Best Accomodations

[burkhartdesu]

If anyone has a hotel or place they stayed at that they really enjoyed- post the name of the place and where it was located.


The Sakura Hostel in Asakusa was amazing... and when I stayed in Kyoto I spent 4 days in Myorenji temple- where it's not only acceptable for tourists to stay there, but it's relatively cheap.

Here are some of my pictures of Myorenji- where you wake up to the smell of incense and the chirping of birds.




The rooms were either large for big groups, or small- with simple tatami mats... There was a local onsen that had the cutest little old lady (Who tried to strip me naked, because I needed to get cleaned up...lol)

[burkhartdesu]

Well this thread was a FLOP!

[Nyororin]

Give it some time. It`s been less than a day. :P

I don`t feel like digging out my own pictures, but we had a wonderful stay at Yoshinokan when we visited Yoshinoyama.
We went during the off season which meant we didn`t get to see the sakura the area is known for... But we had the entire place to ourselves and they even let us have the entire bath so that we could get in the onsen as a family. The food was also excellent.

The area was also spectacular, full of history, which we have an addiction to.

[burkhartdesu]

Ill take note!

[ThirdSight]

That place looks downright amazing.

Old school, where the air itself drips with history and whispers from times outlived. I love it.

Out of curiosity, where was this located? Suburban area, rural area? I'm just getting my feet wet with locations of Japan.

[burkhartdesu]

It's in Northern Kyoto-- in what seemed to me like a rural area, though not too rural, considering there were pretty large stores nearby. Unlike Tokyo, there's a real ancient feel to the area


(I didn't take this picture, but this is the front entrance... Can't beat that for $32!)

Here's a review of Myorenji from frommers.com:


Location
Teranouchi Omiya Higashi-iru, Horikawa, Kamigyo-ku, Northern Kyoto

Transportation
Bus: 9 to Horikawa Teranouchi stop (5 min.)

Room Information
6 units, none with bathroom

Prices
¥3,800 ($32/£16) per person. Rates include a ticket for the neighborhood public bath (Personal Note: the lady who owns the local bathhouse is the cutest, nicest lady I have ever met. If she is still alive, I recommend going to this part of town just to meet this lady.

Credit Cards
Not accepted

In Room Amenities
A/C, hot-water pot w/tea (coffee on request), no phone

If you don't mind the austerity of life in a temple (early to bed, early to rise), you'll like the tranquillity of this place. Located northwest of the Horikawa-Ternanouchi intersection in a pleasant, quiet neighborhood, Myorenji Temple was founded more than 700 years ago and is now run by a jolly woman named Chizuko-san, who speaks a little English. As she manages this place virtually single-handedly, she prefers guests who stay 2 or 3 days and requests that they make reservations at least a week in advance (a month in advance would be even better). The temple buildings, about 200 years old and containing several important cultural properties (including paintings from the Momoyama Period that you can see upon request), are beautifully laid out. Cherry blossoms bloom from October to April, and there's even a rock garden, laid out by the same priest who directed the construction of the gardens of Katsura Imperial Villa. Sleeping is in bare, simple tatami rooms, and because there are no bathing facilities on the temple grounds, you're given a ticket to use the neighborhood bath. Check in is from 5 to 7pm, doors are locked at 9pm, and services are held every morning at 6:30am.