Modern convenience: 9h nine hours woman Shinjuku
A sci-fi worthy capsule hotel known for its clever design and roomy bed pods with a wellness angle, for busy locals and travellers looking for a place to sleep
9h nine hours woman Shinjuku is a capsule hotel in Tokyo, Japan.
Quick Facts:
This hotel brand is Japan's first wellness capsule hotel to offer “scientifically measured” sleep analysis services.
Its name encapsulates (see what I did there?) its philosophy: 1 hour to shower, 7 hours to sleep, and 1 hour to get ready.
It’s a local chain with 13 outlets in key locations across Japan.
Most of the 9h hotels are unisex, but this location is a women-only property.
This sci-fi worthy capsule hotel is known for its clever design and roomy bed pods with a wellness angle, for busy locals and travellers looking for a place to sleep. In this case, sleep is a big deal here: the pods have special sensors in them, that will allow you to get a personalised sleep report. During my stay, I paid ¥9,720 a night for a single-use capsule, with a sleep report included.
The Write Benefits - features we loved:
While you don’t actually get a room in the hotel (therefore no desk, duh), the top floor lounge is essentially a co-working space with plenty of plugs, three types of seating areas, and a vending machine for drinks and snacks.
Don’t miss:
They lend you pyjamas for use during your stay (you’ll find them in your locker), which is useful for people who want to keep their luggage light, or for anyone unexpectedly needing to crash in town for the night, without packing any “just in case” garments or toiletries, while their other clothes are hung up or washed.
Top tip:
If you can, try the sleep report - but you will need to sleep there for at least 6-7 hours for them to be able to provide one - if you only take a 4-hour nap there, for instance, they’ll say they could not gather enough information to produce it. And remember - the report will only study you for that night - so how comfy (or not) you find the capsule will factor into your results!
I found it super-quiet - blissfully so - in the pods room, but that will depend on your neighbors. Some say the (quiet) whir of the sleep scanner bothers them too.
Writing fuel:
Some of the 9h nine hours hotel locations have a coffee shop on the premises, but this one doesn’t. If you’re hungry, you can grab a snack in the vending machine on the lounge (top) floor, or you’ll have to grab a bite from a restaurant, café, or quick-service shop nearby. You’re not meant to eat on the floors with the showers and sleep pods, so if you bring food in to the hotel, you should ideally eat it on the lounge floor as well. Bringing in water to drink is fine on the sleep pod floors though.
Although I’d not book this place for a writing stay specifically - and wouldn’t suggest it for prolonged stay - for a night or two (especially if you’re mostly out and about exploring the city), it was clean, comfy, and surprisingly peaceful - with a great coworking space on the top floor, to boot!
A place to lay your head
Capsule hotels aren’t meant to be the type of place you lounge around and enjoy luxurious facilities - the point is to offer a comfortable, convenient, and safe place to rest when you just need a place to sleep, shower, and store your bags. This brand offers a more premium experience than most capsule hotels, with more spacious pods, and very clean and well-thought facilities.
Sleep analysis and report
If you opt for the sleep report, you will receive it within a week max, after your stay. The data used in the report is tracked using using infrared cameras, microphones, and motion sensors, and it “measures metrics such as heart rate, snoring, and instances of apnea”.
A focus on quality
According to the website, the pods are made of fiber-reinforced plastic, with a “soft form to eliminate any industrial feel. With a shape reminiscent of a cocoon, they provide a spacious and reassuring environment with no sharp edges.” Each has its own adjustable light switch, plus multiple outlets for charging electronic devices, as well as a specially-designed pillow and duvet.
Thoughtful touches
The showers are specially designed to be warm and soothing (for optimal sleep encouragement), and the towels and toiletries are carefully chosen from high-quality Japanese brands. The toilets are Japanese toilets - yes, that means with all of the cool gadgets those tend to offer.
