Miro Hachijo Uchidacho Tei

I stayed for a month and ended up getting attached to the place. I hope it keeps operating and contributes to the neighborhood, so despite everything I wouldn't give it a low rating. Getting around was convenient. The nearest stop is Toji Nishimon-mae, and bus 16 takes about 10 minutes to Kyoto Station. For Shijo, you can walk through Toji Temple to the East Gate, where lots of buses leave. The house is bigger than it looks, and the renovated facilities look clean. Replies to questions were quick, Netflix was available, and two bicycles could be parked, one by the entrance and one in the entryway. The biggest problem was cleaning. Dust was everywhere when I checked in, including on the bed frame, and after walking barefoot my feet picked up hair and dust. There was a used diaper in the bin, a blackened, possibly moldy ice maker filter, and mold on the bathroom walls. I cleaned it all myself. I also saw a full-sized centipede and a cockroach, and used the insecticide kept in the sliding door near the entrance. Something, maybe a mouse or weasel, was in the attic space between the floors. I heard stomping and poked upward with a stick, which made it stomp away. The sounds stopped toward the end of my stay. It's an old house, so maybe that's hard to avoid, but it made me worry about hygiene. There wasn't a wardrobe, so my clothes had nowhere to go and the room got cluttered. Long-stay guests might need to make one from cardboard boxes. There's no dish rack, which is inconvenient if you cook, and I bought one at a 100-yen store. I also wanted a room clock and basic cooking items like a colander and bowl. No doorbell made arrivals hard to hear even after I put up a "Please knock" sign. There was no mailbox either, so I left a paper bag marked "Mail here" by the front door, which looked bad. Before arriving I asked how rubbish was handled for a multi-night stay, and was told to follow the check-in instructions. There weren't any in the room. When I asked again, I was told they'd take rubbish from the box by the front door, but it wasn't collected. I later learned collection only happens if you specifically request it, so contact the designated number if rubbish starts piling up.

I highly recommend this rental in Kyoto to anyone visiting or living here. It’s one of the best places of this kind in the city.

I hope visitors don't mistake this inn for a traditional Japanese stay. The company is made up only of Chinese people, and the experience didn't feel Japanese to me. If you want a Japanese house or ryokan, I'd choose a traditional inn instead, especially since Kyoto has many good places to stay. My main problem was the service and communication. The phone number on the website never connected, even though I called every day, and no one called back. I contacted head office, where they said the manager and office were in touch through Line. The manager finally called several hours later, five days after my first attempt. She barely understood Japanese, so contacting her felt pointless. I don't know whether English would work either, though Chinese is fine. The head office was overbearing too. They laughed while I was speaking seriously, then suddenly got angry. The whole response was terrible.

It had everything I needed and was comfortable, with the train station and bus stops conveniently nearby.