Japan’s capital for over 1,000 years, Kyoto is beloved worldwide for its awe-inspiring UNESCO-inscribed shrines and temples, time-honored rituals and breathtaking landscapes — particularly in spring and fall.
Kyoto’s lodge scene brims with characterful properties that channel a quiet, discreet sort of luxurious and spotlight beautiful craftsmanship over swanky finishes and maximalist design statements. Behind latticed cedar facades, you may discover intimate ryokan inns that home Michelin-star eating places, palatial retreats nestled amongst centuries-old gardens and unique villas that meld Kyoto’s up to date aptitude with its wealthy cultural heritage.
Of the handfuls of inns and lodgings which have debuted within the metropolis over the previous couple of years, Roku Kyoto, a part of Hilton’s LXR Lodges & Resorts, was probably the most anticipated. On paper, every LXR property is supposed to mix class with a novel aesthetic that displays every lodge’s singular historical past and environment.
Nonetheless, with simply 12 properties that vary from the stately The Biltmore Mayfair in London to the breezy island stylish of Zemi Seashore Home in Anguilla and Santa Monica’s Lodge Oceana, the LXR imprint has remained considerably arduous to pin down since its inception in 2018. Nonetheless, with charges that soar to greater than $1,000 per evening at a lot of its outposts, company can not help however have excessive expectations when reserving certainly one of these inns.
Among the many slew of legendary and domestically impressed inns to select from in Kyoto, how would Roku Kyoto stand out from the gang? What’s extra, the place wouldn’t it sit alongside the spectrum of Hilton’s different upscale labels like, Waldorf Astoria and Conrad, with their well-honed expertise and model requirements?
This is what you must know earlier than reserving a keep at Roku Kyoto, LXR Lodges & Resorts.
Getting there
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Roku Kyoto, LXR Lodges & Resorts, is in a secluded space a few 25-minute drive north of Kyoto’s central downtown space and foremost prepare station. Encircled by the Takagamine mountains and constructed alongside the Tenjin River, the luxurious setting is picturesque and idyllic. Nonetheless, it does really feel far faraway from the motion, particularly for vacationers making their first journey to Kyoto and for whom walkability is a precedence.
In case you are arriving at Kyoto Station — by way of the Shinkansen from Tokyo, which takes round two hours and quarter-hour, or the 80-minute Haruka categorical prepare from Osaka’s Kansai Worldwide Airport (KIX) — a taxi will price you between 4,500 and 5,000 yen ($26 to $30). To taxi from the lodge to main websites like Nijo Fort, Gion and the Kiyomezu temple, it’s going to price between 2,200 and three,000 yen ($13 to $18) every approach and take about 20 minutes.
There is no such thing as a simple public transit entry (the closest prepare cease is a 17-minute stroll away), so you’ll seemingly depend on taxis to get to and from town.
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Reserving
Charges at Roku Kyoto differ wildly from round $560 on random days in February to effectively over $1,300 per evening throughout cherry blossom season and peak fall leaf season in late November. Nonetheless, LXR properties take part within the Hilton Honors awards program, and there may be usually glorious award availability with redemptions beginning at 110,000 factors per evening (award nights are presently plentiful for peak dates in March and April 2024). For my late-November keep, TPG redeemed 110,000 factors per evening as money charges have been sky-high for my choose dates ($1,635).
Hilton Diamond members obtain glorious perks right here: a room improve (when obtainable); 15,000 yen ($100) of expertise credit, which can be utilized within the eating places and spa; complimentary breakfast for 2 company; and early and late check-in (the place obtainable).
Standout options
- The mountainous space surrounding the lodge is gorgeous. After jockeying with crowds surrounding Kyoto’s foremost sights, it looks like a relaxing retreat — strolling by way of the Japanese gardens and little-visited temples close by have been among the many highlights of my eight-day Japan journey.
- Enjoyable within the massive onsen swimming pool overlooking serene gardens, which have been beautiful in fall, is a quintessential Kyoto expertise.
- Authentic Japanese arts, crafts and design components within the foyer — together with ikebana preparations and suave topiary — take inspiration from the artists’ colony based right here throughout the Edo interval.
- Visitor room decor stays true to a standard, pared-down Japanese aesthetic with grey granite tiles within the bathe, blond picket furnishings and flooring, and partitions of glass that mix the inside with the outside.
- The non-public springwater onsen overlooking a small walled backyard in my Backyard View Deluxe room was one of many higher Diamond standing upgrades I’ve ever acquired.
- From the positioning of the ability shops and lighting console to the harmonious use of area and considerate facilities, every little thing within the room was intuitively positioned.
