Gion Guesthouse Yururi — Hotel in Kyoto

I booked a bed in a 4 person female dorm and showed up during the daytime and left my baggage until check in at 4pm. Check out is at 10am, and you are not allowed to be in your room after that time, and are not really welcome to be there at all during the day.||||I was told the room was fully booked for the night although there was only one other person in there. I requested a bottom bunk thatbwas empty because of a knee injury. They said no, people coming. ||||At 1130 pm when no one had arrived, I asked again if I could take the bottom bunk they said no, and then explained its their friends that are coming. Their friends never came, and they clearly cared more about their comfort than my safety or comfort.||||In was awoke at 230am to a man in my room stumbling drunk, that proceeded to URINATE all over the floor on my shoes, close to my luggage and clean laundry. I was horrified and scared, and screamed for the owners to come up and deal with the situation. I didn't sleep the rest of the night, wanted my money back and spend hours looking for another hotel, but none were available.||||I was not going to leave a bad review as I could see this is a hard working couple, nice enough, and the place is clean, but everywhere is clean in Japan.||||I was traumatized by the situation, and comb8ned with the denied request f9r a bottom bunk for no good reason, leaves me feeling terrible about my stay there. ||||All of this I was willing to overlook for a free 500 yen bike rental from them the second day, and never asked for my money back from the first night,||||As I checked out, they asked me for the money from the bike rental, and we had an argument over it. They said the incident was not their problem, and that's when I decided, that this place deserves a negative review.||||Where I am from, the customer is always right, and I wasn't asking for much. I can't get the nights sleep back, or my trauma from the incident out of my head. Then to be treated so poorly upon my leaving and they shut the door in my face once they realized I was going to write a bad review AND MARKED ME AS A NO SHOW ON BOOKING so that i could not leave a review. That is shady. If you have any other...

TL;DR: Perfectly located near transport, food, shopping, entertainment, sightseeing. Amazing hospitality. Feels like home!

As a young solo traveller in Japan for two weeks, this was my favourite place that I stayed in for several reasons! This guesthouse is a true hidden gem, tucked away in a sidestreet alley, yet still conveniently close to a subway station and the busy streets of the main Gion food/entertainment/shopping district (a very quick and easy walk there from the guesthouse). Yasaka Shrine is within walkable distance, and the awesome Kiyomizu-dera temple is not too far to walk to, either (it's maybe a 20 min walk from the guesthouse, but if you're exploring around anyway, walking is perfect for that). My stay was very comfortable, because everything from the beds to the bathrooms were well-kept and clean, plus there was a nice and simple complimentary breakfast of toast available in the mornings.

But really the best part was having such wonderful hosts, Kimie and Kouzou! I arrived early and was feeling pretty shy, especially because I'd already had a hard time finding the place, so I think they could tell from my worn-out appearance that I was a new guest in need of a smile and some help--and that's exactly what I got, plus so much more! Kimie and Kouzou really go above and beyond to make you feel welcome and at home (which is reflected in the cozy charm of the guesthouse itself), offering great recommendations for food, things to do (they ended up giving me a very nice ticket to a geisha/maiko show, for free!), directions, but also just great conversation and company if that's what you are seeking, too. It was a real treat to be able to chat with Kouzou, asking questions and learning about Kyoto and Japan from a local & sharing experiences about our own countries.

Definitely missed the place and people before I left for my next destination, and would love to stay again...

When we arrived we were greeted by the super friendly owners who spoke enough english that there were no problems. They walked us through everything and showed us out rooms. We had some great conversations with the owners and they were more like friends than staff.||||The rooms were no particularly large but were big enough for two people. The Duvets were amazing and super fluffy and warm, you will be sleeping on a traditional futon here but not to worry as they are comfortable. The included breakfast consisted of some toast with spreads, tea/coffee and a banana. The rooms and bathrooms were very clean and kept to a high standard. There was also washing machine that you could pay to use which we definitely did.||||The location is within walking distance of a train station, temples and most of the main sites of Kyoto as far as we were concerned although we were fit. The guesthouse it down a narrow alley way an near a alley intersection.||||In conclusion, the clean comfy beds and the super friendly staff made this one of the most memorable stays in Japan...