Capsule Hotels, or ‘Pod Hotels’ as we generally call them in the West, originated in 1979 in Osaka, Japan. The Japanese have a knack for designing innovative and clever space-saving ideas. Capsule Hotels are a perfect example of this ingenuity. They offer a middle ground between a hostel and a hotel, prioritising sleep over luxury.
Private, minimalist pod-like rooms, often stacked on top of one another, provide unique and affordable accommodation. The quirky concept is spreading worldwide, particularly where convenience and affordability are high on a traveller’s priority list. Often an essential element for visitors to the UK capital. If you’re planning a trip to the city and cost is a consideration, here are five great Capsule Hotels in London.
The Best Capsule Hotels in London
YotelAir Gatwick – Book By the Hour
YotelAir Gatwick opened in 2007 and was the first of the hotel chain’s locations. The concept was a joint venture between Simon Woodroffe, OBE of Yo!Sushi and Dragon Den’s fame and CEO, founder, and entrepreneur Gerard Greene.
YotelAir provides services to meet the demands of modern travellers. Whether you’re a tourist or travelling for business, their mission is to provide a first-class experience at reasonable prices. The business model is working as YotelAir regularly collects awards.
Generally located in airport terminals, YotelAir Gatwick is inside the South Terminal, only a few minutes walk from departures and arrivals, making it ideal for passengers catching early or late flights or in between transfer flights.
What do you get at the pod hotel at a London airport? Some compare the pods to being more like ferry cabins to hotel rooms. They are small but comfortable. There’s a bed, a fold-out desk with a chair, and bathrooms are wetroom style. All rooms come with super-fast Wi-Fi as standard.
Since the cabins are compact, they have limited storage space. Excess storage is available opposite the Arrivals gate.
The reception desk, otherwise known as Mission Control, is the central control area for check-ins, departures, arranging food, earplugs, cabin temperature control, and alarm calls.
Bookings are charged at different hourly rates, enabling flexibility if you want to refresh before the next stage of your journey. Prices are from,
- Fours hours from £42.00
- Six hours from £52.00
- Eight hours from £62.00
If you’re after convenience and a perfectly functional room with everything you need, YotelAir comes highly rated.
Address: YOTELAIR London Gatwick, Ground Floor, Arrivals Concourse, South Terminal, Gatwick Airport, West Sussex, RH6 0NN
Telephone: 0207 100 1100
Snoozebox – Comfy Shipping Containers
Spend a night in a shipping container with Snoozebox. They provide award-winning accommodation in Canary Wharf and Stratford.
Snoozebox Olympic Park is an adults-only accommodation in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. There are 78 en suite rooms with free Wi-Fi, TV, and power sockets. A social lounge area provides 24-hour food and drink, and a large garden area is available.
The Olympic Park Hotel is close to great shopping, restaurants, and sports facilities. The purpose-built arena for the fabulous Abba Voyage concert is only a two-minute walk away.
Prices in August are from £71.00.
The rooms in Snoozebox shipping containers are small and reasonably priced, considering their locations. They make great places to stay for a night. However, for more extended stays, you might want to stay elsewhere in a more spacious hotel room.
Address: Snoozebox Olympic Park, Pudding Mill Lane, London E15 2NQ
Telephone: 07533 587 807
Hub By Premier Inn – Cheaper Than Standard Premier Inn
Travel figures are up overall, as are the number of price-conscious travellers. Despite the financial squeeze, people still hunger for travel, and the internet means budget-savvy globetrotters can seize the opportunity to search for the best deals. Premier Inn wanted to capitalise on this new market. So they created Hub by Premier Inn.
The rooms at Hub are around half the size of a standard Premier Inn room. However, they come packed with many ingenious design features, including a compact en suite. The most important part is the around 25% cheaper price tag.
The Hub’s concept allows the hospitality group to develop accommodation in buildings closer to the city centre that are not usually suitable for the leisure industry. The small sacrifice in size translates to a win-win on location and price.
