.png)
Hotels (Taiga Suzuki)
Kinds of hotels
Before analyzing the signboards of hotels, it is essential to look into different kinds of hotels. In fact, one of the significant differences in each hotel is their themes or concepts. Especially in an area like Kabuki-cho where the hotel market is highly competitive, each hotel attempts to differentiate itself from another by creating a unique atmosphere that attracts guests. This page will introduce five examples of hotel categories we found in Kabuki-cho.
Resort
At the entrance of one of hotels, there was a signboard saying a welcome message. This hotel seems to have an Asian resort theme as there were two or more sculptures of orange elephants which are Hinduism gods. It can be implied that the target of this hotel is people who look for resort-like places where they can enjoy and relax at the same time.
European Style
There are some hotels that are European theme style in Kabuki-cho. One of the European-inspired hotels has made both exteriors and interiors reminiscent of Chrome Hearts which is a world-famous luxury brand. This kind of hotel may be intended to provide customers with a modern and deluxe atmosphere.
Japanese style
While there are a number of hotels that seemed to be inspired by foreign cultures such as Asian and European, there were several hotels that have a Japanese cultural atmosphere. One is employing a neo-Japonesque style which is reminiscent of the futuristic lifestyle in Japan. Another one is Izakaya style hotel which has 提灯 (a Japanese traditional lantern) and 暖簾 (a Japanese traditional shop curtain) at the entrance of the hotel.
Colorful
While many hotels in Kabuki-cho have a dark and quiet atmosphere, one of the hotels we found has a rather bright and colorful appearance. The hotel seems to be drawing the pedestrian’s attention by using many colors and neon lights which looks quite different from hotels that we see in general.
Near-futuristic
This hotel, Hotel The Hotel, has rooms whose concept is extraordinary and near-futuristic. While resort-theme hotels have signboards showing images of flowers and animals, this hotel has rather dark and simple signboards which look more formal. The fact that the main signboard of this hotel has only the name and the price which is minimal information implies that the focus of the signboard is rather to provide the customers with an impression of the theme of the hotel such as extraordinary and near-futuristic.
