The one time.
 

Yea, Mercure's surroundings are prime. A 7-10 minute walk to the Asakusa or Yamanote lines. Metro access is great, with the underpass to the nearest Yurakucho-line station good for quick trips to the east of the palace or to Toyosu/Odaiba. Rooms were spacious for the price and location.

And it was refurbished recently-ish – 2019 I think. Before that the rooms were starting to show their age. And the big bathtubs are a definite plus – I tend to walk a lot in Tokyo, so a nice hot bath where I can stretch my legs is nice...

Tokyu Stay hotels have in-room washer dryers and desks.

The Hotel New Ueno is a 60-step walk from the turnstile devices on the left-hand side at Ueno Station’s main entrance, the one that’s in front of Ameyoko, the notorious market for contraband and pirated goods. I’ve stayed there about six times. Price varies by season by you can get a decent room there for about 45 US Dollars a night. No room service, breakfast, gym or public bath. A classic, no frills business and tourist hotel.

If you can stand the small rooms, yes, check out the CHOICE Hotel offerings at 8k [I've never stayed at any of them]. But I did just buy a bunch of Choice points on the Daily Getaway.

I've had great (pre-pandemic) experiences with the Candeo business hotels. Especially the one in Roppongi, which has a really nice rooftop open air bath.

https://www.candeohotels.com/en/tokyo-roppongi/

I second the Dormy Inn Hatchobori. Rooms are small but adequate, and it's a nice neighborhood. The breakfast is nice and you can eat outside on a small patio along the river. It's a really excellent value.

Not sure what the threshold for "inexpensive" is...but I just completed a 4-night stay at the Shiba Park Hotel, in a king room with breakfast, for around JPY48,000 - which especially given the current position of the yen against the dollar seemed more than reasonable.

- good sized room, with a couch
- no desk but a small table that could be used
- 10 minute walk to Hamamatsuchō Station for Yamanote Line and monorail to Haneda
- Shorter walks to Daimon Station for subway (Oedo and Asakusa lines) and Onarimon Station (Mita line)

Have you (or anyone) stayed at the Choice Hotel Higashi Nihonboshi by chance? Location seems good and price is killer, but there are a couple reviews that are a bit off-putting, and I'm not sure if they are the typical critical complainer and not really legit.

I've stayed at Kanda, but not that Higashi Nihonbashi. Google reviews seem generally positive. I have found Comfort Hotels in Japan to be very consistent. The only real difference is the size of the room. Singles are really tiny, as are most doubles. When using points, booking a twin is always better than a double (same amount of points). I once booked a twin with sofa (accommodates three) for two adults, but found out it was the same size as a regular twin and the sofa was just in the way, so that strategy isn't anything special.

Thanks

Thanks for the thread everyone. Any of those mentioned easily reachable for a late arrival into NRT and on a direct line with no station changes + very easy close walk to the hotel? Thanks

The last Keisei Skyliner train leaves Narita airport at 11:00 PM, stopping at Nippori Station at 11:41PM and terminating at Keisei Ueno Station at 11:45 PM
At Nippori - Hotel Almont Nippori. About 300m from Nippori station. Modern, economical "business hotel".
At Keisei Ueno - Ueno Mitsui Garden Hotel, Hotel Aima, or Nohga Hotel. All are relatively new and good value. About 500m from Keisei Ueno station.
Ueno and Nippori are quite gritty - in places sleazy - but it's safe enough to walk to those hotels.
There are cheaper hotels in the area. If you have a low budget I advise you to find a relatively new place with smaller rooms (e.g. APA hotels). Avoid the older hotels with photos of rooms that look like they were last decorated and furnished 50 years ago. Guaranteed to be smoky and grotty.

If you aren't opposed to using the Limousine bus (we MUCH prefer the bus to get home in Tokyo) you can take a non-stop bus to the TCAT (Tokyo City Air Terminal). Right next to TCAT is the Royal Park Hotel which offers decent rooms at good prices. Note that we haven't had any friends stay there since before COVID - but it's clean and comfy and so easy to walk to once you arrive....

Royal Park Hotel next to TCAT

Thank you both for narrowing down the too many options. I will look up all those. The ease of the Limousine bus and the Royal Park hotel looks very tempting for its simplicity.