Hub by Premier Inn offers 11 locations in London, including Shoreditch, Soho, Covent Garden, Tower Bridge and Westminster Abbey.
Advertised prices for the Shoreditch location for one of the contemporary standard rooms measuring around 11.4m² in October 2023 is £74.00. Prices vary according to the time of year.
Shoreditch Hub is in a great location and is clean and excellent value for money, especially if you are on a budget.
Address: Quaker Street, Shoreditch, London, E1 6SN
Telephone: 0330 175 9012
Z Hotels – Affordable Prices in the Heart of the Action
Z Hotels opened its first hotel in Soho back in 2011. Since then, the demand for cheap rooms in central locations in the heart of all the action resulted in the hotel adding another 13 Z Hotels to its portfolio. Eleven pod hotels are in London, with another three around the UK.
The rooms in Z Hotels are small but perfectly formed with many modern conveniences, including en suites, Wi-Fi, TVs, air-con and tea and coffee facilities. A single room can be as small as 8m² growing to 10m² for a double. Larger rooms are available for extended stays. Their largest is around 14m² and is suitable for wheelchairs.
The Soho Z Hotel has 85 rooms arranged around a central courtyard. Prices for a night in a single room start at £60.00, rising to £110.00 for a queen double room. The disabled access room starts at £90.00.
Z Hotels successfully achieve their goal of establishing centrally located hotels. These hotels are often appreciated for their impeccable location, exceptional facilities, and friendly staff. Despite being compact, visitors often find the rooms to be perfectly adequate for their stay.
When a customer has had an issue, the team works hard to address the matter as swiftly as possible. Some negative reviews refer to room sizes. However, Z Hotels do point out that this is their concept.
Other London locations are City, Covent Garden, Gloucester Place, Holborn, Piccadilly, Shoreditch, Strand, Tottenham Court Road, Trafalgar and Victoria.
Address: 17 Moor Street, Soho, London, W1D 5AP
Telephone: 020 3551 3701
The Corner London City – A Green Hotel
The Corner London City claims to be the greenest hotel in London, and they’ve won a couple of eco-friendly awards to back up their statements. Their cube-shaped pods, which include a bedroom and bathroom, are sustainably built from reclaimed wood and lighting, imaginatively repurposing old hosepipes.
They boast of using 67% less CO² than the industry’s average. Their water consumption is 41% less than other UK hotels, even considering their luxurious Rainfall showers, which mix air with water to maintain pressure. Other environmental credentials include solar panels.
A bar and kitchen provide breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a late-night menu for in-house residents. The menus have many vegan and vegetarian options, so check out some mouth-watering dishes.
There are Vegan fish and chips for £13.50 and Jackfruit Gyros, also at £13.50.
The Corner encourages workers to their co-working spaces in the bar and restaurant, and for £5.00, you can enjoy super-fast Wi-Fi and unlimited tea and coffee. Work alone or with colleagues, and various meeting spaces accommodate larger groups.
There is a range of packages for staying at The Corner, including bringing the furry friend for a Dogcation from £144.99.
The Corner London City provides a memorable stay, in clean, uniquely designed accommodation, with a great bar, good food, friendly staff, at reasonable prices, and only a 10 – 15 minute walk from London Bridge. There’s a bonus if you stay multiple nights and choose not to have your room cleaned. You receive a £5.00 voucher to spend in the bar as a thank-you for going green.
Address: 42 Adler Street, London, E1 1EE
Telephone: 020 3021 3300
Practical Tips for Staying in a Capsule Hotel
- Where do you put your luggage in a capsule hotel? If you’re staying in a traditional Japanese pod with just a bed, there are usually lockers for carry-on luggage. Many London capsule hotels have room in the pod for a small overnight bag. Anything larger, and the hotel might have a storage room.
- Do capsule hotels have showers and toilets in the pod? Authentic capsule hotels will likely have toilets and showers at the end of the pod rows. However, in capsule hotels in London, the pods are generally large enough to have a wetroom-type bathroom.
- Do capsule hotels serve food? Similar to hostels and hotels, some provide bars and restaurants serving food.
