An incubation device for an automatic analysis apparatus includes an incubation unit having a number of reception positions for reaction vessels, a first transfer arm having a gripping device for one or more reaction vessels, which is configured to move the gripping device into a first access region, a second transfer arm having a gripping device for one or more reaction vessels, which is configured to move the gripping device into a second access position. This allows a larger sample throughput of the automatic analysis apparatus with, at the same time, frictionless and reliable operation. To this end, the first and the second access regions do not overlap, and the incubation unit is mounted so that it can be moved in such a way that at least one of the reception positions reaches the first and the second access regions.