22 Pieces — Hotel in Kyoto

Absolutely beautiful look and feel.||Booked a courtyard room that had a lovely outlook onto tall greenery. Stayed for six nights.||Room had a comfortable lounge and leather chair.||Beds were 3 single mattresses on a raised podium. Each bed was made with linen that didn’t quite fit… and worked loose from the mattress halfway through the night. Saw the brown stains on the mattress many times. Beds are only remade by the hotel after 3 nights of stay…. Which would be fine if the linen actually fit the beds and stayed in place. ||Any noise from the hallway or upstairs was easily heard… and we were woken by the people upstairs having an early morning shower.||Staff were pleasant but did not go the extra mile.||Kitchen included stove top, sink (but no way to plug the drain), tiny fridge, microwave and toasting oven.||No way to stop the staff from coming into your room- other than to use the bolt. No ‘do not disturb’ signs were available. Had staff try to enter the room while I was naked or in the shower twice. If you wanted your sheets changed or bins emptied you had to agree to them entering anytime between 10 and 5… which made it hard to relax in the room.||Nice shower. No room to hang the towels- unless you were happy for them to drag along the ground… but you were encouraged to use them for at least 3 days. They provided fresh towels when asked. Dyson hairdryer provided, along with shampoo, conditioner, body wash, hand soap, dishwashing detergent (but no plug for the sink to use the detergent), pjs, toothbrush/toothpaste etc ||The ability to borrow items felt like a gimmick… you have to return them to reception rather than leave in your room when you leave… with threats to charge you if you don’t.||The room had blackout curtains, but because of the height of the mattresses on the floor and the length of the curtains stopping at exactly the same spot, light shone under the curtains right into our eyes.||Confusing messages about emptying the bin… with one sign saying to leave rubbish outside the door and then they came I to the room to empty rubbish some days and not others.||In the end, it cost a lot of money but felt...

This is what you get when you cross the best parts of a hostel, a hotel, and an intermediate-stay studio, done with a modern young urban professional vibe. The multilingual staff is very professional yet friendly. They will strike up conversation and hang out, and even host gatherings like tea/coffee/sake tastings in the evenings. They are also some of the most helpful concierges I've met, and will gladly offer recommendations and do the work to find something that suits your specific needs. The rooms are spacious and comfortable, with many contemporary amenities like Netflix-compatable TVs and unlimited free high speed WiFi. Outlets are plentiful. The kitchenette is sufficiently equipped to make you reconsider eating out nightly. Room service does just enough to make you feel taken care of, but not like your room has been gone through and you were hardly even there. The only possible knocks are the 1-ply toilet paper (which is in most hotels anyway) and the lack of "I'd take my parents here" dining options in the area (but there are plenty of options in the nearby mall and station, both less than 5 minutes away by foot). The lack of hotel sterility makes it great for families, groups of friends, or significant others. Would...

22 Pieces is a lovely, clean, modern hotel situated only a 5 minute walk from Kyoto Station.

Pricey? YES. It cost about $500 (Australian) for a one night stay. As with a lot of accommodation in Japan, it’s hard to find a place that caters to a family of four without booking 2 separate rooms. Being on holiday AND here for only one night, it was more than suitable for our needs.

The bathroom was an absolute standout. Very luxurious and clean, it seems that no expense was spared in making it feel nice and relaxing. The kiddos enjoyed a long hot bath each.

I could do without the frosted windows, you can’t see anything outside your hotel room window, but everything else about the place was lovely.

As for the service, fantastic. The front desk service was very friendly and helpful, I particularly loved that the you could use/borrow/rent/purchase all sorts of things from fondue sets to rice cookers, and craft beers to tea bags.

22 Pieces is not close to the main tourist attractions BUT, being close to Kyoto Station, makes it relatively easy...