Yotel: the airport mini-hotel

The first mini airport hotel is set to open in London’s Gatwick Airport in May. The concept combines cubicle style accommodation such as is found in Japan, with the comfort and class of first class cabins such as those found on British Airways flights. A second Yotel, as they are called, is scheduled to open at Heathrow Airport in June.

Yotel rooms can be rented in four hour blocks for $50. The windowless room contains mood lighting, free internet access, movies on demand and a work station.  Hourly extensions on room rates are available, up to $110 for a full night stay.  In comparison, one night at one of the three star hotels around Gatwick airport costs around £100 or around US$200 and although it may include breakfast, the furnishings aren’t nearly as chic as those in the tiny Yotel rooms.

Yotel press releases suggest that the rooms coming soon to Gatwick will have flat screen LCD TV, double beds, luxurious bedding, and a rain shower. Check-in is likely to be automated.

Speculation has suggested that Sydney airport will open a Yotel sometime in the future, possibly in 2008.  Other cities which are considering the idea are: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bucharest, Berlin, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Singapore, Madrid, Paris and Rome

www.britishairways.com