Places to stay during your travels

I'm planning on travelling around Japan in August using JR pass. (I'm still undecided on where to go, but I am keen to visit places around Kanazawa, Kyushu or Shikoku).

I need to keep the cost of my trip down, so I am using 'Hostel World' and 'Hostel Bookers' to look for and book places to stay overnight.
Does anyone know any other websites/services where I can book cheap or cheaper accomodations? And are hostels the cheapest way to stay somewhere overnight?
If anyone can offer advice on looking for places to stay overnight (especially in Kanazawa, Kyushu or Shikoku areas), I will be grateful!

Thanks!

If you spend any time in Kyoto I recomend Bola-Bola.
Its a cheap place but the rooms are nice and has a traditional japanese feel. The guy who runs it speaks good english and is really friendly and helpful.
Its located one stop away from Arashiyama and a few stops away from Kyoto station.

here is a link

http://www.bola-bola.jp/top_english.htm

Try Google Earth. Turn on the Lodging icon in Layers/More/Place Categories. You can then click on the lodging icons near where you want to stay and see if the lodging fits your needs. You are better off going to the webpage of the site, if available and trying to figure out the rates. Most of the links are in Japanese, so you may want to use Google translate or Bing to translate. In this way you can usually find the rates page.

Good luck!!

Thanks guys for the helpful responses. Much appreciated!

Can I ask, during your travels, how have you looked for and booked accomodations? And do you find some types of accomodations (like hostels) better than others (say, business hotels or ryokans), in terms of prices, people etc.

Thanks!

j-hoppers, K's House are hostel/guesthouse chains in Japan

I do suggest this guesthouse if you stop in Takayama.

http://takayama.j-hoppers.com/

Very nice cause it was Ryokan Style! However there is no elevators here, you will need to carry your luggage up.

Happy traveling!

Because you are travelling in peak season, you should probably start booking places to stay as soon as possible or you risk everywhere being full in the places you plan to go, especially low-midrange accommodation. Some areas may have already been booked out for months, especially during the Obon holiday.

Definitely don't leave it until you are on the road already.