11. UZ Hostel | Capsule Hotels
Location: Taipei, Taiwan
These modern capsules adopt the white clinical design aesthetic, appearing like intergalactic, space pods with their neon-lit geometries and inscriptions.
12. Hotel Zen
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Architect: Taro Kagami
This capsule hotel reinterprets the traditional Japanese tea house and is crafted according to the design principles of wabi-sabi; an aesthetic appreciation of transient beauty. Natural materials and minimalistic simplicity achieve a sense of calm – a stark contrast to the outside frenzy.
13. 9h (Nine Hours) | Capsule Hotel
Location: Osaka, Japan
Architects: Naruse Inokuma Architects
9h translates the spatial and temporal dialectic of the Japanese vernacular through four ‘scenes’ of a guest’s stay: ‘reception’, ‘prologue corridor’, ‘sanitary lounge’, and ‘sleeping pods’. The result is a contemporary architecture that realizes the 9h concept as a metaphor for the evening stop-over.
14. °C (Doc) Ebisu
Location: Tokyo, Japan
Architects: Schemata Architects
Commissioned by the Nine Hours franchise, °C grounds its identity through an innovative subversion of the stereotyped image of saunas in capsule hotels. As a renovation project, Schemata Architects successfully complement the retro-nostalgia of the pre-existing, beige-colored capsules with natural materials and tones.
15. Urbanpod
Location: Mumbai, India
Architects: Formwerkz
These technologically superior capsules have adopted the hyper-futuristic minimalism popular with the capsule hotel movement and, despite the unnerving eeriness, create a highly designed, cinematic experience.
16. Xinzuo Hutong Capsule Hotel
Location: Beijing China
Architects: B.L.U.E Architecture Studio
As one moves through the Xinzuo Hutong Capsule Hotel, the hutong reads as an extension of the urban language, a synthesis of ancient tradition and modern design. This communication extends to the courtyards and terrace, all of which enhance the “typical Beijing hutong cultural experience”.
17. Mayu Tokyo Woman
Location: Tokyo, Japan
With female-only employees and guests, Mayu Tokyo Woman is perhaps the ultimate antithesis to the original capsule hotel. The soft color palette, materiality, and recurring arch motif all culminate in a subdued, ‘feminine’ environment.
18. Kyoto Suido-ann Hostel
Location: Kyoto, Japan
Architects: Alphaville Architects
This guesthouse interprets the capsule hotel typology through its “settlement units” within the building. Conceptualized almost like a small-scale village, the modularity of these units enables various spatial arrangements to prevent the typical stacking of capsule beds.
19. CUBE Capsule Hotel
Location: Moscow, Russia
The CUBE Hotel is situated in the lively Arbat district of Moscow, the perfect location for exploration on foot.
20. My Cocoon Hostel
Location: Mykonos, Greece
Architects: Omniview
This Mykonian hostel interprets the Japanese typology through its traditional Cycladic aesthetic, seamlessly interwoven throughout the architecture. This maintains the functionality of the hotel through the beautifully fragmented, but open and light planning.
