The boutique hotel trend has seen some rather extreme design in lodging, but putting all the rooms in concrete pipes stands out from the crowd.
Mexico’s Tubohotel has done just that. A hostel run by American expatriate Robb Anderson and his wife Ana Garcia, the inspiration for the design came after they used a concrete pipe for a bathroom they installed for a nearby café they operate together.
“My wife and I came up with the idea to use the tubes as an interesting type of hostel,” Anderson said. “The idea as well is to have two hotels in different places in Mexico so that you can stay in a tube all across Mexico.”
The pipe rooms do not feature a bathroom, simply a bed with a lamp and fan. Anderson said the pipes do not get damp and naturally maintain a steady temperature in a relatively temperate region of Mexico.
“You feel to a certain extent like you’re camping,” Anderson said.
Tubohotel is located in Tepoztlán, a popular tourist destination in the mountainous terrain of Mexico City. The hostel has an agro-tourism theme, located next to a citrus orchard. Dining is done communally on picnic tables, and the hostel has shared bathroom facilities. A pool is currently under construction.
Anderson said occupancy has been about 50% to 60% since the hostel opened in December 2010 and that the primary customer base has been Mexican tourists. The room rate is about US$40 a night (500 pesos).
“Since we just opened, we’re just starting to get recognized outside Mexico,” Anderson said.
Tubohotel is not the only concrete pipe hotel — the dasparkhotel in Bottrop, Germany has been open since 1996.
