Matsubaya Ryokan

The breakfast was delicious, and the location is great. I wanted to give my parents a ryokan stay without spending too much, and this worked well for that. The room was decent but quite small for three people. My parents really enjoyed the bath add-on, and service was decent too, especially from the breakfast staff and the Greek receptionist who looked after us. A more affordable way to try a ryokan.

The staff were lovely and welcoming, and we enjoyed our time at the ryokan overall. One evening the hair dryer in our room was very weak, so we called the number provided to ask for another, but nobody picked up. It was only 22.30, yet we had to sleep with wet hair and didn’t get a dryer until morning. We were also caught off guard by being charged for the coffees at checkout, since coffee had been complimentary at our previous hotels and this hadn’t been mentioned. Besides those couple of small things, it was a nice stay.

That in-room guidebook ended up leading us to some of our favorite parts of the trip, so take a look at it. We stayed in a tatami room on our first visit to Japan, and I’m glad we chose a ryokan surrounded by Kyoto’s beautiful historic buildings and temples. The Japanese-style breakfast, made with local ingredients, was really good, so book it in advance. The staff, food and room all had a warm, relaxed, homey feel. The private bath was especially worthwhile since there aren’t many places where couples can bathe together. Even in September’s heat, it loosened my muscles. Sleeping on the futon also left me virtually pain-free despite my chronic pain disease. Thanks to the staff!

I was new to staying in a Ryokan-style hotel and found the tatami-floor bed quite comfortable. It was even better for me than the softer beds you usually get at hotels. I’m taller than average, but didn’t mind my feet sticking out a bit.