When I tried to book a room in Kyoto I was surprised to find that it was completely booked on the weekends except for rooms that cost more than $400 a night. I even had a hard time finding a room open for the week days. After about 2 hours of looking I finally found a fairly nice ryoukan that was very close to Kyoto Station that had a room for the week but it was a double which meant that I had to pay almost twice the single rate. I guess the moral is to book well in advance if you want to visit Kyoto.

My room is really nice and is 6 tatami in size about 6′x9′ which is twice as large as any room that I have lived in while here. It seems too large now. The floor is tatami matting, the walls a light brownish stucco and the ceiling is wide cedar boards. It’s quite pleasing to look at. I have a futon and quilt to sleep on and find it quite comfortable. The only downside is the doors which are a little less than 6′ tall so I have to bend over to go through them. The stairs are also very steep with shallow treads so I have to go down sideways and bent over so as not to hit my head.

I am on the 2nd floor. There are sinks and a toilet down the hall. There is a large bath in the basement that has 8 shower stations with Japanese bathing stools and a large soaking tub. I generally only take showers at home but am becoming a bath fan. It’s nice to have a hot soak especially after a day walking when you are tired and a little sore.

There are a bunch of neat restaurants on the side streets and a fairly large market with a good selection of bentos, beer and sake a block away.

All in all I’m very happy to have stayed here. Booking at the last minute has worked out OK after all.