Drawbacks
- Employees did not actually try to get to know company personally; there was not one of the “sure issue” that basically distinguishes a memorable, high-end keep.
- For a luxurious lodge on this worth class, the general eating expertise was disappointing, particularly in comparison with the standard, range and repair of extra reasonably priced inns that I stayed at in Japan on this journey; the breakfast buffet was restricted, service in the principle restaurant was at instances chaotic, and several other dishes have been downright mediocre.
- There have been no inviting indoor public areas that inspired company to mingle, socialize, have a drink or snack, or simply really feel related to the workers and fellow vacationers.
- Charges differ significantly relying on the season, and there are extra luxurious choices on this worth class.
- The service was, at instances, abrupt and distant, and there have been strict superior reservation protocols for a few of the facilities. So, there have been moments when staying right here felt extra like an train in persistence and self-discipline than a trip.
The vibe
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The lodge’s discreet entranceway and unassuming foyer space set the tone for a hushed sort of luxurious that channels the minimalist aesthetic of a standard, tucked-away Japanese ryokan. Hilton loyalists accustomed to the sheen of a Waldorf Astoria or the cool sophistication of a Conrad ought to count on a extra understated expertise right here.
Constructed on the positioning of a 400-year-old artists’ colony established by revered Edo interval craftsman Hon’ami Koetsu, the lodge partitions and alcoves are graced with conventional Japanese artworks and crafts; a characteristic wall within the foyer options Japanese urushi lacquer, and within the visitor rooms and suites, partitions are embellished with karakami woodblock patterns printed on washi paper.
Exterior walkways join the 114 visitor rooms and suites to each Tenjin (the principle eating room) and a pitched-roof teahouse. On the teahouse, wraparound glass partitions body views of the Takagamine mountains, which have been ablaze with crimson, orange and brown leaves throughout my fall go to. A collection of Zen reflection swimming pools results in beautiful gardens planted with Japanese maple and cherry bushes, and a big thermal swimming pool supplies a rejuvenating vantage level.
The room
There are these instances when lodge loyalty program standing is significant and immensely influences preliminary perceptions of the lodge. With Diamond Hilton standing (which I achieved by way of incomes 120,000 base factors in spending in a single yr), I used to be upgraded to a Backyard Deluxe View room with a personal onsen and a separate seating space with sliding glass doorways that opened as much as a walled backyard.
At Roku Kyoto, there are 5 room varieties to select from, many with views of the Takagamine mountains. Except you splurge on a Peak Suite King (1,097 sq. ft), which has a separate dwelling space and prime views, rooms should not large, however they’re designed to maximise area and performance.
Base degree rooms (Deluxe King Room) begin at 538 sq. ft whereas Backyard View Deluxe Rooms (like mine, pictured above) on the bottom flooring are related in dimension and design however have a further 182 sq. ft of area to accommodate the extra seating space and onsen. With out that further area, I believe I’d have felt the room to be too compact and, with out the backyard, bordering on austere.
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Rooms throughout all classes radiate gentle and calm moderately than opulence and indulgence. Conventional Japanese components (a impartial coloration palette, latticework gildings, wooden in its uncooked kind, unadorned partitions, rough-hewn textures and sliding doorways) meld with up to date facilities and tech-forward options, together with a few of the most intuitive gentle controls I’ve skilled.
Beds have been extraordinarily snug, dressed with simply two pillows, crisp white sheets and light-weight duvets. There was a bedside desk on both aspect of every twin mattress in addition to in between, which supplied loads of area to cost units in addition to manage studying supplies and tea trays.
There was a provide of shops and USB ports by every mattress, in addition to shops within the bogs and a few alongside the partitions. The sunshine switches have been well-labeled and the general performance of the area was glorious.
A custom-designed tea cupboard housed a standard Japanese tea set, Nespresso espresso maker and, under, a minibar was well-stocked with a number of top-shelf liquors, wine, sake and delicate drinks. There was a big closet to the left of the entryway with a steamer, iron, plush robes (in addition to two conventional yukatas), pajamas, slippers, and loads of hangers and storage.
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A wall, the place the massive flat-screen TV was mounted, divided the principle bed room from the lavatory, with two sliding doorways at both finish. The 2 separate vanities have been positioned on both aspect of the granite tiled walk-in bathe with a handheld in addition to a rainforest bathe head. Simply off the small entry hall was the massive conventional Japanese WC (with a heated, sensor-activated seat and flush management panel) and a separate wash basin.
