This new hotel has no rooms and all you need to stay is your phone

I have not stayed in a hostel since Julia Gillard was in power. And while I enjoyed my time sharing bunk beds with strangers, these days I raise my eyebrows at anything lower than a four-star hotel.

So when I was given the chance to stay in a hotel with no rooms at all I was dubious.

Otherwander Soho in London is described as a pod hotel. It’s just around the corner from Tottenham Court Road and Oxford Street.

Usually, hotels in these areas would set you back hundreds of dollars. Yet, at Otherwander Soho the cost is from $140 a night, for a single or double pod.

As well as having no actual rooms, the hotel has no reception desk and only a handful of staff.

When I arrived the first thing I noticed was that getting inside was a challenge in its self. There are certainly no top-hatted doormen here.

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Instead, we had to scan the QR code we’d been sent on our phones to cross the threshold into the dazzling white foyer.

It felt a bit like a set from Doctor Who, with a staff member tapping an iPad – the only human around.

After paying a steep $30 to store our suitcases – you can only fit small bags in the pods – we were directed to secure entry gates.

You guessed it, they only open with a flick of your mobile.

I suppose that eliminates one issue from my hostelling days – someone sneaking in. I still remember the time an NYC security guard flung open the dorm door at 2am to hunt for someone who “hadn’t paid”.

The 566 pods, we discovered, are split into small banks, down separate corridors.

We wandered, confused, for a bit until we located ours. It was one of a group of eight, in sets of two, one atop the other.

The pods reminded me of morgue drawers (sorry, but they really did). Again, your phone is your key.

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My husband and I were booked into a double pod, and instant regret set in the second I saw it.

He is just over six feet tall, and I’m not far behind. I was convinced we simply wouldn’t fit.

But, when I clambered up the little steps and peered inside, I was pleasantly surprised.

While the room was only the size of a double mattress, our pod was cleverly designed, with a USB charger, lights, and small storage areas.

It even had air conditioning, Wi-Fi, and two towels were provided.

Actually getting inside the thing, however, required a bit more energy. I had to do a commando-style crawl to reach the pillow end.

But with sleep still a few hours off, I shimmied back out so we could explore.

On the way out, we swung by the social area, which has vending machines stocked with snacks and booze and plenty of tables and lounges.

Step outside, and you’re instantly wrapped in the buzz of the West End, mere footsteps from theatres, shops, and pubs.

You quite literally couldn’t be closer to the heart of London.

After a jaunt about town, however, we got back to a surprise interloper. A man was crashed out in a pod across from us. With the door open. And his legs hanging out.

He had also scattered his shoes and the contents of his suitcase over the floor, which was also propped up in the corner.

It triggered nasty dorm room flashbacks and made me yearn for the privacy of a hotel room.

However, it did then lend itself to testing out the only way to contact staff, via WhatsApp.

An automated AI bot replied to reassure me a human was on the way.

A real staff member offered to shift us to another pod, but I declined, and they promised to check on our neighbour instead.

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With that sorted, the other thing that made me nervous was potential noise. I often have issues with that in hotels.

Doors banging, lifts clunking, traffic honking, all of it keeps me awake.

So I was thrilled when we closed the pod door and heard... absolutely nothing.

Until around an hour later when a bunch of chatty girls arrived outside our pod. Giggle, giggle, talk, talk. For ages.

But at some point they must have gone to bed because the next thing I knew, I was pulling off my eye mask in the morning.

I was surprised to have slept so well.

With not a soul around, I paced to the bathrooms, feeling like I’d woken up on the set of Passengers or Project Hail Mary.

Even the modern shower and loos with piped music, felt delightfully space age.

Just don’t forget your phone, or you’ll be locked out of your pod in your pyjamas.

(I presume somebody would see you on one of the many security cameras at some point?)

Ultimately, sci-fi quirks and messy neighbours aside, waking up well-rested in Central London for a decent price is a future I can definitely get behind.

The writer travelled to London at their own expense but stayed as a guest of Otherwander Soho.