Railways’ first pod hotel likely to open at Mumbai Central by December

The suite pods will have a large bed for two passengers, personal lockers and Wi-Fi. The pod hotel will also be equipped with a lounge area, cafeteria, changing areas and washrooms.

Two non-air-conditioned (AC) waiting rooms on the first floor of Mumbai Central station are likely to be turned into Indian Railways’s first pod hotel by December 2020.

IRCTC will construct 30 pods at the Mumbai Central station, it floated tenders on January 9. (Kalpak Pathak/HT Photo)

The pod hotel — a building with a large number of extremely small and ultra-modern capsules or pods that provide overnight accommodation — is expected to be cheaper than the retiring rooms available currently.

The Indian Rail Catering Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), which will construct 30 pods at the Mumbai Central station, floated tenders for the same on Thursday.

“The tendering process for the construction of pods has commenced. We are aiming to open the pods at Mumbai Central station by December. The capsules will be constructed within six months after the tender is finalised. The designs and specifications of the pods will be similar to the pod hotel operational in India,” said a senior IRCTC official. India’s first pod hotel, which is privately-run, opened in Andheri in 2017. 

The 30 pods will provide accommodation to passengers up to 12 hours.

These capsules will be divided into two types — classic and suite. Classic pods will cater to one passenger and have lockers, charging sockets and baggage space.

The suite pods will have a large bed for two passengers, personal lockers and Wi-Fi. The pod hotel will also be equipped with a lounge area, cafeteria, changing areas and washrooms.

The Indian Railways first planned the construction of a pod hotel at Mumbai Central railway station in 2018.