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Foods and drinks
For Hilton Honors members with Diamond standing, breakfast (together with the buffet and a la carte choices) is included on the lodge’s foremost restaurant, Tenjin. The glass-walled area is about alongside the river of the identical title that runs by way of the property, and whose banks are lined with cherry and maple bushes, offering a particularly picturesque setting.
In comparison with most luxurious inns on this worth class — and the half-dozen different lodge breakfast buffets that I skilled in Japan — the choices at Tenjin have been restricted. Company seeking to gasoline up for a day of sightseeing could possibly be disillusioned.
As with many features of this property, you must get acquainted with the eating protocols. Breakfast is technically served from 7 a.m. till 10:30 a.m. Nonetheless, we have been instructed at 10:02 a.m. one morning that we had missed the final name for a la carte objects (10 a.m.) and the buffet was swiftly eliminated at 10:15 a.m.
There have been simply two stations, one with a number of fruit, greens and smoked fish, and the opposite with three completely different bread choices and a toaster. The Western-style a la carte possibility I attempted (a inexperienced omelet) was uninspired in each taste and presentation. The Japanese fish plate, although, was glorious and artfully introduced, with smoked mackerel, tamago, rice, miso soup and pickled greens.
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For dinner, there are two choices on the property: Chef’s Desk (which must be reserved three days prematurely, no exceptions) and Tenjin, the French-Japanese fusion restaurant (the place breakfast and lunch are additionally served).
The Chef’s Desk is a separate counter area inside Tenjin and provides a prix-fixe seasonal tasting menu (34,420 yen, or $277 per particular person, together with wine pairings), which begins at 6:30 p.m. Tenjin additionally serves a five-course prix-fixe menu for 17,000 yen ($115) with out wine pairings, however the identical menu objects may be ordered a la carte.
The lodge was at capability throughout our keep, and the restaurant workers appeared overwhelmed at instances. Additionally they gave the impression to be thrown off by our resolution to order from the a la carte menu moderately than the prix fixe; all different diners seated close to us had opted for prix fixe and have been served in a extremely choreographed vogue. Our drinks, starters and mains arrived utterly out of sync, after which the test was abruptly delivered with the straggling steak entree simply 45 minutes after we might been seated.
The meals was pleasant, however not one dish was really distinctive and, finally, the whole expertise was anticlimactic. The appetizer of scallops with kidney beans and jamon serrano (3,500 yen, or $23) was very wealthy, however the French-Japanese taste fusion was offbeat at greatest. We additionally tried a juicy Japanese beef tenderloin with Japanese pepper (7,500 yen, or $51), Norwegian salmon (4,200 yen, or $28.50) that got here out overcooked and a crisp glass of Quinta Apolonia white wine (2,214 yen, or $15).
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The bar space tucked away on the far aspect of the restaurant felt like an afterthought moderately than a real vacation spot the place you might loosen up, benefit from the atmosphere and socialize with different company. It served such craft cocktails as a Japanese pear Cosmopolitan (2,400 yen, or $16) accompanied by bar staples like stacked Wagyu patty cheeseburger (4,807 yen, or $32) and a bland spaghetti pescatore with simply a few scallops (3,036 yen, or $20).
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Facilities
The lodge’s excellent characteristic was its massive onsen thermal swimming pool overlooking the gardens, which attracts scorching spring waters from the Shozan Resort advanced subsequent door. The draw back for households, although, is that company have to be 16 years and older to make use of the spa services, which incorporates the pool, and spontaneous visits are virtually inconceivable since reservations and a signed waiver are required prematurely.
Surrounding the pool, there have been a half-dozen loungers. At check-in, I instantly reserved an onsen go to for 9 a.m. every morning of my keep, and I did not have any issues with availability. I wasn’t given any time restrict for my first go to, however I used to be instructed {that a} 30-minute most restrict would apply to any subsequent go to.
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I did not have time to make use of the spa throughout my go to, however the area was serene, providing a spread of therapies rooted in conventional Japanese therapeutic methods and therapies. The signature Tenjingawa stone therapeutic massage (26,000 yen or $176 for 60 minutes, or 37,571 yen or $255 for 90 minutes) makes use of heat stones to purportedly channel the power of the Tenjin River. It begins with a purification ritual to remove stress. The Balancing Components Therapeutic Facial (60 minutes for 25,047 yen or $170, or 75 minutes for 30,613 yen or $208) incorporates natural botanicals.
With floor-to-ceiling home windows overlooking the gardens, the 24-hour health heart was impressively outfitted with a number of treadmills, an elliptical, bike, and an array of weight machines and free weights.
