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ArchiveCase2015–present

Henn na Hotel: the first robot-staffed hotel cut more than half its robots

Henn na Hotel entered Guinness World Records as the first hotel staffed by robots. Four years later it retired more than half of them, but the hotel chain still operates.

OperatorHuis Ten Bosch (H.I.S. Group), president Hideo Sawada. Robot partners included Kokoro, Aldebaran Robotics and Yaskawa Electric
Opened17 July 2015 in Sasebo, Nagasaki, 72 rooms. Singles ¥7,000–14,000 before tax
RobotsHumanoid receptionists, an English-speaking dinosaur, an industrial arm that stores luggage, the in-room assistant Churi, porter robots
RecognitionGuinness World Records, “First robot-staffed hotel”
CutbackReported January 2019. More than half of 243 robots retired (NPR, Engadget); robot types cut from 27 to 15 (Nikkan Kogyo). Sources differ on whether 243 counts one hotel or the chain
Chain16 hotels in January 2019. 25 on the official site’s current list (23 in Japan, Seoul Myeongdong, New York); a news item on the same site says 21
NowEntrance dinosaur and check-in humanoid remain. RoBoHoN and hologram check-in at some hotels
Who stopped itThe operator withdrew many robots after guest complaints and extra work for staff. The hotel chain continues
Hotels operating, robots sharply reduced

A dinosaur at the check-in desk

Henn na Hotel (“Weird Hotel”) opened on 17 July 2015 next to the Huis Ten Bosch theme park in Sasebo, Nagasaki, run by the H.I.S. Group company Huis Ten Bosch. It had 72 rooms, with singles at ¥7,000–14,000 before tax. Humanoid robots and an English-speaking dinosaur handled check-in, an industrial arm stored luggage, and each room had a talking assistant called Churi. Guinness recognised it as the first robot-staffed hotel.

Sixteen hotels, and half the robots gone

In December 2017 president Hideo Sawada called it the world’s most productive hotel, saying ¥800 million in sales would yield about ¥500 million in profit, and set a goal of 100 hotels worldwide within three to five years. By January 2019 the chain had 16 locations. That month reports said it had cut its robots sharply. NPR and Engadget said more than half of 243 robots had been retired; Nikkan Kogyo reported the number of robot types falling from 27 to 15. A third wing that opened in December 2018 used only a robot vacuum.

The room robot that answered snoring

The reported reasons were specific. Churi mistook snoring for speech and woke guests up. The dinosaur could not copy passports, so staff did it. Porter robots could not climb stairs or go outside. Staff worked overtime recharging and fixing robots, and some robots had been overtaken by smartphones. The front-desk voice told guests: “Please ask me a request, but don't ask me a difficult question because I am a robot.” General manager Takeshi Ōe said disappointment was greater because guests expected so much. One TripAdvisor guest wrote that “this robot hotel is badly in need of some humanizing.”

Looking after the robots fell to the staff

Henn na Hotel used robots to reduce human work, but the tasks robots could not do, and the work of keeping them running, went back to staff. The chain still operates and its official site lists 25 hotels, 23 in Japan plus Seoul Myeongdong and New York. The entrance dinosaur and check-in robots stayed. The robots kept their role as an attraction and lost much of their role as labour. Relay, which did a single job of in-hotel delivery, makes a useful comparison.

When a robot is brought in, what new work falls to people?

What we haven’t confirmed

  • Whether 243 was the first hotel’s count or the chain’s, and how many robots were actually retired
  • Whether the original Huis Ten Bosch hotel still operates under the Henn na name
  • The exact model of the front-desk humanoids
  • The original English wording of Sawada’s remarks to the WSJ

Sources

  1. Huis Ten Bosch press release, “変なホテル” overview, 27 January 2015
  2. Guinness World Records, “First robot-staffed hotel”
  3. Henn na Hotel official site, hotel list
  4. Fukuoka Now, Henn na Hotel enters Guinness World Records, November 2016
  5. ITmedia, remarks by Hideo Sawada, 4 December 2017 (Japanese)
  6. Newswitch (Nikkan Kogyo Shimbun), Henn na Hotel cuts robots, 12 January 2019 (Japanese)
  7. Engadget, “Japan's robot hotel fires over half its robots,” 16 January 2019
  8. NPR transcript, Henn na Hotel robot cutback, January 2019
  9. Gizmodo Japan, Henn na Hotel robot cutback, January 2019 (Japanese)
  10. HotelManagement, “Japan's Henn na Hotel fires half its robot workforce,” 31 January 2019