Britain’s Capsule Hotel Has Eventful Opening International Traveler / Update: LONDON

The first Yotel, a low-cost Japanese-style “capsule hotel,” opened June 30 at Gatwick Airport, and many of its first guests were travelers in need of a place to stay in London because of security delays following the attack on Glasgow’s main airport that day.

According to Elizabeth Williams, a spokeswoman for Yotel, that first day the hotel had “a few stranded guests due to security delays.” The next day, customers called to reserve some of the 46 “cabins” for only a few hours before early-morning flights, concerned about security lines and traffic – exactly the marketing niche, along with unexpected flight delays and cancellations, Yotel hopes to fill.

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