The hotels of Japan's cultural capital

No visit to Japan would be complete with a trip to Kyoto, Japan’s former Imperial Capital and home to no less than 17 UNESCO World Heritage sites. Most visitors to Kyoto imagine they’ll be staying in some picturesque traditional inn (called “ryokan” in Japanese), with a Japanese garden, old wooden style houses with tatami (straw mat) flooring and elegant women in kimonos serving 3-hour long meals. This can certainly be had in Kyoto, but it comes at a price.

Some of the top-end places can cost over US$1,000/night per person, and that does not always include meals. Our top pick in this category is the exquisite Hoshinoya, a 25-room modern Japanese inn that is only accessed by the hotel’s private boat and boasts a river setting that is truly spectacular.

Moving down a few price points, we suggest Hotel Kanra, one of the few true boutique hotels in Japan, which boasts modern elegant rooms with lovely high-end Japanese furnishings. Its sister property, The Hotel Anteroom, located on the other side of Kyoto station, offers a stripped down (and much less pricey) version of the Kyoto boutique hotel experience.

For a reliable international chain, we recommend the Hyatt Regency, which incidentally is the nicest version of this mid-tier Hyatt brand that we’ve ever seen. For a truly unique Kyoto experience, try the Aoi Kyoto Stay, a collection of six traditional Kyoto-style machiya (wooden houses), whose interiors are more like a stylish apartment in Amsterdam or New York. The Screen is another boutique hotel option for the city, though the rooms here can be a bit too over-designed and gimmicky.

Kyoto recently welcomed the Ritz-Carlton brand, and we look forward to adding the hotel to The List. For those wanting to try the Japanese capsule hotel experience, check out 9h, though don’t plan on more than a night or two here.

The List's Honorable Mentions

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