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Matsumoto BackPackers

Shiraita 1-1-6, Matsumoto 390-0863 Nagano Prefecture
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Traveller (19)
Room & Suite (14)
Family and Play Areas (2)

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Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect nightly room rates, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.

About

#1 of 6 hostels in Matsumoto
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Just five minutes from Matsumoto station and ten minutes from the city's famous castle, Matsumoto BackPackers offers friendly accommodation in an old Japanese house with a small garden. We offer simple hostel-style dormitory accommodation in a Japanese setting (futon mattress beds and woven straw tatami flooring). All our guests are young or young at heart so come and join them for a night or two!
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Property amenities
Paid public parking nearby
Free High Speed Internet (WiFi)
Wifi
Bicycle rental
Skiing
Baggage storage
Non-smoking hotel
Laundry service
Board games / puzzles
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Room features
Kitchenette
Room types
Non-smoking rooms
Good to know
HOTEL STYLE
Budget
Languages Spoken
English, Japanese
102Reviews1Q+A7Room tips

Reviews
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tomonfire wrote a review Apr 2019
6 contributions2 helpful votes
Overall one of the worst hostel experiences I've ever had. But let's start with: The good things: - wifi worked very well - location is close to train station (though the city is small and almost any accomodation can be considered as close to the station) The bad things: - this is an old japanese family house and not built to host around twenty people. everything is thight and gets quickly dirty. - the old house does not protect from weather conditions. i stayed there for two nights. in the first night the temperature in my dorm was 3 deg. in the second night it was 5 deg. i could feel the wind blowing throughout the night. the building is not isolated at all and has no (!) heating. - most disappointing to me was the behaviour of the owner. when i did realize in the evening that the room has no heating i asked, almost begged, the staff to heat the room with the one mobile heater they have. but the staff told me that the owner doesnt want to heat the room up. he simply didnt care about our sleep and our health. after the two nights i did get a strong cold. not so nice when you are on your once-in-a-life japan journey. the owner also didnt provide any solution to the problem in the second night (even though I asked the staff again to do sth). my feeling is that the owner wants to make as much money as he can with the old building and gives a sh** on the basic needs of his guests (protection from uncomfortable weather conditions is the one thing i can expect from any accomodation).
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Date of stay: April 2019Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Manu_Hue wrote a review Oct 2018
1 contribution1 helpful vote
We stayed for more than a month in Japan, yet we never had a more caring host than here. Brian planned hikes, gave good advises for Matsumoto (best fish we ever had in Japan) or send me my passport (I unfortunately forgot it). The accommodation is original and lovely. Thanks!
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Date of stay: October 2018
Location
Service
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Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Jo W wrote a review Jul 2018
Australia21 contributions24 helpful votes
I contacted MBP directly to book a bed and Brian's response was very quick - it was a holiday weekend & they were full the 2nd nite, but kindly he offered to accommodate me if I was happy with a futon in a common room. No problems for me & very kind of MBP to offer that. This is a friendly, casual Japanese house, adapted to a hostel. Well located near the stations, very clean facilities, Brian was so kind, knowledgeable & very friendly. Plenty of tourist info locally & afar, all on hand if needed. Recommendations on where to eat, the local (& FAB) onsen. Bike hire available too. All in all a GREAT stay & I wouldn't hesitate to recommend MBP anytime you're in Matsumoto.
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Date of stay: July 2018
Location
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Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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אורן צ wrote a review Jul 2018
Budapest, Hungary21 contributions7 helpful votes
We spend one night at BP matumoto, this is definitely more then a hostel, it's more like home. Brain and his team do everything they can to solve any problems and request that heat have, will definitely remember this time with you
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Date of stay: July 2018Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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lindovskal wrote a review Apr 2018
Prague, Czech Republic2 contributions
I was staying in Matsumoto for two night, and I couldn't have picked a better place to stay. It is super close to the train station, you can get anywhere on foot, and the best is the staff - friendly, helpfull, just awesome. Brian has a nice way to connect people, it was a pleasure to stay there. Thanks a lot, I would love to come back someday, to explore the beatiful mountains around Matsumoto...
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Date of stay: April 2018Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Kmp40 wrote a review Oct 2017
Townsville8 contributions8 helpful votes
terrible facilities, not well looked after, didn't even stay at the backpackers but moved to a house that had been set up to make most money out of travellers. would not recommend for families. Only stay if you have no money for better accomodation. No door on bathroom - you put up a rope and close another door which has no lock. No where to lock up any valuables. cannot believe that lonely planet recommends this.
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Date of stay: September 2017
Rooms
Cleanliness
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Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Caitlin D wrote a review Oct 2017
4 contributions
We enjoyed our one night stay at Matsumoto backpackers. Owner is very nice and gave us good advice on what to do in the area. We stayed in a private room which was very characterful and futon beds were comfy. Only downside would be bathrooms, which are shared. No bathroom on the top floor so you need to go down some steep stairs in the dark to use the toilet in the night. There are only two showers and they were busy in the morning so there was a wait to use them.
