Interest

An Inside Look at the Encouragement of Climb Capsule Hotel Rooms

Have you ever stayed in a capsule hotel? This type of hotel is a very well known and distinctive style of lodging in Japan. Guests sleep in a pod-like room, often no larger than a single futon, and share a bathroom and amenities with the other guests. Although capsule hotels have traditionally been aimed at salarymen, they have increasingly become more popular with foreign tourists–and most recently–anime fans.

The Nihonbashi Muromachi Bay Hotel is collaborating with the anime series Encouragement of Climb to offer 12 themed pods between July 27 to August 13. There are 10 “character” pods featuring the main five characters and two “special” pods. Guests receive free goods for staying in a pod, and extra rooms will be available to purchase for those who stay during the duration of Comiket (August 10-12).

Here is a glimpse of what the rooms look like:

Like other regular capsule hotels, the pods are located in gender-segregated sleeping floors. Guests sleep in the same room but have private, enclosed beds.

The Encouragement of Climb pods come with a TV set, and are decorated with images from the anime series. The “character” pods feature one of the four main characters, and are assigned randomly to guests.

This is the view from inside the pod. As you can see, the characters appear quite close and intimate.

Although Nihonbashi Muromachi Bay Hotel has female-only rooms, the Encouragement of Climb collaboration rooms are only available to male guests. Bay Hotel explained that this was due to the fact that capsule hotels in general tend not to appeal to women due to a traditional male-dominated image. However, women will still receive the novelty goods for staying at the hotel, even if they don't get a themed pod. Bay Hotel further stressed that their lodgings emphasize safety and privacy for everybody.

All guests will also be able to use the communal room, which has been decorated with Encouragement of Climb items during the collaboration period.

This room includes: framed pages from the manga by Shiro, a collection of the manga volumes for guests to peruse, design materials from the anime, cutout stands of the main characters signed by the voice actors, and bromides signed by the staff.

There are also desks with blank sheets and images of the characters to encourage visitors to draw the characters. Guests are also encouraged to take photos of the free acrylic stand they receive for staying against an image of Mt. Fuji from the anime.

Although it may seem off-brand for an anime series about mountain-climbing to get a collaboration hotel in the middle of Tokyo at first glance, the hope is that anime fans will be encouraged to stay at the hotel, especially during Comiket. Bay Hotel expressed their hope that foreigners will be encouraged to stay at the hotel during the collaboration period. Inside the communal room there is a board explaining the history of Encouragement of Climb in Japanese, English, and Chinese.

Even the guests who don't stay at the hotel for the Encouragement of Climb collaboration will probably come away learning something about the anime. The first thing you will see when walking inside the hotel is an illustration of the characters in yukata and a camping set, projecting an image of summer adventure. Other common areas in the hotel, such as the front area and food lounge, are also decorated with Encouragement of Climb characters.

The price for staying in an Encouragement of Climb-themed pod is between 6,500-9,000 yen (US$58-81) and prices will go up during Comiket. The themed rooms can be booked here (Japanese link only).

Encouragement of Climb is currently available worldwide via streaming, including North America, Asia, and other territories. The simulcast for season three has started at the following sites:

Crunchyroll: http://www.Crunchyroll.com/encouragement-of-climb
LiTV: https://www.LiTV.tv/
Bahamut: https://ani.gamer.com.tw/
yahoo: https://tw.tv.yahoo.com/animation/?guccounter=1
CHOCOTV: https://www.chocotv.com.tw/drama?area=comic
KKTV: https://www.kktv.me/

*There are some areas where the streaming is not available according to the licensing conditions.

©siro/ EARTH STAR ENT./"Encouragement of Climb 3" Committee

Thanks to Yomiuri-TV Enterprise for the invitation.