Hoshinoya Kyoto

Hoshinoya Kyoto is a 25-room ryokan (Japanese inn) in Arashiyama, west Kyoto, on the bank of the Ōi River, reached by the hotel's own boat in about 15 minutes from the landing near Togetsukyō Bridge. It takes guests aged 12 and over and is aimed at couples, honeymooners and solo travellers who want two or three nights away from the bustle of the centre, facing the Rankyō gorge and Mount Ogura.

Arriving by river

The boat leaves from the Arashiyama landing, 15 minutes on foot from JR Saga-Arashiyama Station (itself 15 to 20 minutes by train from Kyoto Station) or 6 minutes from Hankyū Arashiyama Station. The first boat leaves at 2:30 pm and the last at 5:45 pm (local time); it must be booked in advance. When the river is too high, the hotel sends a car instead. Check-in is at 3 pm and check-out at 12 noon.

In the Heian period (794-1185), courtiers kept holiday villas in Arashiyama. The architect Rie Azuma started from an inn built here a century earlier, which she studied and then reworked; the hotel opened in 2009. That wooden main building is the reason for the minimum age of 12.

Four families of rooms

The 25 rooms come in four families, from the simplest to the largest: Mizunone, Tanigasumi, Yamanoha and Tsukihashi. All look over the river and the mountain, all have walls lined with kyo-karakami (Kyoto woodblock-printed paper), a bathtub and a separate toilet. Guests sleep on bed-style futons: Japanese mattresses laid on a low base at bed height.

• Mizunone (33 to 36 m²): the entry category.
• Tanigasumi (42 to 68 m²): a sitting area with sofas facing the view, with twin futons or a king.
• Yamanoha: the King, at the end of a garden path, is as secluded as a villa; the Tatami and Tatami Maisonette have a tatami (rice-straw mat) living room, the first sleeping three, the second on two levels above the Hidden Garden.
• Tsukihashi (69 to 122 m²): the special suites. The King faces the gorge; the Twin keeps woodwork restored with the arai technique; the Maisonette, the largest, is a two-storey corner suite with a private study and audio system.

The hotel has no onsen (hot-spring bath) and no pool: bathing is in your room's tub. For an onsen stay in Kyoto, see Aman Kyoto or the onsen suites at Capella Kyoto.

Meals

Dinner is chosen each evening from three options.

• The kaiseki menu (a seasonal multi-course Japanese meal), called "Savor of Shinmijizai", is served in the restaurant from 5:30 pm, for 20,000 ¥ (about 113 €) per person plus tax and a 10% service charge.
• Shabu-shabu in the room, at 6 pm or 7:15 pm, with beef or with yuba (soy milk skin, the vegetarian version), plus tea soba, seasonal dishes and dessert, at the same price; book by 8 pm the day before.
• The light dining hall, from 5:30 to 10 pm (last orders 9 pm), serves simple Kyoto dishes such as yuba udon or bubuzuke (rice with tea poured over it), booked on the day. It cannot adapt dishes for allergies or special diets.

Japanese breakfast is served in the room from 7:30 to 9:45 am, for 3,800 ¥ (about 22 €) per person plus tax and service, booked the day before.

A day at the hotel

The floating tea room is a wooden deck built out over the river. The gardens are the work of Hiroki Hasegawa, with the gardeners of Ueyakato Landscape: the Hidden Garden recalls a karesansui (dry garden) with smoked roof tiles and white sand. In the evening the incense bar, in a 130-year-old storehouse, pairs Japanese whisky with aromatic woods, for adults.

Activities are booked through the hotel: dawn zen meditation in a temple, ikebana (flower arranging) lessons with Ryuho Sasaoka, matcha-making on board the Hisui boat, in-room shiatsu massage (except Tuesdays, Saturdays and Sundays). Some depend on the season: from 15 November to 10 December 2026 an autumn stay reserves seats facing the maples, and from 1 November to 10 December (except 28 November) an aperitif is served under a 400-year-old maple to live court music; from 6 January to 2 February 2027, a New Year stay includes an early-morning private prayer at Hōrin-ji temple. Foliage dates are in our guide to Japan's seasons.

Arashiyama around the hotel

The hotel lies upstream of Togetsukyō Bridge, the heart of Arashiyama. On foot or by taxi from the landing you reach the bamboo grove near Tenryū-ji temple: carving marks into the bamboo is an offence punishable by a fine of up to 300,000 ¥ (about 1,692 €). Saihō-ji, the moss temple, is visited in small groups, booked at least the day before. These and the rest of the city are covered on our Kyoto page.

Compared with the other Kyoto hotels in the selection

Hoshinoya Kyoto is the only one of the four reached by boat and the only one limited to guests aged 12 and over. Aman Kyoto, of a similar size, has an onsen and pavilions for families. Capella Kyoto and the Imperial Hotel Kyoto are central, within walking distance of Gion. Hoshinoya Kyoto features for three nights in our 11-day honeymoon itinerary.