Nui. Hostel & Bar Lounge

Stayed at Nui as a home base for exploring Tokyo for 10 days! Super close to Kuramae train station/Asakusa line and a grocery store, super clean and comfy rooms, and a really kind and helpful staff! The cafe in the lobby is also quite good, and serves up tasty coffee and food as well as cocktails at night. Recommend the espresso tonic and the bar master makes a brilliant old fashioned. My time at Nui was lovely, and it was the perfect place to call home in between excursions to Shimokita and other neighborhoods!

It being a hostel attached to a cafe/bar would make you think it's got some makeshift setup, but it is anything but. It's weird to use luxury to describe a hostel but Nui definitely is more luxurious than any hostel I've seen. It also appears to be very good for socializing, since the bar was always filled with people (though I didn't personally hang out there much).

Nui is probably one of the best hostels I’ve stayed in. In terms of service, cleanliness and quietness for a hostel. The bar/cafe downstairs was warm and welcoming with friendly staff. The rooms and bathrooms were always serviced and clean. I would highly reccomend this stay.

It’s a hostel feels more like a hotel and chic bar, have met people of all ages from all sorts of backgrounds, all well educated. It’s safe, clean, and filled with fun elements. Staff most speak English quite well and are attentative in nature. At the price, location, recommend

Friendly staff and nice, clean rooms. It's in a pretty great location too, just a 30 minute walk to Akihabara so if you're a super nerd like me you'll love that, though your wallet might suffer a little. Genuinely lovely place.

The location is very convenient next to the metro and supermarkets. Dorms are spacious and shared bathrooms are clean. Could have been a toilet more but I understand limited space. P.s. Had a small issue and they solved it nicely in the end 😊 Arigato for that!

Loved this hostel for my son (10) and I. We shared a room and while it was simple, with shared facilities, our stay was wonderful. The bathrooms are clean and spacious. Rooms were cosy and warm (although sound does carry a bit) and the bar had a great vibe. Common area is great with games, a kitchen and laundry. Overall we loved it, especially as we normally stay at hotels. Really charming.

I had a great stay at Nui. You can meet locals & travelers quite easily. Everyone is friendly. The staff is very nice and helpful. Room is a little small, but sufficient. I stayed in a private room. It is a cute little hostel. There is a roof, a common hang out area with a good kitchen, laundry and then a bar on the bottom floor. Great location near Asakusa. You can rent a bicycle from the hostel to explore the city. The bicycle seat hurts my butt :D but I wish I can do it again!! - Prashanth Subramanian

I stayed here just over a decade ago and I only have the fondest of memories of this beautiful place. This awesome hostel in Asakusa was one of the coolest places I stayed on my 2 month trip around Japan. The all wood bar and seating area on the first floor is stunning. The large, old, elevator was super charming, the dorms were clean and safe, the common areas are so cute i could have stayed there for hours reading a book or doing work on a laptop. When I went they did not serve food but plenty of that stuff looks super yummy. While I was there I frequented the bar where the bartenders were amazing. I remember being able to order giant steins of beer or request almost any type of cocktail and every thing was at such an affordable price. I really hope this place hasn't changed to much because i'd love to return for another visit.

Loved the wait staff and the Ambiance! We are staying at the hostel and the experience has been great!

Despite this place being located slightly far from everything else around Asakusa, I still keep coming back here again and again. Most of all it is the atmosphere that makes me wanna come here. It is a very relaxed atmosphere great for either catching up with friends over a cup of coffee (they have soy milk for an extra ¥50) or a glass of wine if you come after 18. They do seem to serve wine and beer before 18 if you ask for it but cocktails seem to be limited to after 18. Since it is a hostel as well this place attracts a wide variety of people, international travelers as well as locals. There are both smaller tables, counter seats and tables for groups. Don't forget to bring cash though.