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Date of stay: October 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Response from MatsumotoBP, Manager at Matsumoto BackPackers
Responded 14 Nov 2017
Hi Caitlin, Thanks for leaving us a positive and honest review! We are a small hostel and do try very much to exude a comfortable and homely feel. Brian is extremely knowledgeable about the area and I'm glad he was able to help you out! We do apologize for there not being a bathroom on the top floor, unfortunately with the house being a former residence the plumbing is not configured for a bathroom on the top floor. Perhaps we can add that to our list of long term additions for the future. Thanks for staying with us, and do hope to one day see you again! -Matsumoto BP
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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Friends_call_me_Lou wrote a review Sept 2017
Hong Kong, China10 contributions6 helpful votes
Let me say this first: the best part about staying in this hostel would be meeting their wonderful staff and other travellers. The rest didn't really matter to me much, but I would still write it here. 10-15minute walking distance from Matsumoto Station. 2 minute from a major convenient store. Hostel locates right in front of the river, so if you walk along the rive it leads to lot of the city's major attractions. Hostel is equipped with a basic kitchen, good sized fridge, a little Japanese living room, 2 shower stalls, 2 toilets, a washing machine. Dorm / sleeping rooms are all in traditional Japanese tatami style. I slept on the tatami floor sharing the room with 3 other travellers without privacy curtains. Like in a slumber party. It was perfect :-D
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Date of stay: September 2017
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled solo
Room Tip: Be prepared to share room with others
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Response from MatsumotoBP, Manager at Matsumoto BackPackers
Responded 8 Nov 2017
Hi there and thank you for the kind words. That's a great detailed description, maybe we can use it for our homepage! Being such a small hostel every traveller has a chance to meet up with new friends and make plans together.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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Eric C wrote a review Aug 2017
45 contributions13 helpful votes
We really enjoyed our recent stay here, where three of us shared a private room in the annex building down the street. The room was very comfortable and the hostel was clean and well-run. Most importantly, Pierre gave us phenomenal advice about what to do, where to go and how to get there. Without his expertise, our trip to this region would not have been as special.
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Date of stay: August 2017Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Response from MatsumotoBP, Manager at Matsumoto BackPackers
Responded 14 Nov 2017
Hi Eric! I'm glad Pierre was able to help you guys out with planning your trip! Our staff does their best to help out each and every guest to try and ensure a positive experience is had by all. I'm also pleased to hear that you found our hostel clean, comfortable, and efficient. It is always nice to hear that our hard work is being appreciated by our guests! We do pride ourselves on the level of service we are able to provide to each guest here at Matsumoto Backpackers!
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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Kinnyspine wrote a review Jul 2017
Donegal7 contributions6 helpful votes
We stayed in Matsumoto for 2 nights in a 3 bed private room. It had been a while since I had stayed in a backpackers, but this place reminded me how special they can be. Sitting around the little table, talking with other travellers was just lovely. Our room was very comfortable and we liked the traditional Japanese design. The hostel is very easy to get to from the train station and close to the magnificent castle. The staff - Brian and Pierre were so helpful and kind. The walk Pierre recommended (Magome - Tsumago) we all agreed was one of our favourite days/activities in Japan. He explained exactly what trains we needed to get, times, etc. He also recommended an excellent Ramen restaurant to us. The personal touch is what stands out most at Matsumoto Backpackers. I have recommended it to several other people I have met while travelling in Japan. Matsumoto and staying here were definitely highlights of our trip.
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Date of stay: June 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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Response from MatsumotoBP, Manager at Matsumoto BackPackers
Responded 14 Nov 2017
Hi there! I'm glad you had such a cozy and memorable experience here with us at Matsumoto Backpackers. We do try and give each of our guests a homely and personalized experience while they're here with us in Matsumoto. Our traditional style tatami mat rooms and common area really do help to bring people together and start talking. We hope to see you again one day! -Matusmoto BP
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
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PRICE RANGE
£31 - £38 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
JapanChubuKoshinetsuNagano PrefectureMatsumoto
NUMBER OF ROOMS
3
Prices are provided by our partners for one room, with variable occupancy rules as provided by the property, and reflect nightly room rates, including all taxes and fees known to our partners. Please see our partners for more details.
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MATSUMOTO BACKPACKERS - Updated 2024 Prices (Japan)

Frequently Asked Questions about Matsumoto BackPackers
Which popular attractions are close to Matsumoto BackPackers?
Nearby attractions include IIdaya (0.2 miles), Fukashi no Yusui (0.2 miles), and Kamiyakata Shimayu (0.3 miles).
What are some of the property amenities at Matsumoto BackPackers?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include free wifi, laundry service, and baggage storage.
Is parking available at Matsumoto BackPackers?
Yes, paid public parking nearby is available to guests.
What are some restaurants close to Matsumoto BackPackers?
Conveniently located restaurants include Sushiten, Matsumoto Karaage center, and Ogiso Seifunjo Matsumoto Station Ekimae.
Is Matsumoto BackPackers located near the city centre?
Yes, it is 0.4 miles away from the centre of Matsumoto.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at Matsumoto BackPackers?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English and Japanese.
Are there any historical sites close to Matsumoto BackPackers?
Many travellers enjoy visiting Kaichi Gakko Primary School (0.8 miles), Yohashira Shrine (0.5 miles), and Nakamachi Kurassic-kan (0.5 miles).