Tokyo · Arakawa | Traveller’s Room-Choice Notes
Tokyo Art House Hostel
Tokyo Art House
This place is very different from a large hotel: on the first floor, room 101 is a family room for several people sharing, with a private toilet; on the second floor, room 201 has a kitchen and three sets of bunk beds; on the third floor, room 301 has twin beds and requires shared bathrooms. If I came with friends, the first question would not be the rating, but whether everyone wants their own kitchen and bathroom.
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
If I Were Booking, Three Things I Would Think About First
- The operator clearly distinguishes the beds, bathrooms and kitchens of rooms 101, 201 and 301, giving families and friends a choice.
- Room 301 requires shared showers and toilets, so it does not suit people who value a private bathroom.
- Room 101’s private bathroom and 201’s private kitchen and laundry have real uses for long group stays.
This place is very different from a large hotel: on the first floor, room 101 is a family room for several people sharing, with a private toilet; on the second floor, room 201 has a kitchen and three sets of bunk beds; on the third floor, room 301 has twin beds and requires shared bathrooms. If I came with friends, the first question would not be the rating, but whether everyone wants their own kitchen and bathroom.
Transport and Luggage: How Do I Get There, and Are Transfers Easy?
The hostel is at 25-2, Higashi-Ogu 3-chome. The operator’s transport page says: from Nippori Station, take the Nippori-Toneri Liner toward Minumadai-shinsui-koen, ride two stops to Akado-shogakko-mae, then walk about three minutes after leaving the east exit to reach the hostel; with large suitcases and finding the way, it usually takes a bit longer than a plain walk.
The official walking directions are: from Akado-shogakko-mae Station, leave the ticket gates and turn left, take the east exit, keep Akado Elementary School on your right as you walk forward, pass a 7-Eleven, turn right at the corner with the photo studio and the seaweed shop, and the hostel is next to the car park, opposite the izakaya. That is far more useful than simply saying “close to the station”. The station lists a lift at the west exit, while the east exit is the shorter exit in the operator’s directions; if carrying large luggage, the route out of the station may first need the station’s lift facilities before joining the ground-level road.
Although the walk from Akado-shogakko-mae Station to the hostel is short, for someone finding the way for the first time, landmarks like the 7-Eleven, the photo studio and the car park are more useful than staring at a small arrow on a phone. If two families arrive separately, I would give everyone the same east-exit walking directions, so no one who walks to the west exit thinks the operator’s three minutes are inaccurate.
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
Photo source: Trip.com guest photos
Room Types and Beds: Which Arrangement Suits My Travel Companions?
Room 101 Family Room | About 30 m², Up to Seven People
First-floor room 101 has one double bed and two sets of bunk beds, with a seventh person needing a sofa bed; it has a private shower, toilet and terrace, and guests can use the first-floor laundry and drying equipment. For a family with children, having a room on the first floor where you can use the bathroom yourself has its convenience; but with seven people there is a sofa bed, so not everyone sleeps on a regular mattress.
Room 201 Group Room | Six People, Three Sets of Bunk Beds
Second-floor room 201 consists of three sets of bunk beds, with a private kitchen, bathroom, bathtub and washer-dryer inside the room. It suits friends or family who want to cook together and chat back in the room in the evening; at the same time, you also have to accept bunk-bed ladders and a shared-bathroom routine among many people.
Room 301 Twin Room | Twin Beds, Shared Shower and Toilet
Third-floor room 301 is a twin-bed stay, with a washbasin, refrigerator, microwave and kettle in the room, but the shower and toilet are shared. If two adults care most about a private bathroom, 301 may not be the first choice even if the bed count suits; if you are out all day and can accept shared facilities, it is a different budget and way of living.
Room 101 suits a family gathering of up to seven people, but the seventh person sleeps on a sofa bed, and not everyone has a full-size proper bed of the same size. If I travelled with two children and elderly parents, I would first assign the sleeping spots that are easy to get in and out of to the slower-moving people; I would also avoid putting a sofa bed that is only unfolded late at night in the middle of everyone’s route to the bathroom.
Room 201’s real feature is its living facilities, not just that six people can sleep there. Three sets of bunk beds mean accepting climbing ladders, but having a private kitchen, bathtub and laundry drying is an advantage for a whole group of friends staying three nights or more. Everyone can split into groups for sights during the day and share next-day plans at the dining table in the evening; it suits groups willing to arrange their routines together.
Rooms 101 and 201 are both multi-person rooms, yet their bathrooms and kitchens differ. If a family wants children to lie down soon after bathing, the first-floor private washing facilities of 101 are more practical; only if six friends plan to come back in the evening to cook simply and plan the next day together are they more likely to use 201’s independent kitchen. Room 301 is an entirely different twin-bed plus shared-bathroom way of living, and cannot be imagined from the facilities of the first two.
