Thanks very much, great info. The Westin Miyako has a great indoor pool, big w/some lap lanes. But it also had the problem w/some employees not speaking the best English. And they never have the rate you got, that is for sure! Plus I think the Hyatt is better located.

The Hyatt has rooms available on Nov 8, 9, and 10, but is sold out on the 11th (that pesky Saturday night). The rate is also around 30,000 yen..not close to $150.00. They do offer a rate of ¥19,000 or so for some nights during other periods...for their lowest level room, plus 5% tax plus 10% service breakfast not included. Their best bed and breakfast rate seems to be ¥24,000 plus tax and service.

Thanks for checking into things for me, KimJapan. I am so appreciative of the people on this forum. Such wonderful, heplful resources.

Speaking of wonderful and helpful, I heard back from Japanseseguesthouses.com and they were able to find a room for us for all 4 nights at the Ryokan Rakucho for about 9,000yen/night (roughly $75USD). I have asked them if they could find a higher-end full service ryokan for either the first or last night in rural Kyoto or Nara.(Hiirigaya was all booked.) Budget-wise, it would work out great because Rakucho is very reasonable and then we can splurge for one night. My fingers are crossed. (I specifically asked them to check Shouesen, Kamura Onsen and Kankaso so if anyone has any experience, I would love to hear about it.)

Thanks again!

http://www003.upp.so-net.ne.jp/rakucho-ryokan/indx.html is the Rakucho's home page in English. They have some pictures and rates etc. Note that no meals are served, so your ryokan experience would be missing one very important component...dinner service. It would be a good idea to stay there for 3 nights and then move to a really nice place.

Rakucho looks like a minshuku, not a ryokan.

I've got to agree mrwnrfl...It's an affordable option for sure, but expect not much more than a futon on the floor. It will not be one of those fabulous ryokan experiences with wonderful service and beautiful rooms. But it will be inexpensive.

The Shousen looks nice and so does the Kurama Onsen ryokan. Both of those ryokan also have onsen water.

Hi all,

I thought I would respond to this thread as I am having almost the exact same problem as deegmon - same time and same place! Deegmon, I would be very interested to hear how your efforts to find a nice ryokan in the areas surrounding Kyoto eventuated?

Would any one have any advice for our itinerary which we have roughly planned as follows:

Day 1 - Osaka (confirmed)
Day 2 - Osaka (confirmed)
Day 3 - Nagoya (confirmed)
Day 4 - Nagoya (confirmed)
Day 5 - Kyoto? (No bookings due to Saturday night?)
Day 6 - Kyoto ryokan (confirmed)
Day 7 - Osaka?
Day 8 - Osaka?

Days 1 to 4 are fixed but day 5 onwards are flexible and can be changed (although we fly out on day 9 from Osaka airport). The Kyoto ryokan is not ideal (does not include dinner) although it is within our budget. We would also like to fit in a day trip to Hiroshima possibly on day 7 or 8.

Would welcome anyone's thoughts or advice.

If you are considering the Kurama Onsen for a night, you might also be interested in trying Seryo in Ohara. It is about the same distance outside of Kyoto (either by electric train or bus, like Kurama) and Ohara is a very nice place. Many people do a day trip there, like Kurama. Kurama is known more for the hiking trail and that onsen, while Ohara has some temples and a nice little shopping street on a water canal going up towards the temples, in the area where Seryo is. There is also a little town area w/some shops in Ohara.

http://www.kyotoguesthouses.com/gues...n.php?GH_ID=63

Here is Seryo's official website, in English.

http://www.seryo.co.jp/english.htm

Many thanks emd, it looks really nice!

Is anyone familiar with the town of Ise on the coast? I found the Yukinosato on the web but not sure if it is worthwhile travelling to that area.

I really want to go to Ise on my next trip.

See here:

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e4310.html

and here:

http://www.isejingu.or.jp/english/index.htm

and look at this place, it's where I want to stay:
stayhttp://www.oishiya.co.jp/english/index.html:

http://www.oishiya.co.jp/english/index.html

The Yukinosato ryokan in Mie-ken looks nice, if that is what you mean. It is a <i>modern</i> ryokan:
http://japaneseguesthouses.com/db/mie/yukinosato.htm

I visited the Jingu in Ise-shi on a day trip from Nagoya. On hyperdia it looks like you have to change trains to get there but you don't. With a JR Pass you pay a supplement to the conductor (500 yen, IIRC) on board the train that goes thru to Ise.

