Ryokan Suggestion in Kyoto

I'm currently researching for ryokan in Kyoto as I will be visiting in November with my partner and we are planning to stay 3 nights. There are simply so many choices and even after reading reviews it's still hard to decide, so I'm here to ask for opinion based on your personal experience.

Since it's our first time in Kyoto, I imagine our itinerary would cover popular attractions in Kyoto but we have not planned everything yet. Is it better to stay in Kyoto station area or Central Kyoto area or any other area?

I am looking for japanese style inn, not hotel or capsule, because we like the experience. Our budget is around 10,000 yen per person for half board or without meals. We decided not to take full board since we might want to explore the restaurants depending on where we go. Any good suggestions?

Ryokan Shimizu is quite popular and near Kyoto Station. It also suits your budget.

You can check out their website: http://www.kyoto-shimizu.net/eng/index.html

I stayed there in 2009. My only complaint is that the walls between rooms are paper thin and you cannot make any noise after 10:00 p.m. without risking a complaint from a neighboring room. I learned this the hard way by brushing my teeth at 10:30 p.m. only to be screamed at by my French neighbors.

Indeed, when I was there, there were even signs asking guests not to use the water after a certain hour as it could disturb others.

Otherwise, it is a great location, the staff is super friendly and speak English, and you get breakfast.

I am sure others will provide you with advice on other ryokans in Kyoto.

Brushing teeth gets you screamed at? You sure it wasn't just the French expressing their passionate love a decimal too loud? Maybe you should have told them that they were the ones shouting after 10 pm.

They are Ryokan options in Kyoto. But Kyoto being Kyoto, they are usually above the budget allocated. There are options with half and full board. Though, you may prefer to walk about and explore Kyoto, you could always head out for supper. Ryokan meals are usually Kaiseki and have regionally sourced ingredients. I would recommend Hoshinoya Kyoto. It is along the river of Arashiyama. Giving easy access to the Raiden, JR Line, and naturally the Arashiyama area.

Other Ryokan locations that would be good are Kyoto Station area and Higashiyama area. If you want something of a lower price, central Kyoto.

I saw this article a little while ago - good for some ideas.
https://www.tsunagujapan.com/20-best-japanese-ryokan-inns-for-a-blissf...

We have stayed (and scheduled to stay again) at Matsubaya Ryokan - they are part of the Japanese Inn Group and foreigner friendly (can make it hard to get a room though).

We stayed at the Japanese (Katsuien) rooms at Westin Miyako hotel several years ago. The rooms are in an annex to the main hotel and are really nice, you can dangle your legs over the verandah. It isn't ryokan, it is more a ryokan room with food etc in the hotel.

I like the hotel because it is nestled into a hill where you can walk to the top and have views of Kyoto. It isn't a particularly convenient location, but it is nice.

The price was around your budget for room only, but that was quite a while ago now. I'd check it out.

I can't give you any recommendation for places to stay, all I can say is : Do not go to KKR Kuniso.

It might look traditional on the pictures, but it is not.

Nihonkan, 5 min from the station. Simple accomodation to say the least but very cheap.

OP: " Our budget is around 10,000 yen per person..."

Joshua: "I would recommend Hoshinoya Kyoto"

Saru Bob : lulwut?

I have stayed at several of these inns. Some are close to Kyoto station:

http://japaneseinngroup.com/accommodations/kinki.html

Thanks for all the suggestions, it's very helpful, I will look through and consider.

I do notice some of them are out of my expected budget, is 10,000 yen per person per night too little for ryokan? I could spend more but I expect us to be out the whole day and only be back after dinner so I did not want to spent loads on it but not getting our money worth.

I do notice some of them are out of my expected budget, is 10,000 yen per person per night too little for ryokan?

It depends on what you're looking for. For example, I'd estimate a typical mid-level ryokan to cost around 15000 inc. meals, but Kyoto tends to be more expensive on average. That's probably why you're getting recommendations that seem to be on the low end of the scale.

If you want more of the "ryokan experience" but don't have the budget to really splurge in Kyoto then I would consider looking for something elsewhere like a hot spring resort.

Thanks yllwsmrf, yes I understand that and actually Kyoto is only part of my 2 weeks trip, we are going to Arima Onsen and Osaka and other side cities after Kyoto. We are definitely willing to pay more if the experience is worth it, 15,000 yen seems to be reasonable.

I do like a few suggestions here and is currently trying to make my reservation. It seems the dates I requested is really popular, a few ryokans have been fully booked. I also searched for other options nearby the suggested areas, hopefully I can secure my reservation soon.

Thanks again everyone!

I can't say for sure, but a lot of ryokans won't accept reservations more than three or four months from the desired date. For example, I'm trying to book in the middle of the week in November - sure, November is a hot time, but I'm pretty sure the ryokan I'm trying to reserve at simply isn't accepting reservations yet, so it comes back as "not available". Just throwing that out there! Good luck :)

Did you check the following site?

http://travel.rakuten.com/

You will be able to find ryokan where you can stay in reasonable price.

If you don't mind having dinner in the ryokan, I recommend you to have kyoto style Kaiseki at the restaurant you can find the following site.
http://tabelog.com/en/

Recently we can have Kaiseki with reasonable price.

I actually emailed the ryokan directly to ask about room availability and most of them are already fully booked, I think it is because I am trying to book for 3 nights consecutively and it is the autumn season which is peak for travelling.

I finally managed to secure my accommodation at Kikokuso yesterday, so I'm good. Pretty excited actually...

I also decided to try the kaiseki cuisince once in the ryokan I book, since I read a lot of good reviews about it.