers…
