A futuristic floating capsule hotel was unveiled to the press Tuesday ahead of its official launch at the Huis Ten Bosch theme park in southwestern Japan.

Huis Ten Bosch Co., the operator of the Dutch-themed attraction in the southwestern Japan prefecture of Nagasaki, will start trials of the spherical capsule this month with an eye to beginning the service this summer. The company plans to have a ship tow the hotel between the theme park and a nearby island.

One floating capsule can accommodate two or three persons, with its first floor designed as an accommodation cabin and second floor an observation dome.

In a program planned by the operator, visitors will check in at the Huis Ten Bosch resort and get on the capsule to travel to an uninhabited island in Omura Bay alongside the city of Saikai.

Huis Ten Bosch President Hideo Sawada told a press conference, "We can make more improvements. We will upgrade designs and functions from now on."

On the island, the company is planning to open a new facility where visitors can fight dinosaurs in an augmented-reality game.


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