First Cabin Kansai Airport — Hotel in Izumisano

I spent one night in a First Class cabin at the Kansai Airport branch of First Cabin, as I had an early flight the next morning. I’d seen videos of people trying out the First Class cabin and was so curious about it that I wanted to experience it for myself, as my first ever ‘capsule hotel’ experience.

||I paid just under JPY9,000 for a night’s stay, which covered the regular check-in time of 5pm up until a check-out time of 10am (the First Cabin booking website also offers other options with flexible hours, e.g. an earlier check-in time for a slightly higher price). In terms of cost, this is definitely an attractive option if you don’t have the budget for the airport hotel that’s also located at Kansai Airport’s Aeroplaza.||

Despite my concern that it would be very busy in the late afternoon, the reception desk at First Cabin had no queue and checked me in very quickly (guests need to be willing to have a scan/photo taken of their passport). The staff were very polite and seemed comfortable communicating in English - I was handed a card that would let me enter the women’s cabin area (First Cabin is split into two separate areas for women’s and men’s cabins) along with a key to open the security box underneath my bed.

||The First Class cabin is definitely the most comfortable of all the cabin options: it really helped to have a little table and some space in the cabin to open my suitcase, hang my clothes up on the three clothes hangers provided, and just move about a bit. The lights were bright enough for me to work inside the cabin, the WiFi was pretty decent, and although they didn’t have USB ports at the power outlets, the staff at the reception desk handed me an adaptor that I could use to charge my USB-connected devices.||

Prior to arriving, I’d spotted several TripAdvisor reviews that complained about the stuffiness of the cabin. It wasn’t an issue for me - I felt that there was adequate ventilation and air-conditioning - but it’s true that there isn’t much air movement within the cabin area (and the surrounding corridors). As I was there in very late October, perhaps the slightly cooler outside temperatures helped - I can well imagine that it might feel considerably more humid indoors during an extremely warm Japanese summer.

||The real drawbacks, I would say, were the rock-hard bed (I really do mean that. I felt like I was lying on a slab of stone) and the lack of showers in the women’s bathroom area - there were only two shower stalls in total. Yes, there is a Japanese bath with showers there as well, but I really felt that First Cabin could have installed more private shower stalls. The women’s cabins weren’t full when I was staying there, so I was still able to shower in the morning and evening at the times I wanted to, but at full capacity, I don’t know how they’ll be able to deal with a large number of guests who need a shower before they head off for their respective flights.

||Anyone who stays at First Cabin needs to understand that they will inevitably be disturbed by people walking past, shutting their cabin curtains, unzipping their bags, or even talking (but please don’t have a full conversation in your cabin, as one guest decided to do at 11pm). That’s just part and parcel of staying in a capsule hotel. Despite that and the extremely hard mattress, I did actually manage to get a fairly decent night’s sleep, and made it to the check-in counter at Terminal 1 in no time at all and with zero stress.||

For any other TripAdvisor users who have sensitive skin, I’m happy to be able to add that I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of complimentary products in the women’s bathroom - from the face cleansers, toners, lavender-scented shampoo and conditioner, and almond-scented shower gel. I thought those were really well-selected, they didn’t irritate my skin, and it made it much easier not to have to retrieve my toiletry bag from my suitcase (which was about to burst). I can also report that as with the majority of hotels in Japan, the women’s cabin area and bathrooms at First Cabin were impeccably clean (although I never stepped into the Japanese bath, so can’t comment on that).
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The First Cabin at Kansai Airport is really conveniently located in the Aeroplaza next to several restaurants and a Lawson downstairs, so as long as you’re alright with sharing communal spaces with other guests and aren’t bothered by a hard mattress, then you can definitely consider this as a good place to stay before (or even after) a flight that’s scheduled for an inconvenient time. On the other hand, if you’re not on such a tight budget, go for the airport hotel instead - and then at least you can enjoy some much-needed privacy, sleep, and (hopefully) a...