Accommodation and Bed Photos
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
Photo source: Trip.com guest photos
Nearby Life, Transport and Sights: How Do I String Them Together?
This address is on a residential street in front of Akado-shogakko-mae. The hostel is a transport ride away from the busy districts, which has its own charm for people who want to see Tokyo’s Shitamachi and quiet streets. For Ueno and Asakusa, use Nippori Station as the transport connection point, rather than thinking the Yamanote Line platform is right outside the hostel.
For families or groups travelling together, one key itinerary a day such as Ueno Zoo or Arakawa Yuen is enough, with evenings back at the hostel using the kitchen and terrace to rest. Compared with constantly crossing to faraway shopping districts every day, this rhythm better lets you enjoy the hostel family room’s shared space.
If the trip only covers Ueno and Yanaka, transfers at Nippori Station are very straightforward; if you go to Shinjuku and Shibuya every day, the time from the Toneri Liner to Nippori and then onto the Yamanote Line keeps accumulating. The advantage of staying here is having a family-hostel style living space and a Shitamachi feel, not that every popular shopping district is directly reachable.
In-House Facilities and Daily Life: Which Ones Will I Actually Use?
Rooms 101, 201 and 301 differ greatly in bathroom arrangements, and this is the most important daily-life detail before booking. Room 101 is a first-floor family room, 201 has a kitchen and bathtub, and 301’s shower and toilet need to be shared. If there is an elderly person in the family with bad knees, besides confirming bed height, floor level and bunk beds should also be important choices.
There is a rooftop terrace and shared Wi-Fi here, and the dining table in second-floor room 201 can even have its tabletop removed to become a card table. For six friends wanting to chat together in the evening, this is an interesting and practical facility, but people with different sleep times still need to arrange when activities end, so late sleepers do not disturb those resting.
Room 101 has private washing facilities, 201 has a private kitchen and bathtub; 301 needs shared toilets and showers. When choosing, I would first decide on the basis of the operator’s clear private and shared equipment: just having twin beds does not mean a private bathroom; being able to house seven people does not mean everyone has a regular bed.
Room 301 is more like a simple guest room based on twin beds with shared bathrooms. Staying one night and being out all day, people willing to use the shared shower can consider it; if during the trip someone often uses the toilet in the middle of the night or strongly resists sharing washing facilities with strangers, then no matter how cheap it is, 301 should not be forced on them.
Kitchen, Dining and Daily-Life Photos
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
Common Areas and Other Photos
Photo source: Trip.com accommodation gallery
One Night vs. Several Nights: How Would I Choose?
Check-in 15:00 to 22:00, check-out before 10:00. If arriving from Narita and still needing to take the Skyliner and transfer to the Toneri Liner, the first night’s transfer time cannot be estimated too tightly; especially with children dragging large suitcases, I would work backwards from the time of arrival at Akado-shogakko-mae.
When friends stay several nights in a row, 201’s kitchen and laundry are very valuable; staying only one night and sightseeing in Ueno during the day, 301’s twin beds or 101’s small group room may meet the need. The key is that beds and private bathrooms suit the travel companions, not forcing an unsuitable room type just to stay in the same building.
A youth hostel differs from a full-service hotel in living atmosphere. The rooftop terrace is a bonus for evening chats, but for children who sleep early, it may also mean going back to the room earlier to rest. On a week-long family trip, I would let people who need quiet use the room’s sleeping area first, and people who want to chat in the evening pay attention to volume and shared-space rules, so shared living and rest can be enjoyed at the same time.
Real Advantages, Limits, and How to Decide in the End
Advantages
- The operator clearly distinguishes the beds, bathrooms and kitchens of rooms 101, 201 and 301, giving families and friends a choice.
- Room 101’s private bathroom and 201’s private kitchen and laundry have real uses for long group stays.
- The operator provides specific walking directions from the Akado-shogakko-mae east exit via 7-Eleven.
Trade-offs to Accept
- Room 301 requires shared showers and toilets, so it does not suit people who value a private bathroom.
- Room 101 at full capacity of seven needs a sofa bed, and 201’s bunk beds also require accepting ladder beds.
- Akado-shogakko-mae is on the Toneri Liner, and reaching other parts of Tokyo mostly requires transferring at Nippori.
If six friends travel together, someone is willing to sleep on a bunk bed, and wants a kitchen, I would look at 201; if a family wants to stay on the first floor with a private toilet, look at 101; with only two people, consider 301 only if shared bathrooms are acceptable. Choosing this way avoids discovering after check-in that the room’s functions differ from what was imagined.
It suits travellers more who are willing to live in the Higashi-Ogu community, connect via the Toneri Liner to Nippori every day, and keep a period of rest at the hostel in the evening. People who plan to play late every day and dislike transfers should still compare larger hotels closer to the Yamanote Line.
Fact-checked: 2026-10-27