• Japan is known for technological innovation and hospitality, influencing new hotel trends. • Michelle Gross spent 4 nights at Yotel Tokyo Ginza, a hotel that leverages robots and automation. • She says some robot features were convenient, but others were unnecessary.

The first time I stayed in a robot hotel in Tokyo was in 2019, and not only was the technology glitchy, but the humanoid robots creeped me out. So when a new hybrid-robot hotel, Yotel Tokyo Ginza, opened in the same neighborhood earlier this year, I thought I'd give it a try.

I've been covering Japan's travel and hospitality scene for the better part of the last decade, and as tourism reaches an all-time high in 2025, ongoing labor shortages have forced the service and hospitality industry to think creatively about how

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