When your tired you want to lay down after 8 hours of flying and you have a 9 hour till your connecting flight. I saw First Cabin while researching and did not want to rent a hotel. I have never tried a small confined room before but I was game. We arrived in Osaka and made my way to a map to find First Cabin. Wasn't listed. Walked throughout the terminal and remembered you had to go out and walk somewhere. Well that led me to go into circles and through different sections of security before I was able to talk to a flight attendant. She told me I had to actually go out of the terminal because it is across the way. That meant instead of staying within the terminal, I had to go through immigration and customs and sign both documents to get out. Which also means you had to wait in line to get out. Luckily the lines are not as long for immigration as Tokyo. The Aero building is on the second level. You have to take the escalator up to the departure level to take the cat walk across when you make a left at the top. Walk to the building and when you are in the Aero building take the short escalator to the next floor up. You should see signs to First Cabin. You'll see an Italian restaurant and First Cabin is down the hall that dead ends. Enter the glass doors and they will give you a card and key for the locker. There are two types of containers (they are not rooms) it is a mattress within walls. That is the smallest. The other room gives you about 3 feet of walking space on one side and a small round table. Unfortunately for me, the air fan switch did not do much to cool the area. I was uncomfortable. I was tired and slept a couple hours in humidity. If you need as a last resort to lay horizontal, this is it. If you want to be more comfortable literally, get a hotel but you'll spend a good amount of money and the extra time to leave the terminal, get transportation, wake up and reverse the process including getting back into line through security for the connecting flight might give you a chance to just stay in the terminal. If I were to do this again, I would just stay at the lounge i.e. Sakura Lounge. Would I recommend this? As a last resort yes. I like the concept, but there is much to be desired and upgrades should be considered. 1. change the way cool air circulates in the pod like area. 2. redesign the locker and as a suggestion, put a lock drawer under the mattress that would fit your suit case too. 3. get a de-humidifer for god sakes. If the AC is insufficient, you don't want to lay in your sweat. Lastly, I struggled to get to the shower. It's downstairs from the rear with 2 sets of long stairs. If you are a bit challenged like I am with hip problems, it might be a struggle. Just saying. Might work best for a younger person with more energy. Im over 60. Sorry for the gripe but it's...

Great place to stay before taking an early flight, only 10 minutes walk from T1 check in counters in kansai airport. We did not pay attention when getting out of the JR station and headed towards T1, whereas the aeroplaza zone where the hotel is located in just on the right at the station exit (I think it says direction T2)

Staff is super helpful and friendly Cabin rooms are very clean, pajamas, slippers and towels are provided and there are all needed amenities in the bathroom area. We had TVs in the cabin, (you can only watch TV with earphones provided at reception) bathroom area is super clean, showers and toilets offer all the privacy you may need There are vending machines and you can also buy coffee and some other things like wipes, and different amenities if those provided are not sufficient There's a common area with tables and chairs, very convenient for an evening drink or morning coffee Place felt super safe and cozy

Don't expect to take your luggage with you, (Maybe a cabin suitcase would fit in the first class cabin, but my daughter an I stayed in the standard ones), there are luggage rooms where you have to leave your suitcase and take out what you need before getting in your cabin. The locker in the cabin will only fit a standard handbag or thin backpack. We traveled only with small bags so we were able to keep our bags in the cabin.

This is really a place to sleep, so you can't expect to talk with your friends staying in a nearby cabin or on the phone; similarly use of alarm for waking up is prohibited. Yes you will hear blinds going up and down and people zipping their bags, I don't know if the night we stayed there people were super respectful but we were not bothered by noise and were able to get a restful sleep. (all cabins seemed occupied) The fact the cabin did not lock were not a problem for us, it did feel super safe and you need a badge to access the sleeping area

Last point, food options are super limited, we arrived at 8pm and the restaurant in the aeroplaza zone were all closed, and there's not much at Kansai airport. There is a Lawson just downstairs from first cabin though.

Overall, cheap, convenient, efficient; not a place (at least for me) to stay for a week but a great option for a late arrival or before a morning flight in...