China’s First Capsule Hotel To Open In Shanghai

Xitai Capsule Hotel - China's First Capsule Hotel To Open In Shanghai

China’s first capsule hotel will be opened in Shanghai to attract many budget travelers with low prices, perhaps in response to soaring local real estate prices. Indeed it’s a surprise someone didn’t think of this space- and price-maximizing option before.

The 300-square-metre Xitai Capsule Hotel, located on the north side of the Shanghai Railway Station, consists of 68 “capsules”, each 1.1-metres high, 1.1-metres wide and 2.2-metres long.

Shower facilities are communal

All of the capsules are imported from Japan where capsule hotels originated, and each is equipped with independent sockets, clocks, lights, flat-screen TV and wireless Internet service. The hotel also has a public lavatory, shower room, smoking room and shared guest room.

The basic rate is 28 yuan (US$4.22) per person, plus an additional 4 yuan an hour. The hotel also offers a package of 68 yuan for 10 hours and 88 yuan for 24 hours.

Like most of capsule hotels in Japan, the one in Shanghai is for men only.

Ta Zan, the 33-year-old owner of the hotel, said he used to stay at capsule hotels in Tokyo and worked at a capsule hotel in Japan in 2005, so he knows how they work and how to make guests feel comfortable. When he settled in Shanghai two years ago, he decided to establish his own capsule hotel in the city.

He has also separated the capsules into three snoring zones. “Guests who often snore can stay in the same zones so they will feel better knowing that others are not disturbed,” he was quoted as saying.

Although not cheap — some hostels in Shanghai available for RMB 60 per night — the convenient location for travelers and the novelty factor alone might keep people knocking.

Xitai Capsule Hotel 希泰胶囊旅馆

Address: 1036 Zhongshan Bei Lu, Shanghai  上海市闸北区中山北路1036号