KYODO NEWS - Oct 16, 2017 - 21:04 | Lifestyle, All

Japanese travel company H.I.S. Co. said Monday it will open 10 more hotels staffed by robots in Tokyo, Fukuoka, Osaka and Kyoto by March 2019.

"Henn-na Hotel," or "strange hotel," featuring dinosaur or female humanoid robot receptionists and cleaning robots, will be opened in downtown areas of the cities, targeting the booming foreign tourist market in Japan, the company said.

Currently, H.I.S. operates three similar hotels near theme parks in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture, Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture and Gamagori, Aichi Prefecture.

The company plans to open six branded Henn-na Hotels in Tokyo between December and September next year, one in Fukuoka and two in Osaka in December 2018, and another in Kyoto in March 2019, with the investment estimated to total approximately 20 to 30 billion yen ($180-270 million).