Overnight in a Capsule Hotel, Tokyo

After a very nice breakfast at the Comfort Hotel in Himeji, we checked out to return to Tokyo via the Sanyo Shinkansen. This time, instead of using Klook and paying the 10% service fee, I decided to get tickets directly at Himeji Station which had a Shinkasen stop and was not as crowded as a Tokyo station. I could have purchased the tickets at a kiosk, but the machines did not take credit cards and I was short on cash. Went over to the Shinkansen ticket office instead, got a number, and wait about 10 minutes to be called. The service person at the counter spoke English and gave me tickets for the next train, with two seats next to each other. Best of all there was no service fee and they accepted my credit card. As we waited for our bullet train, I took photos of various Shinkansen that stopped at our platform, including the cute Hello Kitty Shinkansen that attracted a lot of photographers.

Our trip from Himeji to Tokyo took about 3.5 hours, with a transfer in Shinagawa to the local Yammamote line for the Shin-Okubo Station. Google Maps worked really well in tracking the trip and stations. Total cost was 16,570 yen (USD 110) per person. We had just one carry-on rolling suitcase and a backpack each. So glad that we had our other suitcases transferred to the Disney hotel where we will check in the day after. For tonight, we will be staying in a capsule hotel, the Rembrandt Cabin Shinjuku. After the relatively peaceful and quiet atmosphere in Himeji, Shinjuku was incredibly crowded, shoulder-to-shoulder people on the sidewalks. Our hotel was just a 5 minute walk from the station on a very busy street. The hotel reception was on the 8th floor. We've never stayed in a capsule hotel, and wanted to do this just for the experience. We were assigned a capsule next to each other on the 6th floor. Both the 5th and 6th floor were for women only and had their own elevator. We were given access cards to the capsule area and locker keys (outside the capsule area) to put our personal belongings. The lockers were large enough to hold a large suitcase. We were also give pajamas, disposable slippers, towels and toiletries.

Here are what the capsules look like. Both our pods were at the lower level, there was just a bed and hard pillow, with a duvet. The "door" was just a pull down flap or shade. There were signs asking people to be respectful, no phones or loud conversation, and no alarms which travelers ignored as alarms went off in multiple pods the next morning. We locked up our belongings and went out to walk around and scout for dinner.