Section II of IV · 3 entries

Capsule Hotels

Small sleeping units, shared facilities, and design that has to earn every centimetre.

Kyoto

Japan

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Capsule Hotels

Nine Hours Kyoto

The name is the plan. One hour to shower, seven to sleep, one to rest. This central Kyoto site was the first of the Nine Hours hotels, and it set the look the brand still follows.

Product designer Fumie Shibata shaped the capsules and the signage. Everything is pale, rounded and uncluttered. Guests receive a locker, towels and sleepwear, then move through clearly marked zones for washing and sleeping. Temples and the old shopping arcades are close enough to walk.

First of its brand
Shower · sleep · rest
Product-design interiors

Warsaw

Poland

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Capsule Hotels

The Box Hotel

Warsaw is a city of long walks and late trams. The Box Hotel answers with the simplest possible room: a pod, a bed, a door to close and a place to charge a phone.

Washrooms are shared and kept to a strict routine. Lockers hold what does not fit inside the pod. It suits travellers who spend the day out and want a clean, private place to sleep at a lower cost than a standard room. Check the current layout with the property before arrival.

Sleeping pods
Shared washrooms
Central base

Amsterdam

Netherlands

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Capsule Hotels

Yotelair Amsterdam Schiphol

Some capsule hotels sit in the city. This one sits beyond passport control at Schiphol. Cabins sit airside, so the typical guest is a passenger between flights rather than someone visiting Amsterdam.

Rooms are called cabins and borrow ideas from aircraft interiors. Compact beds, a small washroom, adjustable lighting, no wasted inches. Stays can be booked in blocks of hours as well as overnight. That makes it a practical answer to an early connection or a missed one.

Airside cabins
Short stays
Transit passengers