(Photo via booking.com)

Greetings, friends! Now that I’m back home, I have a lot to write about! After my year in Australia, I made some stops in Bali, Tokyo, and California before heading back to Pennsylvania. In this post, I’ll focus on Tokyo and the capsule hotel where I slept during my trip.

This was my first stay in a capsule hotel, so I’ll try to answer as many questions as I had before I booked my trip. Overall, I had a great experience and would definitely recommend First Cabin NishiAzabu to any travelers heading to Tokyo!

Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post, but does contain affiliate links. At no extra cost to you, booking a stay through the Booking.com links or widget on the sidebar gives me a lil’ bit of commission.

What Is a Capsule Hotel?

First Cabin NishiAzabu would be considered by many to be a “capsule hotel” or a “pod hotel.” These terms define hotels that allow guests to reserve a space that strictly fits a bed and a few other amenities, rather than an entire room.  

After over a year of bouncing around from hostels to vans to other hostels in Australia and New Zealand, a capsule hotel seemed like a luxurious and private alternative. The pod would be closed in by walls.

The Popularity (and Ridiculousness) of Pods

Capsule hotels and pod hotels have become popular among nomads and ~hip~ travelers. In fact, a few days after I left Japan, NPR released a story on co-living spaces that are made up of pods. Now, pod hotels are all fun and games, but y’all. The NPR story features a co-living space for $1,400 a month in Venice Beach that is essentially a hostel.

(In fact, it is listed on Hostelworld for $60/night alongside other hostels in the area that charge half as much.)

Let’s get real for a minute. Sure, “co-living space” has different connotations than “hostel,” but the name alone is not worth the price tag. Get it together.

Anyway.

I thought it would be fun to try out a pod hotel while I stayed in Japan. After all, according to Wikipedia, the concept was developed in Japan. I chose the First Cabin NishiAzabu.

The Price of a Pod

With discounts from Booking.com, the nightly price for a Standard Capsule Room at First Cabin NishiAzabu was around 45 USD. This seems like a heavy price for a pod, but when you consider the price and other options throughout the city, it wasn’t a bad deal.

Here’s what I thought about my stay.

Review: First Cabin NishiAzabu

The Layout

When I first arrived to First Cabin, I took the elevator up to the 8th floor where the lobby was located. In the lobby, guests could lounge on the couches or order food from the bar. The area was nice but not spacious enough that I wanted to spend all my free time there. When I learned that check-in was 5 p.m. (a policy that I thought was pretty ridiculous,) I took my jet-lagged butt around the city rather than staying and relaxing in the lounge.

On the 8th floor was also an area that held the spa, showers, and an area to do your hair and makeup. This part of the hotel was reserved for women and only accessible by a key.

First Cabin was the first hotel I had stayed in where entire floors were separated by sex. The fourth floor of the building was reserved for women – this is where I stayed. The elevator to the fourth floor was only accessible inside the spa area for extra security.

Once you arrived on the fourth floor, you could access the bathrooms or the area where the “pods” were held.

I didn’t mind the separation throughout the hotel because I was by myself and enjoyed the extra privacy (especially since I was confined to the fourth floor one day after getting food poisoning.) Plus, the amenities in the hotel made the entire stay very comfortable.

Available Amenities at the First Cabin NishiAzabu

In the Pod

Once you arrived to your pod, you were greeted by a cute little collection of items that made the stay very pleasant. Every day, First Cabin NishiAzabu provided

• pajamas
• a body and face towel
• slippers (that you could take home)
• a toothbrush and toothpaste

That’s right. Every day. I was relieved to leave my backpack in the storage area and only touch it when I needed new clothes for the day.

Inside the pod, I was able to charge my devices and even watch television (with headphones, but I’ll get to that later.) This was probably a great option for Japanese guests, but all of the channels were in Japanese so I stuck to watching Dancing Queen on Netflix.

In the Bathrooms

Getting ready in the morning was a delightful process. In between the showers and spa was an area where women could dry their hair and do their makeup for the day. Each guest had a section with their own mirror and set of amenities, which included a:

• hair dryer
• curling/straightening iron
• face wash, lotion,
• razors and Q-tips
• hairbrushes

The mirrors were a good size and the area was well-lit. Laundry facilities were also available in the bathrooms, but I didn’t use them because all of the instructions were in Japanese. Shrug.

The spa in the hotel was an Onsen, which is essentially a hot tub that you can enjoy in the nude. Due to my battle with food poisoning, I didn’t get to try out the spa, but I did give it a peek. I honestly regret not trying it out, but such is life.

Rules of First Cabin NishiAzabu

The pods were very close together and certainly not sound-proof, so the receptionists provided a list of rules that guests would have to follow. Guests in the pods were not allowed to:

• talk on cell phones
• eat
• listen to music or watching TV without headphones
• chat in groups

There was 24-hour surveillance cameras throughout the hotel, but everyone appeared to obey the rules throughout my stay and I had no problems. At first, I was a little taken aback by the list of rules, but I ended up being grateful that I could get a good night’s sleep.

Do Pods in Pod Hotels Feel Cramped?

Not every pod hotel is going to look and feel like First Cabin. I’m glad this one didn’t feel like a glorified hostel, and it had more space than I expected from a capsule hotel. If I had the desire to stand up on the bed, I wouldn’t hit my head on the ceiling. At this point in my travels, I had been more than used to twin beds, so I didn’t mind the width of the pod either.

Where Do You Put Your Stuff in a Pod Hotel?

Obviously, a 55-liter backpack in a standard capsule would feel mildly cramped. On the fourth floor, around the corner from my pod, guests throughout the floor could store their luggage in a designated space. Considering how safe Japan is in general, and the 24-hour security, I felt very safe leaving my backpack in that area, even though it didn’t have a door or lock.

 

My Overall Review of First Cabin NishiAzabu

My first capsule hotel was a great experience, but it won’t always be my first choice. While the amenities, layout, and staff provided excellent service for solo trips, I wouldn’t recommend the hotel for groups. The next time I’m in Tokyo on a solo venture or stopover, I’ll definitely explore other areas of the city where I can get a good night’s sleep for a decent price. Tokyo is such a large city, and while First Cabin NishiAzabu was in a great location, there are many other great locations for me to explore.

Luckily, First Cabin NishiAzabu has a handful of other locations throughout Tokyo. If I go back on another solo venture, I would definitely consider a stay at First Cabin again. The facilities were immaculate, the pod was nice and private, and I felt very safe during my stay.

Would I Stay in a Pod Hotel Again?

It depends on the amount of space in the “pod.” I’ve stayed in hostels with more privacy than the “pod hotels” that you can find in the States. If you’re essentially in a bunk bed, you might as well find a cheaper hostel to stay in. That $1,400 co-living space? No thank you.

Ultimately, what it comes down to is the price and privacy. (Beat, Broke, Backpacking, am I right?) If I’m considering a capsule hotel but can find a cheaper alternative that offers the same amount of privacy, the label of “pod hotel” doesn’t save it. I’ll go with the cheaper option. And I certainly won’t recommend it for group outings.

Have you ever stayed in a pod hotel? What did you like? What did you not like? Let me know in the comments!