FIRST CABIN  — convenient luxury at low price

Unlike a soulless business hotel, or a random room for daily rent, a stay at First Cabin  feels like a fresh reinterpretation of that well-known Japanese fad — the capsule hotel. A high-end compact hotel in Atogayama near Nishishimbashi area, First Cabin is decked with woodgrain trims and an interior color palette featuring blue-green tones — the color worn by geishas that the Shimbashi area was once famous for. Today, the geishas are replaced by staff in (you guessed it) flight-attendant-style uniforms. But the traditional Japanese concern for good service remains. You share a coin launderette, and free irons and humidifiers are available upon request. Some cabins are located in female-and male-only halls, and there’s also the security of someone literally waiting at your doorstep — an added bonus over the likes of the ordinary, shared economy options like airbnb.

As a hotel chain business, seriously competitive price of a night’s stay at any one of First Cabin’s convenient locations throughout major Japanese cities is a testament that contradictions do work: The price of an experience is not necessarily directly correlated to the luxury it offers. Mixing old time charm of first class luxury travel with innovation at flexible rates (you can rent the rooms per hour) emphasizes the freedom of choice. (Photo credit: First Cabin)