Efficient check-in, spacious room, very nice location. Tokyo tower experience shouldn’t be missed. Great place to stay. Very close to Kyoto station, including all the bus stations. Hotel staff are friendly and speaks good english.

Kyoto itself had a lot to offer and it was a great place to have as a base for traveling to other cities (get that JR pass and take the bullet train to many destinations). We stayed at Hotel Gimmond. An older hotel but the staff was wonderful. It was a short subway ride to Kyoto station. Reasonable price. There were 6 of us so we needed two rooms. 812 & 816. 816 had more room and was at the end of the hall. Bathroom was subpar. It's old and has some wear and what looks like mold, but doesn't wipe off. It's embedded or painted over. Not great, but not a deal breaker. The rest of the place was well maintained but dated. Beds were comfy. Pillows had a buckwheat side and were surprisingly relaxing and comfortable. We noticed a smokey smell and told the staff. It was taken care of promptly. To keep out noise and light, there was a sliding panel that closed off the window area. Eat where the locals eat. Transportation is efficient.

The hotel was exactly as promised. The staff was excellent, the room was clean but being so close to the Kyoto station made a world of difference. You can pretty much get anywhere on their train system but it can be a little overwhelming trying to figure out. I must say that the room was tiny. It was fine for sleeping but too cramped for just relaxing. But I re-iterate it was exactly as promised and you can expect no more. Had I to do it over I would have paid more for a larger room. The Japanese people could not have been more friendly, helpful and gracious. Don’t expect to find American style sushi in Japan. Sashimi seems to be the rule. Although after a few days you can only see so many Buddhist / Taoist temples, and there will be a LOT of walking! For some unknown reason they seemed to like building their places of worship up a mountain.

Yes, Nishiki Market is fun. Like somewhere OFF THE BEATEN TRACK? And to be away from the crowd for a while? If you have time to spare, why not take a look at another covered shopping arcade in Kyoto. The name in Kanji is 三条會商店街. It is 800 metre long. Unlike Nishiki Market, the shoppers you would see are mostly the locals. I enjoyed the leisurely atmosphere there, not hustling and bustling Kawaramachi. It is a place where the locals shop for their daily necessities and foodstuff. Some restaurants, coffee shops and tea rooms there as well. Not in a far flung corner. Look for Koin Dori on Google map. I stayed at Hotel Unizo on Shijo Dori. So I left the hotel, headed for Koin Dori by going west. Ｗalked to the other end of Koin Dori, the entrance is there. So you can have your Google search for 三条會商店街. You don't have to start from Shijo Dori. It depends on where you are. You may skip Koin Dori altogether. Maybe ask your hotel staff for assistance when you are there in Kyoto. Show them the name, figure out the time you would need and then see if you may like to have a look and if it is convenient for your other destinations of the day. I made it the first stop on one of the days, then to Nijo Castle, then to Nishiki Market and then back to the hotel. All on foot and in one afternoon. To prepare for my trip to Kyoto, I read a lot. It is not featured in the English guide books or the Chinese ones. I got the information from a blog by a Taiwanese. I would like to thank the writer for that. And now happy to share with you after I have been there myself. I would not say it is a must. It is not a UNESCO site. If you have the time, happen to be somewhere near, why not consider putting it on your itin. Thank you.

Awesome food lots of Temples to see, our Hotel was awesome and the location , very central in the shopping district Kawaramachi dori ,been to Kyoto before but never stayed in the Grand Bach hotel very helpful staff and very kind

My Husband ,12 yr old son & I, had 2x full days of sight seeing in Kyoto. Staying at the fabulous Brighton hotel only 2 blocks away from the imperial Palace , which made walking & bike riding access easy. We rode to the Ginkuku-ji Temple which was my favourite ,stunning Landscaping & gardens, even in the middle of winter.Then continued on our bikes to the fascinating Philosophers walk . Stopping at interesting shops & eateries along the way. Then back to the imperial palace for a guided tour in English .( make sure you take your passport & arrive 30min early to allow time to fill in necessary paperwork.) We ate at Kushikura which specialized in charcoal chicken. after a delicious buffet breakfast in our hotel we headed off to the Kinkaku-ji Zen Buddist golgern temple. Next walking to the Kyoto museum of fine arts, which was designed by Insho Domoto in 1966. The building is a work of Art in itself. Then onto the Ryoanji Temple which had amazing gardens, water features ,Rock garden & wonderful examples of tea rooms. Followed by the fascinating Nishiki markets were we had lunch. Back to the hotel for a hot bath, green tea and some R&R before catching a taxi ti the Gion area to see a Samurai Kembu performance boys got to handle the samurai swards. Finishing off our stay with a Teppanyaki BBQ dinner.