First, I have to state that I DID NOT stay at Machiya Kamiumeya but at the Ebisuya. So my rating is for Machiya Ebisuya. Not only did I not know that there is NO staff even during the day at the Kamiuneya, but what's worse, the guest is not even initially taken there by their staff to familiarise her with what's where. In an emergency a solo traveller is supposed to try and call the staff from an empty machiya? And how long does the staff take to get there? Nowhere in booking.com is it explicitly said that the guest would have to fend entirely for herself, even though one of the reviews did say there was a fire at night and the guests had to put it out themselves. This is a serious lapse on the part of the machiya. So when I expressed my displeasure during checkin, the Machiya Inns office arranged for me to stay at the aesthetically furnished and wonderfully maintained Ebisuya. It was a pleasure staying there. They even arranged for me to have the same room (very large, for four) on the second leg of my stay which made coming back seem like coming home! A minor misunderstanding was gracefully sorted with an apology by the manager. They also have complementary laundry facilities for guests. Much appreciated! The staff was most friendly and ready to help with insider tips. It made my stay most enjoyable!

Machiya Inns said on the booking.com page that their office is 3 mins from Kyoto Station. What they failed to mention is that it takes a good 30-40 minutes to fall out of Kyoto station. I, coming from India, have never seen surging crowds as in Kyoto Station. To add to the misery, the facilities the tourist needs are all on different floors of the station. Machiya needs to supplement its 3 minute line! And, as I said above, CLEARLY state that there will be no staff available at Kamiumeya at all. But hats off to the staff at their checkin office for working out a solution and organising my stay at the highly recommended Machiya Ebisuya. It made my impressions of Kyoto very special.

This little place is stunning. It is a traditional Japanese House known as a Machiya. It has been tastefully refurbished to provide rooms. Note, there is no reception at the house but there is an office around 10 mins walk which is helpfully located between the railway station and the accommodation. They will also deliver your luggage for you. The room was very tastefully decorated and there are USB slots for you to charge your phone and helpfully a shared washing machine. The shower was good and the bed was comfortable. You can also use the traditional Yukata as your bathing robe. The accommodation is on the outskirts of Gion around 10 to 15 mins walk from the famous Ninenzaka and Sannenzaka streets and the Kiyomizu-Dera Temples which must be seen. Its around 15 to 20 mins walk into the centre of Kyoto. If I am lucky enough to go to Kyoto again, this will be first on my list.

Not a problem for me, but the house is located in a very narrow and dark lane. But Kyoto is super safe and I didnt have a problem with this at all.

Incredible customer service, truly above and beyond (Special mention to Ko who made us feel like VIPs) Seamless check in/out experience with top notch luggage courier service which made our whole experience super smooth. We were travelling on our honeymoon and were touched to find a box of chocolates waiting for us upon arrival in our Machiya. The Suite was even better than pictured and we only wish we could've stayed even longer to really indulge. Really lovely quiet residential location! Staff also went to lengths to help us when we had to make a complaint about a particularly disruptive guest in the room above us.

Personally felt the bath water could've been hotter but other than that, really couldn't fault anything with our suite.

- Overall great stay and value - Check-in location and luggage storage are at a different location than the hotel, but this was communicated prior to check-in and hotel offered convenient free luggage transfer. - Beautiful, clean, and spacious room with modern amenities but traditional decor - Quiet neighborhood but still walking distance to many attractions in Gion/Higashiyama

Room located close to the entrance of of the building, so can be a bit noisy when other guests enter. Otherwise, the neighborhood is relatively quiet.

We stayed in the Japanese suit, which was a nice room. The location was nice, and the facilities great! it was walkable for most parts of the city.

It was a bit unsatisfying to check in at the station before arrival and then not have the luggage service since we arrived at 15:20. Also, there was not enough coffee in the room. We were staying in the Japanese suit for 3 days, and I honestly think at least one room cleaning would have been proper for such a long stay. Also they only had coffee for two cups and two waters for this whole stay. (We were two persons)

The check-in counter is conveniently near Kyoto station, and the staff take your bags to your room for you which ia very handy because the rooms are about a 30min walk from the check-in place. The room itself is very clean and a good size, with comfy beds and a bath which is always a bonus. The amenities are great and presented in a cute bag. The hotel itself is in a central location down a small street with other homes so it's very quiet.

The front door has a strong magnet on it, so when other people were coming home late it did wake me up as it's difficult to shut the door quietly.

The traditional room was very nice and had all the modern amenities needed. Futon was quite comfortable and we really appreciated the toilet bags and proper filter coffee. Also very handy to be able to drop the bags at the check in desk by the train station and have them bring it to the room so we could explore.

The door to the toilet was not very smooth sliding closed or open and could have been better. Insects also managed to get in despite the screen on the window leading to both us us getting bitten quite a lot.

The first floor has heated wooden floors which were so nice during the winter. The location on a very quiet street that was close to many sacred sites allowed for very pleasant walks. There are also wonderful little restaurants, bars , and businesses nearby

Even though check-in at a promote site was wonderful, there were no staff at the inn, so communication was not swift. We emailed because we didn’t want to use the 24 hr “emergency” cellphone provided!

It had such a calm feel to it. We arrived to Kyoto early afternoon and explored close to the hotel. From the moment you entered you felt the stress of the streets fall away. We arrived by train and the process to check in at their check in office was completely problem free. The rooms are small but that is to be expected and note the expectation is that you will be quiet and considerate to other guests. To the staff member that mentioned the temple opened early that was so helpful, thank you. We woke up and wandered the tourist areas at 6:30am and had an amazing time before the crowds.

Nothing negative at all.

The room was a little bit small. But this is Japan where most hotel rooms are tiny, so it was ok with me. A great experience staying in a machiya converted into a guesthouse. Would recommend this to anyone who doesn't mind the 25-minute walk from Kyoto Station. Quiet and clean neighbourhood. I had an upstairs room. To sleep looking at the beautiful rafters was a new experience.

I still prefer printed manuals and instructions to online pdf ones. The TV also only had Japanese programmes without the option for subtitles. So, we didn't watch TV at all during our stay. The plus point to that was that we really explored the neighbourhood. What I really liked were the yukata that were provided for guests. Really nice local touch!