January 25, 2025

Overnight Buses Introduce Bunk Beds to Meet Demand Amid Surging Hotel Prices

Night buses are increasingly becoming "moving hotels." A bus company in Kochi Prefecture will be the first in the country to introduce buses with seats that transform into fully flat sleeping berths. As hotel accommodation prices rise due to a surge in tourists visiting Japan, the company is capitalizing on the growing demand for nighttime travel, especially among young people.

Kochi Ekimae Kanko (Kochi City) has launched a highway bus that features a new type of seat allowing passengers to lie completely flat during travel. This fully flat seat, called "Someill Profond," can be transformed into a bunk bed by adjusting the front and rear seats. It accommodates 24 passengers. Starting March 4, a trial run of a night bus will occur between Tokyo and Kochi, lasting about 13 hours, with one round trip each week. The fare will temporarily be set at a special price of 7,300 yen. The bus is anticipated to be fully operational within the year, depending on user feedback.

Demand for night buses as an alternative to accommodation options is increasing. This rise is due to the growing hotel prices in urban areas, driven by a significant influx of inbound tourists to Japan. Analyzing the trend in accommodation costs based on the Consumer Price Index (Tokyo 23 wards) in 2020 shows a 54% increase projected for 2024. Moreover, the hotel industry, facing a labor shortage, is limiting the number of available rooms, making it challenging to secure reservations.

Kochi Ekimae Kanko president Umehara Akitoshi said, "The image of night buses is that they are cheap but tough. We want to offer the option of fully flat seats and aim to become a transportation service of choice." He has received inquiries from other bus companies and plans to sell the service to outside parties in the future.