SAKURA TERRACE THE GALLERY — Hotel in Kyoto

We stayed here for about a week in spring in a superior double room. The staff was very friendly and always responsive, although we did have a communication problem with one member who didn't understand English very well, but we could make it work.

The hotels layout is kind of weird, since it's basically an open space in the middle with the reception and bar and there's staircases and elevator leading to hallways (still outside). Those then have doors that lead to your room. This layout makes it hard to find some quiet, since there's live music being played at the bar every night until 10 pm and you can definitely hear it in your room.

First, the positives of this hotel stay:

The room was very spacious for Japan, the bathroom had a bathtub and we had a balcony in front of our room. The bed was big enough for two (160cm wide), there was a couch and a table for working and everything was clean. The amenities were great, especially the slippers and the loungewear.

The hotel offered one free drink per person every night with a nice ambiente (a fireplace and lounges to sit) and they had a free washing machine and dryer room. There's also two onsen, one for women (protected by password) and one for men.

It's located very central next to the railway station but you can't hear too much noise from there and there's also a convenience mart right next to the building.

Now for the downsides:

The noise level was not great. Although you couldn't hear noise from the railway station, you did hear cars, other tourists with their luggage and of course the music from the lobby. If you wanted to sleep earlier, if wouldn't be possible without earplugs.

I'm sure it's not like that for every room, but the Hallway leading to our room smelled of gas, I'm sure it came from the fire in the lobby. For the room itself I'd like to point out there was only one small pillow per person, the underside filled with something that felt kind of like nuts. The TV only had 5 programs and was very small.

Our biggest issue was with the laundry room. It's great they have one, but it was not easy to wash anything. There's only 2 washing machines and 4 dryers. One of the washing machines is not usable since it fails to pump the water and you're left with dripping clothes and need to run the cycle again. The other one is constantly occupied, people wait in front of the machines to get their load in and every time we tried to put laundry in ourselves, somebody else was already there. The one time we were able to wash something, we were called the minute our washing was done to retrieve it, because someone had complained. We were already on the way down anyway. I think the whole laundry process could be more organized to have less of a "First come, first serve" atmosphere and maybe it would be possible to switch one dryer for one more (working) washing machine, so more people can do their laundry.

All in all this hotel was fine for our one-week stay, but the level of noise, the Laundry situation and some small bits here and there make just...

I strongly do not recommend staying here. My friend and I visited Kyoto for a trip, and the attitude of the front desk staff was terrible. Whenever there was a problem, they blamed the guests without acknowledging their own lack of clear explanations.

We accidentally got the check-in date wrong. Our original reservation was from December 3, but we mistakenly checked in on December 2. At that time, we apologized to the hotel staff, saying, “Sorry, we made a mistake” (すみません、間違いました). The staff replied, “No problem” (大丈夫ですよ), and allowed us to check in. I asked, “How much does it cost?” (いくらですか？), and they again replied, “No problem” (大丈夫ですよ). This led us to believe it was free, so we repeatedly thanked them.

The next morning, when we borrowed a phone at the front desk, we were informed that we would have to check out on Tuesday, a day earlier than originally planned. We explained again that if we needed to check out a day earlier, they should have informed us in advance. However, they insisted that our earlier conversation could only be interpreted as us wanting to stay a day earlier. This is untrue—we only said “Sorry, we made a mistake” (すみません、間違いました), and we never asked to stay that day.

We also purchased two days’ worth of breakfast vouchers. However, the hotel staff refused to admit their failure to confirm the details clearly. When we asked if the breakfast dates could at least be changed, they said no, even though we had no idea the hotel had shifted our stay by one day. Because of this, we missed the first day’s breakfast—not because we overslept, but because we thought there was no breakfast on Monday. The staff understood the miscommunication but refused to help, simply saying, “It’s common sense that one night includes one breakfast”. The main point is that we thought we were staying from Tuesday!

After more than 30 minutes of discussion, the hotel finally allowed us to change the breakfast voucher dates as a “special exception.” However, their attitude throughout the process was extremely poor, making us feel as though we were being unreasonable and that they had done nothing wrong. In the end, I paid for an extra night of accommodation.

In addition, there are other issues with the hotel:

• Only one elevator, leading to long wait times. • No charging outlets near the bed. • The bathhouse is across the street, which is freezing in winter (since you have to walk there in pajamas). • The room lighting is dim. • No hangers provided in the room, despite having space to hang clothes.

For the price we paid, the service quality was extremely disappointing. I strongly advise against staying here. Please...

Location is great, exit Kyoto Station Hachijo West (near the Horai 551 takeout shop) and then straight down the street past the 24-hour 7-Eleven. There's two buildings, I do recall specifically choosing one building over the other when searching hotels so there shouldn't be any surprise. I believe no groups or small kids are allowed which is a blessing for some.

It takes me about 5 minutes from room to station. Near Aeon Mall and Avanti anchoring the corners of this hotel zone. Family Mart, Lawson, and some other konbini shops are nearby; search for nearby food options on your own.

Room is clean and fairly spacious. Balcony is great but as I was there during the summer, it was still annoying outside at 4am so I didn't use it at all. For temperate weather, grab some food and drink and enjoy. One thing I don't like is this step in the middle of the room: past the bed into the living is lower for some reason. If you have mobility concerns, double-check the room descriptions. Maybe it is only my room or floor. Toilet is loud but I've never heard any other room over a week of staying here so I'm guessing it is just well-contained inside.

Room provides slippers, toiletries, amenities including a small fridge (cold but not ice cold) and electric kettle. Cleaning is the typical option: everyday, towels and trash only with mandatory 3rd day full clean. It's easier to not have to shuffle everything away daily for room cleaning if you only need some new towels.

They offer complimentary drinks and during the summer, free ice cream. Restaurant is open for hotel guests only, price is fair and the portions are alright. A limited menu that looked like mostly western cuisine, it's convenient if you're caught in a freak random thunderstorm or too tired and don't want to go far. There's rotating live music playing and since it echoes up through the open courtyard, you might hear things until 10pm or so. Great if you like night life or awake then, bad if you sleep early and easily awoken.

I see some people mention lack of outlets and as per my review date, there are outlets at: entry hallway (2), bath (1), and desk (2). None near the bed. I guess it's not ideal but also not a problem personally.

I don't need nor want to interact with the staff unless during the check-in/out and nothing indicated a problem this trip to dock any stars. I do nod and acknowledge but I pretty much don't need or expect additional services from the hotel.

For what I paid (about $60 a night w/o breakfast), it's perfectly fine. Will consider it again for the...