Recently, I took a deep dive into the world of love hotels. It’s no surprise that love hotels fascinate so many visitors to Japan. Like Macau or Las Vegas, entering a decked-out love hotel can feel like stepping into an Adult Disneyland.
But what if your evening doesn’t quite make it to the love hotel?
Having covered my fair share of depressing Japan news, I know that sex – and sexual assault – does indeed happen at karaoke shops, where anywhere from 1 to 15 people can rent a private room for a small fee for several hours. There was the case of Shiiki Tamotsu, for example, a 58-year-old former politician who raped a 12-year-old girl in a Manekineko after paying her 20,000 yen.
Plenty of consenting adults (and teens), however, also choose to use karaoke booths to do the deed rather than spend the extra money on a couple of hours at a love hotel. The question is: why? And what happens if you’re caught?
Why would anyone have sex in a karaoke room?
You may be surprised to learn that karaoke rooms aren’t just for karaoke. The Pasela chain, for example, explicitly supports renting rooms as a remote office space. They’ll even lend you equipment such as monitors and whiteboards. Joysound advertises using their rooms as a sewing atelier. Hell, they’ll even rent your group sewing machines!
Other off-karaoke uses of karaoke rooms include cosplay, birthday party celebrations, and oshikatsu events.
But what about nookie?
