No 6 Nijo

I had my SIM card sent to the hotel, and the staff helped me with it. The customer service was wonderful, and the bathroom was a good size. The room was also a rare find for Japan, with plenty of space for two people. One small heads-up: the car park next door is lit all night, and there are no curtains, just sliding paper screens, so bring a sleep mask if light keeps you awake. Good value for money, and I'd stay again.

I wish I'd known this wasn't a hotel. Agoda and Google Maps didn't describe it as an Airbnb, so I expected a hotel and didn't realize otherwise until I received the front-door and room codes. The place was quiet, umbrellas were provided, and the bathtub was nice after a long day walking around Kyoto. The 40 m2 room is large. But communication was basically nonexistent. They said I could request a late checkout by emailing by 9 pm the night before checkout. I emailed on check-in day and heard nothing until 9:30 pm the night before checkout. Then I got an automated message saying late checkout hadn't been requested. I was confused and replied, but still haven't received an answer. It might be fine for one or two nights, but for a longer stay you're on your own if anything goes wrong. It wasn't properly cleaned: I found hair around the room, the sheets gave me a rash, possibly because of the detergent, towels were small and thin, and the couches were dirty. You also have to sort your trash before leaving. The fridge was very noisy and made it hard to fall asleep. Set it to 1 or everything inside will freeze. The price is cheap, so if you like Airbnb and only need a night or two, it may be fine, but don't expect help from the owner. The luggage locks near the entrance seemed flimsy, and I didn't trust them, so we used lockers at Kyoto station instead.

Come here if you hate sleep. Nijo station and the castle are conveniently close, BUT the beds are rock-hard, there's no curtains or shades so daylight wakes you early, and there's unexplained noise now and then from the ventilation or outside.

The room was very clean, and the HVAC worked well. It's on a quiet street near train and bus stations.