Why Travelers Need to Wake Up and Consider Airport Sleep Pods Stephen Starr - The National
go to original October 25, 2017

Capsule comfort comes to Mexico City airport (Reuters/Straits Times)

I’m in a hotel room, but I’m not writing this Postcard from a desk or even from the edge of my bed.

I can’t stare out the window, hoping pertinent things to write about will come to mind. That’s because this izZzleep Hotel ‘room’ is a 1.8 meters-long by 91 centimeters-high box, one of 40 capsules that have opened as a concept hotel in Mexico City’s Benito Juárez International Airport.

For US$40 a night, you get free Wi-Fi, a fold-down TV and a complimentary pair of socks. Stopping by for a siesta sets travellers back $7.50 for a two-hour minimum stay, and to use a shower costs $6.80, although this is included in the nightly rate.

There’s a memory-foam mattress, temperature control and an alarm to make sure guests don’t miss onward flights, though that’s a feature I don’t risk using – maybe it works fine, maybe it doesn’t; maybe I muck up setting the alarm and oversleep. I deem it not worth experimenting with, and in any case, there are strategically-placed electricity outlets and USB ports for recharging your phones and tablets.

Phone calls are not allowed in or outside of the capsules and guests are not allowed to bring food into the hotel, but on this particular evening, it’s exactly what I need.

Overnighting at the airport spares me from having to face taxis and traffic in a city I’ve never visited before, among people who speak a language I don’t understand.

I don’t have to worry about whether I’ll make my early morning plane onward to Ciudad Juárez because check-in is just a five-minute walk away.

The owners say the idea for opening this type of hotel, that is a first for Central America, came from right in front of their noses.

“We had a job that had us travelling continuously. As frequent travellers waiting for flights and looking at people sleeping on the floor, the idea just came up,” says manager José Martin.

After two years of investigation and development works, izZzleep Hotel came to fruition.

Read the rest at The National

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!