Does this exist in other countries? I’m talking about Love Hotels. There are different themed rooms to choose from, they make money (nearly 3 trillion yen in annual sales), but the downside is they’ve been associated with with gangs and red-light districts. Booooo

I read about Love Hotel investing today on Yahoo:

Japan’s secretive love hotels are opening up to European investors as one player in the sector prepares for a debut on London’s stock market this month.

Japan Leisure Hotels, which owns five love hotels worth some 21 million pounds ($43.68 million USD) in Japan, hopes to lure investors to its IPO with an 8 percent dividend and promises of fast growth — shedding light on a sector that is often associated with sleaze and organized crime.

Japan’s 25,000 or so love hotels have long provided discreet hideaways for couples, some featuring Karaoke machines or vibrating beds. Guernsey-based Japan Leisure Hotels rents out rooms for short stays lasting only a few hours, but the company’s director believes this system doesn’t just appeal to thrill-seekers…

WTF is a Love Hotel anyway? Well… you’ve got to love Wikipedia! Check out what they say… but first some pictures!

A love hotel is a type of short-stay hotel found in Japan operated primarily for the purpose of allowing couples privacy to do some bam bam (aka sexual intercourse.)

Love hotels usually offer a room rate for a “rest” kyukei , as well as for an overnight stay. The period of a “rest” varies, typically ranging from one to three hours. Cheaper daytime off-peak rates are common. In general, reservations are not possible, leaving the hotel will forfeit access to the room, and overnight stay rates only become available after 10pm. They are often used by young couples, since many young Japanese people live with their parents. They are also commonly used for prostitution.

Entrances are discreet and interaction with staff is minimized, with rooms often selected from a panel of buttons and the bill settled by pneumatic tube, automatic cash machines, or a pair of hands behind a pane of frosted glass. While cheaper hotels are utilitarian, higher-end hotels may feature fanciful rooms decorated with cartoon characters, equipped with rotating beds, ceiling mirrors, karaoke machines or decked out like dungeons complete with S&M gear.

Want to know more? Here are some links about these sexy time hotels:
Love hotel information site: http://www.rabuho.com/
Love hotel guide: http://kavp.wordpress.com/love-hotel-guide/
Love hotel pics: http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/galleries/love_hotels/
Love hotel pics: http://www.mistykeasler.com/

Photo credits:
107131542_8be9b5674c_o.jpg by kaishin http://flickr.com/photos/kaishin/ | 366579355_324714a31c_b.jpg and 366579319_0a8ada1ca7_o.jpg by RVLTN 12 3 http://flickr.com/photos/twelvethree/ | 106645707_1ba918385c_o.jpg by prepreet http://flickr.com/photos/1990/ | 118027509_c8b3086951_b.jpg by liquidindian http://flickr.com/photos/liquidindian/ | 490820903_8f039e861a_o.jpg by thecameo http://flickr.com/photos/kiad/ | 70265551_053d16c84b_o.jpg by PDMZ http://flickr.com/photos/pdmz/ | 187930472_784035fd46_o.jpg by Mil http://flickr.com/photos/danw/ | 1445197170_5b9c7b8496_o.jpg by blogsorbeta http://flickr.com/photos/blogsorbeta/ | 1256329015_4b80a561eb_b.jpg and 1256319417_81b3f625a9_b.jpg by gruntzooki http://flickr.com/photos/doctorow/ | 56303704_f3729e393b_b.jpg by dotben http://flickr.com/photos/dotben/

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 4th, 2007 at 2:05 am and is filed under Life in Japan, More in Japan, News in Japan, What the...?. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.