It’s strange to look back at 2016 and remember how much joy was in the air, even as the world was becoming more complicated. Many people online point to that year as the moment when things started to go wrong, but they also remember it as the last time the world felt truly connected in a shared, uncomplicated way. That feeling was powered by a few things, but one of the biggest was the release of Pokémon Go. For a few glorious months, parks were packed, sidewalks were crowded, and total strangers would suddenly stop to compare their latest catches. It was a summer of running around after imaginary creatures, of wandering into neighborhoods you’d never visited, of laughing with people you’d never met. It felt innocent and playful, a rare moment when nostalgia and technology came together to make the world feel smaller and friendlier. Since then, the collective sense of wonder has faded a bit. The world feels heavier, and the idea of a global cultural moment that brings everyone together seems almost impossible. But every once in a while, something appears that reminds us whimsy hasn’t completely disappeared. And, fittingly, it comes in the form of Pokémon-related whimsy. This time, it’s not about catching creatures on a phone screen. It’s about sleeping inside a Poké Ball, which might be the closest we can get to actually stepping into the world we loved as children.
The project is a collaboration between the innovative hospitality brand NOT A HOTEL and Pokémon Sleep, the sleep-tracking app that turns your nightly rest into a gentle game. Together, they have created a Poké Ball-shaped hotel, and it is exactly as delightfully absurd as it sounds. The pod is built in Tomakomai City, Hokkaido, a beautiful part of Japan known for its lakes, forests, and calm, scenic atmosphere. The hostel pod measures three metres across, which is surprisingly spacious for something shaped like a round red-and-white ball. Inside, you’ll find a round bed that fits perfectly into the curved space, with a wide acrylic window above you that offers uninterrupted views of the lakeside. You can lie back, watch the water glitter in the daylight or the stars appear at night, and feel like you’ve been transported into a real-life Pokémon game. The design is not just about sleeping in a ball, though. The whole experience is meant to evoke the comfort and safety of the Pokémon world. From the soft lighting to the thoughtful placement of every object, the hotel feels like a love letter to the franchise, designed for people who have carried a fondness for these creatures since their first episode, their first card pack, or their first day playing the games. It’s a space that doesn’t just host you; it wraps you in a bubble of nostalgia and calm.
The attention to detail is what really sets this project apart. The bathroom area adjacent to the hotel is decorated with tiles inspired by Snorlax’s signature colors, giving the space an oddly cozy, storybook feel. You’ll notice little nods to the anime throughout, touches that only true fans will understand and appreciate. It feels less like a hotel room and more like a playful interpretation of a Pokémon habitat, designed by someone who genuinely loves the source material. But the most magical feature is the interactive lighting. Inside the room, there’s an iPad that lets you choose your favorite Pokémon. Once you make your selection, the room’s lighting instantly shifts to match the character you’ve chosen. Imagine picking Pikachu and watching the room glow with warm, electric yellows, or choosing Eevee and seeing soft browns and creams wash over the space. The lighting transforms the entire mood of the pod, making it feel alive with the spirit of whichever creature you love most. It’s a small but brilliant touch that turns a novelty hotel stay into a deeply personal experience. You’re not just sleeping in a Poké Ball; you’re sharing it with your favorite partner, and the room seems to respond to that connection. For anyone who has ever wished they could step into the world of Pokémon, this is as close as it gets.
Now, before you start packing your bags and dreaming of a night inside this incredible pod, there’s some bad news. The hotel was created to celebrate two special milestones: the 30th anniversary of Pokémon and the third anniversary of Pokémon Sleep. That means it doesn’t function as a regular hotel where anyone can book a room. Instead, the stay is being offered as a prize through a competition. Only Japanese residents who use Pokémon Sleep are eligible to enter. The contest will be run through X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, so interested players will need to keep an eye on the official Pokémon Sleep account for instructions on how to participate. If you are eligible and lucky enough to be selected, you’ll receive a free one-night stay. The winning guests will enjoy their night between 8 and 18 October. The official announcement contains all the details, but the process is simple enough: enter through the app and social media, cross your fingers, and hope that your Poké Ball-shaped dream comes true. Of course, this exclusivity makes the experience even more tempting. Like the rarest Pokémon, the hotel feels like something that’s only available to a lucky few, adding an extra layer of magic to the whole concept.
For those of us who can’t enter, there’s still something lovely about the fact that this place exists. In a world where so much of our collective attention is focused on doom-scrolling and bad news, a project like this feels like a small rebellion. It’s playful, almost childlike, and completely unapologetic about its silliness. That’s not an easy thing to achieve, especially in a commercial partnership between a hospitality company and a mobile game. But somehow, it works. The Poké Ball-shaped hotel isn’t just a shameless marketing stunt, or at least it doesn’t feel that way. It captures the spirit of what made Pokémon so special in the first place: the sense of adventure, the comfort of companionship, and the idea that the ordinary world can be transformed into something magical. Sleeping inside a giant Poké Ball by a lake, with the light flickering to match your favorite creature, is the kind of experience that should feel absurd. Instead, it feels like coming home to a world you thought you’d outgrown. It invites us to remember a time when our biggest concern was whether we’d find a rare creature, and when the world outside the screen felt full of possibility.
So maybe the summer of 2016 isn’t entirely gone. Maybe the collective joy we felt then was only a preview of what’s still possible, and maybe it will return in smaller, quieter forms. A night in a Poké Ball won’t fix the world. It won’t bring back the feeling of running through crowded parks with strangers who felt like friends. But it’s a reminder that whimsy is still here, hiding in unexpected places. It’s in the careful design of a curved window, the soft colors of Snorlax-themed tiles, and the gleam of a room that changes color when you choose a favorite Pokémon. These small, joyful details are what make life feel less heavy. They give us something to dream about, even if we can’t book a stay. And if there’s one thing Pokémon has always taught us, it’s that the journey matters as much as the destination. So even if we’re just reading about this magical hotel from a distance, we can still carry a little of its wonder with us. We can still believe that the world has room for strange, beautiful, playful ideas. And we can still hope that, somewhere, in a Poké Ball-shaped room by a lake, someone is having the best night of their life, reminding us all that it’s okay to hold on to the things that make us feel like kids again.