You really neat international café on the first floor of a hostel. While this review is about the cafe, let me first talk about the hostel. What kind of image you have of a Hostel? Perhaps I'm insulting some people, but my image hostel is dirty and ghetto. After all, people go there because they cannot afford a regular hotel, right? I really don't want to hang out at a cafe with people whom haven't showered for weeks. Well, that is what I thought, until I came here. The hostel housed in this building is hip and cool. Cool backpackers hangout here. I think they shower at least once a week. We requested a tour of the hostel and saw the rooms. It was small, but clean and fashionable. I don't remember the exact price, but private rooms weren't much cheaper than a regular business hotel, while the shared dormitories were a bit cheaper. So why would somebody want to stay at this hostel? They want to socialize with other travelers! Hence, a café on the first floor!!! Ah, it makes sense. As you can see from my pictures, the cafe/bar is very trendy and nice. During the day, most of the people are drinking coffee, while at night, it feels more like a bar. I really love the high table without the chairs, which is great for a social outing. BEER: They do have three kinds of beer on tap, but they are all major brands. They do carry craft beers, but only in a bottle. Perhaps I was unlucky, the one bottle I got tasted old. FOOD: They only have simple food, so I wouldn't go here for dinner. The only substantial food was pizza. AWKWARD: While I loved everything about this place, the only weird feeling was about their service. After paying for my drinks and finger food, I asked for a receipt. He asked, "Do you really want a receipt?" I answered, "Yes, please." He asked again, "Do you really, really want a receipt?" I answered, "Yes I would." He said, "We normally do not print a receipt." I answered, "Can I have a receipt?" He then finally printed a receipt. What was this about? Are they super eco friendly? Is printing a receipt killing plants? It was a really small piece of paper. Well, this did not kill my whole experience, so I will recommend this place.

Stayed in this hostel for 4 nights. It was comfortable and hip. The coffee shop in front (berth) serves up delicious coffees and pastries. They also have djs and a bar that opens late. I shared a bed with 8 other people. Each equipped with your own locker. Showers were comfy and had soap, body wash and conditioner. They do not provide free towels or toothbrushes. They have a common area with teas, instant coffee, utensils, bowls, cups, pots and pan. You can also store food in the fridge. Very convenient location right by the bakurocha jr station or subway lines! Super nice and hip place.

You can get both japanese bottled craft beer and giant german style steins of your more prosaic varietals (asahi/sapporo/kirin) in a pretty neat space. There's kind of a split in the crowd between backpackers and japanese locals too.

Being from California and living in Long Beach/LA, hipster culture is a huge here. I never thought to find it in Japan, at least how it is in the states, but lo and behold Nui Cafe somehow nails American hipster aesthetic in Japan. The way the employees dressed, the wood furniture and handrails, huge wooden doors with giant locks on them, old vintage decor. Not that that's a bad thing, it's just really interesting because if you go anywhere else in Japan, it would almost seem like Japan is the only country that exists and the Japanese are in the only people in the world. Anyway, I really enjoyed my stay at Nui. You do have to take a train to get most places but for the price and the amenities, it was fine. The staff there was really nice and spoke pretty decent english. After 6pm the lobby kinda turns into a bar for the public to come and hang out at, not just hostel guests. There was one sweet Japanese employee there that was always talking to me and and what I was doing, where I was going, and my opinion of Japan. Everything is just easy and chill there. It felt more like a hip coffee shop/bar atmosphere than a hostel or hotel. I give it 4 stars because your staying experience can vary depending on what kinda room you get. At the time of booking, I could only find an eight mixed dormitory reservation so depending on how much you can afford while traveling, I might suggest getting a private room with one double or a twin bunk. First of all, the mattresses are pretty thin and you're sleeping on wood bunks. It's not horrible, but it sure made me miss my memory foam bed back home. Second, they do cleaning every day in the mixed dorms around 11-1pm or something. This is where the hipster aesthetic ruins it a bit. The doors are vintage and heavy, the locks are lock, almost everything is made of wood or steel, therefore anything you do makes a loud ass noise. It sounded like the cleaning crew was cleaning with pots and pans... and of course this happened after staying out all night in Golden Gai and not getting back and sleeping until 730-8am. I don't know if the private rooms have any more comfy beds or the cleaning crew to deal with, but it's worth looking in to. Overall, a great experience. I can't speak for any of the food or drinks except I did get a latte and it tasted gross and burnt as hell. Would recommend staying her for the cheap travelers.