City Pension Tommy Rich Inn Kyoto — Hotel in Kyoto

The secret to staying in Kyoto, particularly on weekends or holidays is to book really really early. I confess I failed on that one. As a result Tomy Rich was just about all that was available in a relatively central location. It also was one of the few left at the time I booked that offered a Japanese style accommodation. This means it is not for everyone's taste. Sleeping on the floor with pads over the woven bamboo floor turned out to be fine, although doubling up the pads made it much more comfortable. The room was quite sparse, and although the idea was to spend as little time in the rom, when I did it was not overly comfortable. The reception floor lounge offered more, along with Internet access. There is none in the rooms . The other thing that travellers will find a little disconcerting is the common washrooms, one, multi-toilet and sink per floor, along with communal shower/bath on the lowest level, only available from 6pm to 9 Am . This hotel/hostel has no elevator and fairly steep stairs so large suitcases will be a challenge. Overall it is quite pricey formwhat little you get . ||||On the upside, the staff is very helpful, and have free passes to several attractions such as the nearby castle. If you can get a room on the top floor , the hike up the stairs is worth it as there is a large balcony on the 5th floor, which gives a great view of the city, especially charming in the morning as the city wakes up. It's also very quiet up there, although the rooms do tend to get quite warm from the daytime sun, the air conditioner works quickly to get it habitable. The other great thing about this location is that it is close to several subway stations and bus stops, along with being in walking distance of many temples and shrines plus the museum, Nishiki market , Gion and Ponto cho districts .||||Would I stay there again? Probably, but if there were other more traditional Japanese style places available I would be more likely...

We stayed in a room designed for two people, but asked for an extra bed. We were charged an extra half again on the price, which is considerable when it was a ryokan-style room, so we were on the floor anyway and with three of us, has no space to move. The hotel was hugely expensive for what it offered. We did go during cherry blossom season and struggled to find accommodation, despite booking several months ahead, so I imagine Tommy Rich just capitalise on this lack of alternatives. I could not believe that we had no option but a communal shower with strangers at the bottom of several flights of stairs. I would never recommend this hotel to anyone. Book early and go to a hostel if you can't find anything else - at least they charge less for the same standard of room. Our room was not cleaned despite us being there for 3 nights. Really...

We found out after arriving in Japan that a lot of accommodation is booked up early on, so we had very limited available options. Hence our stay at Tommy Rich Inn Kyoto. The location of this accommodation is pretty decent; within walking distance from the metro station. The staff were friendly however spoke limited English, but this was not a problem. The room we stayed in was a good size with traditional mats/beds and the aircon worked well. Wifi is only available in the lounge area. The main negative of this accommodation was the communal showers. When I say communal showers, I mean that there are four showers in one room and everyone showers together. In addition to this the showers are only open at certain times and you cannot access the showers any other time. Other than the shower experience it is a reasonable place to...