Yuzuya Ryokan

This was a super little Ryokan right beside the Yasaka Shrine in Gion. I was there for the Gion festival and the “parade” goes directly past this cute 8 room Ryokan! There are a lot of stairs up so make sure to ask for help with your luggage. The breakfast was amazing and the “yuzu wake up juice” was delicious! So was the Kaiseki dinner. I was full after every meal. The Kaiseki dinner took almost 2 hours so plan accordingly! (It is a very fun and delicious 2 hours for the record!) My room was very cute! The staff speak wonderful English. It is a traditional Japanese hotel, so you can take a public bath (on the main floor) if you want, or there is a very nice bathtub in your room. They put the bed away while you are at breakfast so if you need to sleep be sure to ask them to leave the bed out. The bed (traditional futon) was SUPER comfy and the pillows were great too! I wasn’t sure if there was actual room service but they provided green tea and crackers after each room re-do (put the bed away or to put it out). They also had a little fridge for water or drinks you bought yourself. It is a straight line to the Kamogawa river, (lots of great small little places to eat on a terrace and fun bars for night-time) ) and Teramachi-dori (a covered outside mall that goes on and on) and no worries about getting lost. There are also 4 huge department stores nearby! (Great for hot or sunburnt days)

My only complaints are that my room the Murasaki room had no view (parking lots) and was a little noisy due to traffic. That said, a 5 minute walk onto the Yasaka shrine gardens and the nearby temples and the noise of the city is long gone! And this is not a complaint but a mention- there are a lot of stairs in this hotel, it is not for those with mobility issues.