2023-06-14 10:26:00
AWhen I climb into pod number 29, I’m relieved. Contrary to what a friend suspected before I left for Tokyo, my quarters for the night are bigger than a coffin. With a width of 1.10 meters, the capsule is not only more spacious, but even wider than half of a double bed. And it’s tall enough to sit in. The risk of suffering a claustrophobia attack is low.
Capsule 29 is one of a total of 60 miniature rooms that are arranged in two floors in the dormitory of this Tokyo hotel belonging to the “9Hours” chain. Capsule hotels are found throughout Japan’s major cities. It’s accommodation for guests who don’t value space, privacy and superior comfort; ideal for adventurers and for people on a low budget. A regular hotel room costs at least three times as much on average.
Capsule hotels originally emerged in the 1970s for spontaneous overnight stays by sociable business people – as a cheap place to sleep for those who couldn’t make it home drunk after the last subway train. Most guests therefore only stay one night. “Several nights in a row are also possible,” says the receptionist at check-in. However, the capsule has to be vacated by 10 a.m. every morning and all personal belongings have to be stowed in a large locker, because then the cleaning takes place.
Not only guests from Japan sleep in the hotel
I booked one night for my first capsule experience. First, the receptionist gives me my capsule number and briefly explains how everything works: separate floors by gender. shared washrooms. avoid noise. wear headphones. slipper duty.
In the capsule hotel of the “9Hours” chain in Tokyo, 60 miniature rooms are lined up on two floors
Quelle: Andia/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The lobby is on the eighth floor, in the common room next door I see that my capsule neighbors are not only Japanese. Apparently, many foreign tourists also want to try this bizarre type of overnight stay.
I take the men’s elevator to the fourth floor, where I sink my suitcase into a large locker and find a bag with two towels, a toothbrush and cloth slippers – of course, because in Japanese houses street shoes are taken off. There is also a pajama-like jogging suit that everyone wears in the house: black, chic and big enough for Europeans too.
The door to the capsule room opens by itself, like the portal of a space station. The dark, windowless room has a minimalist, aesthetic design. A soft, yellow light glows against the darkness. There is nobody to be seen. Either the numbered capsules are empty. Or the blinds are drawn.
I climb into number 29, draw the shade and inspect the fixtures: a power outlet, a light dimmer, and two shelves. The pillow is comfortable and shaped like a croissant. The duvet is soft but too thick. After a short time I get hot underneath. I would prefer to leave the blind open, but then I opt for the minimal privacy that it offers.
It’s surprisingly quiet in the capsule hotel
It’s 11 p.m., but I can’t fall asleep – jet lag. I am amazed that it is so quiet, even though there are 60 beds in one room. And although the plastic walls between the capsules are so thin that you can actually hear every sound. Fortunately, no drunks have staggered through the hall so far, and miraculously only one guest snores in a capsule at the back. Now and then the door opens and closes quietly.
Otherwise nothing is heard, everyone is considerate. Everything is so muffled and quiet that I hardly dare spread out the covers or turn around, let alone pull back the blinds in case I have to go to the bathroom.
Apart from the bed, the pods are equipped with an electrical outlet, a light dimmer and two shelves
Quelle: Andia/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
When I fiddle with the socket for a long time without luck and want to plug in an adapter, the noise seems as loud as if I had thrown a bottle into a glass container. Luckily nobody complains.
I keep lying awake. Remember that I am a confused dreamer, even a sleepwalker at times. What if I suddenly call out loud while half asleep? Or even get out of the capsule and walk around the hall asleep? The fear of being noticed in an unpleasant way robs me of the sleep I desperately need. Thoughts are circling, but at some point, after a good two hours, I finally doze off.
The new day in Tokyo begins with a mobile phone concert
It’s a light sleep. At two o’clock I wake up for the first time because my right shoulder has fallen asleep because of the firm rice filling of the pillow and the thin mattress. Half an hour later the same game with the left. Finally I use the blanket as a pillow, it’s too hot to cover it anyway.
I wake up with a start just before six. Did the capsule move? Was there an earthquake? Now, however, nothing wobbles anymore; but now four or five people are snoring.
I lie awake again, but after a few minutes I finally fall into a deeper sleep. Until seven o’clock sharp. A cacophony of alarm clocks from several cell phones beeping, tooting and ringing across the room brings me back to capsule reality. If it comes up, I’ve slept maybe five hours. Yawning, I snap up the blinds and drag myself into the shower room with deep bags under my eyes.
The day begins, the obscure overnight experience ends. Capsule to earth, please land! I would get encapsulated again, I think upon check-out, but not with fresh jet lag. Should I ever again come to JapanI will definitely enter for the first few nights real hotel room book with real bed. And of course hang the do-not-disturb sign in front of the door.
Tips and information:
Accommodation: In Tokio There are several 9Hours capsule hotels in different districts. An overnight stay costs the equivalent of 25 euros per person. Those who want to take a nap during the day can do so between 1pm and 9pm for a third of the price (ninehours.co.jp). The Anshin Oyado chain offers five centrally located capsule hotels, from 37 euros per person/night (anshin-oyado.jp/english). The “BayHotel” in the trendy district of Akihabara is one of several capsule hotels for women only, from 60 euros per person/night (bay-hotel.jp/akihabara).
Japan and Tokyo info: jnto.de; gotokyo.org
Participation in the trip was supported by the Japan National Tourism Organization and the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau. Our standards of transparency and journalistic independence can be found at axelspringer.com/de/werte/downloads.
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