- TikToker Jesse Ogundiran said he paid $5 to stay one night in a hotel room in Osaka, Japan.
- The tiny room had a stained mattress, a broken window, and a TV that didn't switch on.
- He said he couldn't stretch his arms out inside the room, which also smelled like "pee."
A man whose video about staying in a $5 hotel room in Japan is going viral on TikTok says the tiny space smelled a bit like "pee," but he'd recommend it to people traveling on a tight budget.
Jesse Ogundiran, 23, grew up in Tokyo and told Insider he returned to Japan after graduating from a US college in 2021. He now works full-time at an IT company, but has been exploring different places around the country and sharing his travels with his 1.2 million TikTok followers.
More recently, he and some friends visited Osaka where Ogundiran, who goes by @jesseogn on TikTok, filmed a tour of what he said was a room at a hotel in the Nishinari-ku prefecture. The video, uploaded on January 24, has amassed 6.5 million views on TikTok at the time of writing.
Ogundiran told Insider it was called the Kaname hotel, which he wanted to check out after his friend saw it had a one-star rating on Google and cost a mere 500 yen, around $5, to stay per night. "My friend and I went to go check out the place, the lobby and the check-in was normal. The lady was very kind and generous but as soon as we entered the room, it was very small," he said.
There doesn't appear to be an online presence for the Kaname hotel and Ogundiran later told Insider via email that the Google link to book it has since disappeared.
"The foam mattress was stained," Ogundiran said, adding that guests needed to make their own beds. "I felt uncomfortable having to touch the foam mattress, but I had to do what I had to do."
When asked what he thought the stain was from, he said: "Hopefully food, fingers crossed."
Room amenities included blankets, sheets, a small desk, and a TV, which did not work, according to Ogundiran. The hotel itself was around 10 stories high, and there were a fair few other guests, he said. Ogundiran said he and his friends stayed in separate rooms but he noted the walls between them were "very thin."
Ogundiran also said there was a certain smell he couldn't seem to get away from, which wasn't helped by the broken window that didn't open to let air in. "It smelled a little bit like pee, but it was $5 so I can't complain," he said.
When it came to showering, Ogundiran said there was a communal bathroom on each floor and that guests needed to pay extra for shampoo and towels.
"I didn't rent out a towel or the shampoo," he said. "I didn't really feel comfortable using the bathroom there."
Such a budget-friendly hotel stay isn't generally common in Japan, Ogundiran said. "It's definitely not normal, in Tokyo people use capsule hotels but those will cost $20 or more."
Though he slept fine throughout the night, he said a set of wanted posters at the check-in desk creeped him out. "I traveled with my friends so I felt comfortable and safe. But by myself, I'll be a bit scared."
On the upside, he said the hotel was close to a lot of other affordable spots he wanted to visit, like a $2 ramen restaurant. His video about the restaurant uploaded in December has since amassed over 44 million views.
Overall, Ogundiran said the hotel is definitely a decent option for budget travelers. "I wanted to save money, which I did," he said.