Pod Hotel

A new hotel in Japan is offering nine-hour rentals on small cubicles with a single purpose—to put you to sleep. Inside the hotel, the sleeping pods are stacked, with plenty in each room. For Japanese cities running out of space and affordable rooms, the approach from the aptly named ninehours hotel makes perfect sense.

To check in, just approach the counter and pay the bill. A key will be given for your locker together with the number for your assigned pod. Shared bathroom facilities are also available to use within the period with complete toiletries for a bath already provided. Vending machines within the premises make cheap quick meals possible. Inside each pod is a tiny TV screen and a panel to control everything including alarm clocks, lighting and air conditioning. After the nine-hour period, each guest is required to check out of the hostel even if they’re planning to stay for consecutive nights.

According to their website, the capsule beds have served over 700,000 nine-hour rests for citizens of over 50 countries. Currently, the chain has two locations. One within the Narita International Airport and a second, cheaper one in the growing city of Kyoto.

The capsule-type hotel isn’t new to Japan. With soaring costs of living, many travelers on a budget in Tokyo and Osaka find home in tiny pods they can’t even stand-up in. The capsule room concept began as a solution for businessmen who missed the last train or too drunk to travel home which evolved into temporary abode for the homeless.

ninehours is a tool designed to offer more freedom to our guests from around the world. Guests can check in 24 hours a day and use the facilities for as little as 1 hour. - ninehours website

The time limit and tiny space isn’t so much a problem for Japan’s renowned minimalist culture but the ninehours hotel chain wants to makes a mark for foreign travels and to other crowded cities in the West.

Source: psfk.comAdded: 4 March 2015