Kagihei — Local services in Kyoto

** It's amazing BUT, it might not be for everyone!!!

This place is amazing, and it depends on what kind of person you are. I'll still give it 5 stars in terms of what it should be and it's market.

The rooms were traditional, great to experience the Japanese culture. Had the best sleep of my life on the floor laid bed. No sarcasm, one of the best. It's that good.

Bath house is clean and spacious, amazing. Service? Scarily wonderful. I'm scared of human interaction that's why, but of what they should be and I know that is what most people like. It's amazing. And not to mention it is near the tourist infested street market? It's a prime location.

They are everything of what a Ryokan experience should have, and therefore the 5 stars.

But the thing is, I came with family, as a 30 year old working in the bar scene. I live for nightlife. And the only (for me) MAJOR DOWNSIDE to this Ryokan, is it's curfew. Guess what time.

11pm. I mean I understand it's a generational hotel, and the hosts are happily older than I am, they told me that the curfew was early because they want guests to have quality sleep and they clearly want to sleep to and lock the doors. It's super cute and so respectful of them to tell me. I will follow. The price we paid sure, it's expensive, but to me, Kyoto's night scene is even more worth looking at.

Trust me, go to the temples open 24 hours at night, enjoy the peace of the bamboo forests, NO TOURISTS! And the bar scene, omfg the bar scene is extraordinary and needs to be experienced. And don't forget the convenience stores, full of midnight goodies if you're bored at night.

But again, please book this Ryokan experience with them, these guys know what they're doing.

UNLESS, you are like me, A night owl, who's biological clock strays away from normal humans. Cocktail enthusiast. Want to enjoy nightlife, who enjoys world class cocktails from discreet esteemed bartenders A late riser, Don't like waking up early for a breakfast. An introvert. Hate crowded places.

Again, they are great, location, service, room, cleanliness. My family loves the place. I like it for what it is but not what I want. And they made it clear before you book, so it's just not for me. Just to...

Lovely bed-and-breakfast inn, with owner staying at one of the units.

Convenient location from the main shopping & restaurant area, and also walkable to subway.

Hard to hail taxi outside of the hotel when we need to go to the airport. So the hotel calls taxi for us. We waited for about 10 min before the taxi came, which is ok.

The room has tatami floor, which is one of the reasons we chose this inn. Room was warm at night, with a temperature control inside the room that we can adjust & turn on/off.

The bathroom in our unit was the Japanese type. A little chair was available inside to sit down & take shower. There is a bath tub too.

The onsen on 2/F is tiny but comfortable. Can fit 2 people at most, or 3 people who are close to each other, I'd say. Otherwise it would be very crowded to use the onsen. There are only 2 bathing slots at the onsen anyway. The changing room outside the onsen is tiny, which was fine for us 2 people.

The breakfast in the morning was filling & look VERY beautiful. It was the reason why my sister chose to stay at this hotel, and it's worth it! :)

Hotel can keep our bags at the common area outside of reception after check-out, which is very helpful for us to go around the city on our last day.

The only question we have is why the room was only half-cleaned when we went back in the evening. Why?? We had 2 beds on the tatami floor. But when we returned at night, only 1 bed (my sister's bed) was tidied up (nearly folder for both the duvet & her sleepwear). The other bed (my bed) was not tidied at all, same as what it was like when we left the room in the morning. Strange. (So only 4 stars for Service overall,...

A wonderful way to experience a traditional ryokan with tatami mats and futons! The proprietress Yuko is very warm and welcoming and it feels like staying with a loving auntie. The full Japanese breakfasts are delicious-- fish, rice, tofu, fruit, eggs, pickled condiments, miso soup, and of course green tea. Take the elevator down to a private breakfast alcove in the yukata robes and slippers from your room. Or in the afternoon, after a day of trekking around Kyoto, wear your yukata to the onsen (hot tub). ||The location is great. It's a half-block from the Nishiri market, with lots of interesting food to view and sample. It's about four blocks from the center of downtown Tokyo -- crowded and bustling with department stores, the city's biggest covered shopping arcade, and subway and bus stops -- yet both the ryokan and its street are very quiet. You can walk to the picturesque Ponto-cho neighborhood along the river in about ten minutes, and to Gion in 15 minutes. Many restaurants nearby, including Starbucks and Tullys in the shopping arcade if you need a fix of American-style coffee. ||There's a washing machine on the premises and Yuko will do laundry or help you use it. ||My only caution is that this is NOT the place for you if you are looking for an American-style hotel with western beds and western breakfast. But if you're looking for a homey stay in a small, traditional ryokan, this is a...