Childhood friends on a homestay adventure in Tokyo

Cover image

Childhood friends Samantha and Kayla from the United States were both very excited and a little bit anxious when planning their first international trip unaccompanied. With their sights set firmly on the buzzing metropolis of Tokyo them, they felt homestay accommodation was the best option as it offered a relaxed and friendly environment.

Staying in a homestay with their hosts Yoko and Aki in Shinjuku for five nights didn't disappoint - “wonderful people with a wonderful home”. Here they share their story...

Why Tokyo?

Big cities have always captivated me since I was young. Wandering around the city and dissolving into the crowds was always something I loved doing for some reason, and a beautiful city like Tokyo was pretty much ideal to me. I've always found Japanese culture extremely intriguing and I've been there once many years ago, but this time we got to explore on our own and take in the completely different feel of life on the opposite side of the world.

downtown-tokyo

What appealed to you about staying with Yoko and Aki?

Mainly it was for the convenient location, as I had little idea what their home would really be like just from pictures and descriptions. The fact that Yoko speaks English really helps of course, and they already had many good reviews and I decided to trust them. Turns out I made a good choice!

How did you get along with your hosts?

Both Yoko and Aki work during the day, and we were also out all day anyway, so we didn't do a lot together in the daytime. However, in the evenings we sat in the living room with our hosts and chat, eat, watch TV and play with the cats. There was always something to talk about and every conversation was enjoyable. The mood around the house was always pleasant and they're a joy to be around.

dinner-with-yoko-homestay

Why did you choose homestay accommodation?

While we stayed at a great hostel as well as a homestay, we much preferred the homestay, because we loved being in an actual home and being treated as part of their home during our stay. You have the utilities of an actual house rather than a more dorm-like shared house with many strangers who you might never talk to. We were provided a small free breakfast every day which always made my mornings automatically better. It's simply a warm experience as you can honestly feel at home while in another country.

What did you enjoy about Tokyo?

shopping-in-tokyo

I loved how clean the country is compared to what I'm used to. I personally love how quiet public transportation is and how abundant convenient stores are, how polite store employees are, the shopping in Tokyo, the historic temples and shrines, I could really make a shopping list on things I enjoy about Japan but I'll keep it shorter. One of my favourite things for sure was that we had good timing coming to Japan during New Years. There were many festivities happening and it was wonderful experiencing the New Year in Japan.

Where to next...?

I'm not sure at this moment, but I especially dream of visiting Rome one day. And Venice, Paris, Athens, Okinawa, Osaka... everywhere really. Like many people I've got so much wanderlust and I would travel the world if I could.


Want to stay with Yoko and Aki in Tokyo? Check out their Tokyo homestay or browse our full range of Tokyo homestays.

Older 

 Newer

This website uses cookies