Shimizu started with the Budget Inn and Tour Club, two wildly popular backpacker guesthouses in Kyoto.

BBC: Capsule Ryokan Kyoto, where modern meets traditional

Bjorn Hanson, dean of New York University's Preston Robert Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management, says it may be in part because the U.S. has a greater number of budget hotels, from Comfort Inn to Econo Lodge.

WSJ: In the U.S., Hostels With a Luxe Touch

Budget conscious travellers should seek out hotel chains such as Best Western, Country Inn, Hampton Inn or Holiday Inn Express that include extras like breakfast, parking and Internet in their nightly rates.

BBC: Deals to be found in May and beyond

The U.S. saw the rise of budget hotels coast to coast in the 1960s, as Comfort Inns, Motel 6, Days Inn and Super 8 hotels sprung up near major highway exits.

FORBES: The Rise of China's Budget Hotels

The Marriott portfolio now comprises 18 different hotel brands, including Ritz-Carlton and Fairfield Inn, which target different types of traveler, be they businesspeople, families, or budget travelers.

CNN: Marriott mogul on 55 years of change in the hotel business