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For vacationers on the lookout for extra first-hand expertise of Japanese arts and crafts, the concierge can organize (on-property) bespoke workshops, lessons, ceremonies and actions; some choices embrace training washi paper making (20,000 yen, or $136 for 2 hours) or dabbling within the artwork of porcelain manufacturing (26,000 yen or $176 for 2 hours).
Out and about
The realm instantly surrounding the lodge is a shocking place to walk for an hour or two. There is a picturesque creek lined with maple and cherry blossom bushes, a serene Japanese backyard only a five-minute stroll away, a number of small galleries and workshops. There are additionally a few lesser-known Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines — all with out the throngs of crowds you’ll expertise within the Higashiyama-ku and Shimogyo-ku wards, the place most of Kyoto’s vacationer exercise is centered. This lodge can be an 18-minute stroll from the golden Kinkakuji Temple.
The lodge specifies at check-in (together with an inventory of different protocols) that company ought to ebook taxis quarter-hour prematurely moderately than present as much as the doorway and ask for one. We did so, and our common wait instances have been round 10 minutes.
Options
From up to date takes on ryokans to big-name, buzzy lodge manufacturers, there are many choices for all types of vacationers and budgets in Kyoto.
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The ultra-luxurious Aman, positioned only a stone’s throw from Roku Kyoto, is town’s most unique deal with. Simply 26 beautiful rooms sprinkled amid 79 acres of lush gardens marry luxe comforts and tech-forward facilities with the suave minimalism of a standard ryokan. As you’d count on of the Aman model, every little thing is subsequent degree, together with the omakase menu at Taka-An — certainly one of Kyoto’s most coveted experiences — and the nice and cozy, discreet service the place you may by no means hear “no.” Charges begin at $2,300 per evening.
4 Seasons’ Kyoto outpost provides all of the acquainted swanky finishes, high-touch service, culinary excellence and family-friendly facilities that made it TPG readers’ favourite luxurious model on the TPG Awards this yr. Set round an 800-year-old pond backyard within the Higashiyama ward, its superbly designed rooms characteristic conventional Japanese components like washi-paper lamps, fusuma screens and urushi lacquerware. There’s additionally a big indoor pool, a lavish spa, day by day actions for teenagers and a big health heart. Charges begin at $900 per evening.
For extra budget-minded vacationers, Hilton’s brand-new Doubletree is a handy, good-value lodge near Kyoto station (a 23-minute stroll or six-minute drive) and most of the foremost vacationer sights. (Kiyomizu Temple and the Kyoto Nationwide Museum are lower than a mile away.) Rooms begin at a compact 270 sq. ft however characteristic a minimalist Japanese aesthetic with blond-wood furnishings, delicate lighting and conventional tatami components. There’s additionally an all-day restaurant and foyer bar on-site impressed by native design and culinary traditions. Charges begin from $128 or 38,000 Hilton Honors factors per evening.
Accessibility
As extra of a full-blown resort moderately than a metropolis lodge, Roku Kyoto’s design lends itself effectively to vacationers with accessibility wants. Rambling open areas and exterior walkways assist company get across the property in a wheelchair. There’s a ramp to entry the principle constructing and accessible routes to succeed in all the principle areas of the lodge from the foyer, together with the swimming pool, eating places, health heart and spa. The swimming pool can be accessible, and hallways and elevators are outfitted with visible alarms, audible alerts and braille.
All rooms are thought of accessible and are outfitted with 32-inch-wide bed room doorways, seize rails in the bathroom and a roll-in bathe. There are additionally accessible parking areas within the self-park facility.
As with every lodge, it is all the time advisable for company with accessibility wants to succeed in out to the lodge earlier than their keep to substantiate the supply of particular options.
Testing
Essentially the most spectacular options of Roku Kyoto are undoubtedly its placing design, mountain setting and resort-style facilities, together with the massive heated swimming pool, spa, health heart and manicured gardens. Whereas it is fairly a distance from most of Kyoto’s foremost sights, this property has many interesting attributes as a bookend for an extended journey.
Hilton loyalists accustomed to the nice and cozy and fuzzy hospitality of the Waldorf (or most luxurious inns on this worth class) — the place workers preempts company’ particular person wants and no request is an excessive amount of — will probably be disillusioned. Even structurally, with check-in desks that face away from the principle entranceway and a scarcity of convivial public areas, the property appears to domesticate anonymity moderately than connection.
Because the location makes touring forwards and backwards to Kyoto a problem, foodie-driven vacationers ought to choose to remain in nearer proximity to Kyoto’s revered Michelin-starred eating places. Or, they need to select one of many many luxurious inns and conventional ryokans that provide a extra elevated kaiseki expertise.
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