The staff and the location were outstanding! The setting was beautiful, provision of all materials, services, the food was outstanding and excellent. They made room for the bikes that we rented for the duration of our stay. They were actually booked solid, but made an exemption when we asked for dinner at the hotel to have the full experience. Again, people and service fantastic! Location fantastic! Highly recommended.

The only little(!!!) thing we did not like that much was the actual room. The furniture looked a bit worn and not perfectly matched. No, I am not complaining about having to sit and sleep on the floor, that is exactly what we were looking for, I enjoyed that. That’s why we chose a ryokan over a regular hotel. Usually, I always prefer location over the actual hotel room, but in a ryokan you eat breakfast and sometimes dinner in your room. But the great staff made up for that.

I had a truly lovely stay at Matsui Honkan. The location is excellent—very convenient and close to many key attractions. The staff were all incredibly friendly and welcoming, making me feel right at home from the moment I arrived. The onsen was absolutely perfect—so relaxing and well-maintained, a real highlight of my stay. I also have to mention the breakfast, which was delicious and beautifully prepared each morning. A special shout-out to the auntie who served breakfast—she was so kind, attentive, and full of warmth. I truly want to give her a super like for her wonderful service! Highly recommend this ryokan for anyone visiting Kyoto. I will definitely return!

We had a fantastic stay at this ryokan! From the moment we arrived, the staff was incredibly welcoming and helpful, making sure we had everything we needed for a comfortable experience. The futons were surprisingly cozy, providing a great night’s sleep. The highlight of our stay was the onsen—absolutely amazing and so relaxing after a long day of exploring. The traditional breakfast was another standout, with beautifully prepared dishes that gave us a true taste of Japanese cuisine. Overall, it was a wonderful experience, blending comfort, hospitality, and cultural immersion. We highly recommend this ryokan to anyone looking for an authentic and relaxing stay!

Amazing service from start to finish. Tatami room was large, impeccably clean, and great efforts were made to explain everything in English. A true highlight was the Kyoto specialty kaiseki meal. Probably the best meal I've had in my life. If you're going to stay at a ryokan, go all out! Basement bath also well cleaned and organized. The Bath was never overcrowded.

Bit of a walk from the nearest train station, difficult when you have full luggage. Only one outlet in the room.

The staff very friendly and sweet. The Japanese breakfast was ok! But we aren’t used to it. We still enjoyed the experience. When you leave, the owners hold a banner outside and wave goodbye. Absolutely loved this! My kids and I felt so loved and though I don’t understand what it meant. I figured they were wishing us a safe trip. Very sweet! Lovely ryokan and onsen was great.

Their garbage bins are small! Most of the time I had to used a bag to put next to it, because nothing fit. Not sure how you supposed to recycle. There aren’t any containers beside the trash bin, which is literally a miniature size. Bathroom had a pee smell. I don’t think they clean very well. My 11/13 year old love the ryokan experience! They didn’t have problems with the beds, but I did. My back hurt everyday. But, I think this is the way the Japanese sleep. So, I was fine, but could not wait to sleep on a real mattress. You have to give the front desk your room key, every time you leave the property. This was weird to me. I felt like a child who had to check in with mom after hours.

This place was pretty great! I liked that the rooms were like an apartment without a kitchen. Very spacious. The staff were very friendly always helpful. The breakfast there was delicious and loved the public baths there. While we had our own private shower/bath in our room, I enjoyed the communal baths in the basement. It was also nice that each time I went to the bath, I had it all to myself. The Ryokan was also by the big market and it was only a few minutes away by foot. Other places like castles and parks were also within a 20 minute walking distance. It was also easy and affordable to take taxi's as well if you didn't feel like walking.

We had a wonderfully authentic stay in this high service Japanese Ryokan. The staff were fantastic, our room was exactly as we imagined a room in a ryokan would be, the level of cleanliness and servicing of the room was exceptional and soaking in the onsen every night was a wonderful way to finish our day in fabulous Kyoto. Absolutely, definitely recommended.

There was nothing not to like. Everything exceeded our expectations.

We had an amazing stay here. The place was incredibly clean and the staff were extremely helpful and accommodating. We truly enjoyed our time there and believe that booking just one night is perfect for anyone visiting Kyoto.

The only hiccup we experienced was with breakfast timing. They called us to collect the breakfast, and although we asked them to come in 15 minutes, they ended up taking it immediately, which caused us a bit of embarrassment to us

Facilities and the location were great!

However if you are traveling with kids, do make sure to check with the property whether the amount you pay does it includes the beds for the kids. We were told that for our 2 kids, we need to pay for the additional beds, where we thought the amount we see on booking.com has included the beds for all 4 of us. We did indicate 2 adults + 2 kids staying and the room stated up to 5 futons.

We chose this ryokan as it was central in Kyoto, had an onsen and looked traditional, and offered a kaiseki meal. It exceeded our expectations for a traditional stay. The room was simply and tastefully decorated in Japanese style. We loved using the onsen, our first in Japan, and used the provided kimonos and instructions on how to use it so we did not offend anyone. We took advantage of having the kaiseki dinner meal in our room, which was excellent - come very hungry as there is so much food. It is a real experience to have this dinner, the attendants set up the food in each dish so beautifully, there was such attention to detail, some of the food cooked at the table as we were having other courses. It was wonderful, showed the respect and care the Japanese have towards food. The attendants were so humble and kind, always showing deference and bowing as they left the room (this must be a cultural behaviour in ryokans). The beds were made up after dinner with speed, we slept on futons and they were incredibly comfortable. My husband thought we would be cold but we were not, the best sleep ever. The breakfast was also huge and delicious, another wonderful experience of eating beautifully presented and delicious food. We took advantage of a late breakfast and the check out of 10am. Every person in the ryokan was helpful and excellent. Highly recommend.

There was nothing we didn't like - everything was excellent.