S.F. approves $700-a-month sleeping pods
sfchronicle.com
sfchronicle.com
This past week I just happened to spend 5 consecutive nights in a capsule hotel in Yokohama, and 2 nights in a goshiwon[1] in Seoul.
In theory I liked the idea of capsules but the experience was not what I hoped. The capsule hotel was highly rated (on Booking.com) and would have been fine for 1-2 nights, but def not good for a longer stay.
- The capsule structures were metal with plastic panels, and would creak whenever anyone got in or out. It was easy to accidentally bump the wall and make a big noise.
- Climbing down the ladder was awkward.
- You could hear anyone snoring in the whole room.
- The aircon in the outer room was great, but as soon as you shut the screen across its opening, the capsule got stuffy despite its ventilation fan.
- Once at 1am, a guy intentionally pounded the wall of his capsule a few times, which reverberated through the whole structure, triggering shouting (in angry Japanese) from other capsules, and in response he just pounded the wall several more times.
The goshiwon cost about 1.7x more but was at least 4x better. A twin bed in a tiny room, with a tiny desk and a tiny window. In comparison it was an amazing value for the price.
Maybe I'd stay in a capsule again if I just needed a place to crash for the night after midnight, but otherwise never again.
Still, why isn't there any sort of door or gate or in those?