Originally Posted by
sbm12
It is also incredibly easy to not do so. No, you won't be staying in a western chain branded hotel and it might not even earn points. But there are plenty of quite reasonable hotels at lower price points there.
Exactly! I spent under US$100 all-in at the "b" in Ikebukuro in August. Totally fine freshly renovated 3* hotel that's 3 minutes from the train station and steps from shops and restaurants. Try getting that in NYC.