Last year when flying to Prague, we had a  7 hour stop at  London’s  Heathrow airport. So rather than drive into London to get a room and pay for a full night, we stayed at YOTEL and were able to book  a room  for 6 hours. Yotel is known for their “pod” rooms in Europe. Everything you would expect from a luxury hotel in a small space. GREAT DESIGN but inside the airport terminal building!

Now the Pod hotel chain Yotel  opening  in New York City next year. It will be  its first expansion outside of airport locations. And the hourly/pod concept of course will not be needed, but the company will focus on compact space with great design features and functionality.  

Yotel Times Square, to be located at 42nd Street and 10th Avenue, will feature 669 cabin rooms (about 185 square feet), making it the largest hotel opening planned for New York in 2011.

The firm says that it will feature a restaurant, bar, meeting rooms, Club Lounge and the largest outdoor terrace space of any hotel in New York.

“YOTEL will bring a unique mix of fun, excitement and luxury to New York and all at an affordable price,” said Simon Woodroffe, founder of the YO! Sushi chain and Yotels.
                                                                                                    (photo below from Yotel pod rooms in Europe)

With the opening one year away and the ever changing hotel rates in Manhattan, it’s hard to say what their rates will be. However the company  told me “we will make sure that we are great value for money and extremely competitive. Customers constantly tell us that they don’t want to pay for lots of space in rooms that they actually never use. It’s about the quality of sleep, flexibility and quality.


The rooms will  be compact  but really nicely designed and with hand made organic beds, large flat screen TV, free WiFi and wired internet, the best ever rain shower, plenty of storage space. In addition the facilities of the hotel will be fantastic – the largest outside terrace space in New York, a really funky bar, lovely concept restaurant.”

The Best of Gay New York