It is an easy walk from the station to Geku. On the way you should stop at the used &quot;vintage?&quot; clothing store. It's on the right side of the street that goes directly to the shrine area. I left my umbrella on the train and stopped there to buy one but they didn't have any. But the guy went in the back and brought out an umbrella and gave it to me. So, stop by and maybe give him some business.

The Geku is in a forested park, mossy with tall old trees. After walking into the park for a couple of minutes you come across a couple of buildings. In the first one there is a video presentation. That room is connected to a shrine area of some kind, but don't go in there as the attendants out front will get upset and chase you down.

You can't see all of the main shrine. There are a couple of fences/walls so you don't get very close. While I was there a shinto priest counseled a woman (I noticed, was not watching) and then escorted into the shrine &quot;compound&quot;. Definitely worth a visit.

From the Geku you cross the street and catch a bus to the Naiku. The guard in the parking lot directed me.

The Naiku is a big deal. Lots of tour buses. This place is obviously very important to the Japanese. My visit there was just as much about my experiencing them experiencing the place as it was about me experiencing the place.

It was mid-week in April and pouring down rain, but this was not going to deter anyone. It was definitely an important visit for many people (and there were quite a few despite the conditions) and they were intent on getting to the shrine. I had been to Izumo Taisha on a previous visit and it didn't seem like the visitors were quite as serious (Izumo Taisha is more of a place for wedding ceremonies). Very pretty park with towering trees and the shrine, mostly hidden, is beautiful and mysterious.

The bus back to the station was just a bit tricky. It stops at the Kintetsu station but not in front of the JR station. There was some kind of construction at/near the station so it was just a bit confusing. Would be a good idea to make it clear to the driver that your stop is at the JR eki, so that he can give you heads up.

It just occurred to me that you could tell the driver your destination and then ask which stop numbah it is by pointing to the stop number board at the front of the bus.

Hi Jiamei, I definitely empathize with your predicament. We finally just got everything settled with Kyoto thanks to the very helpful japaneseguesthouses.com staff. We are going to stay in Kankasa in Nara on Wednesday night (blows the budget) and then stay in Ryokan Rakucho thursday-sunday (helps get the budget back on track). If you have not contacted them, it's definitely worthwhile. It took a while and they were not the places I had initialy chosen, but they look great for our purposes and the staff was very persistant even when I said no to some of the places they suggested. (I can't do cats.) I definitely feel like they went above and beyond to help us out.

Thank you all for your responses. I am fairly new here and finding everyone to be so kind and helpful!

Really, any of those places look fine and I even don't mind the sound of the Ise area as something a bit different. I suppose it depends now on what's available and what best suits us and our budget. Probably prefer to stay closer to Kyoto so we can spend less time travelling but we'll see..?

Deegmon, glad you got yourself sorted. It's driving me crazy! Yes I have used Japanese Guesthouses. They found me the Kyoto ryokan for the Sunday which has been confirmed although I am now thinking of changing it to Saturday if I can and then getting something nicer for the Sunday. I feel bad about doing this as they seemed to have gone to a bit of trouble already to find the current one but I think we have a better chance of finding something this way. Isn't it the case, the Saturday nights are more popular and they cost more as well?

2 places to try:
www.kyotowa.jp
www.hotel-iroha.co.jp/english/

userful site: http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2158.html

Deegmon, please report back after your trip. I'm planning to go to Tokyo &amp; Kyoto late this year or early next year. Thanks!

You might try Holiday Inn in Kyoto. Stayed there a few years ago. Had to get on bus and it was about a 30 minute ride. And to get to any of the sights or shopping it was getting on the bus. But the 2 day pass is well worth it and the bus stops everywhere.

If you book 14 days advance the prices are reasonable. Its worth a try.

We just got back and had to re-tool our itinerary to go to Kyoto before Oct. and not on a weekend and got a nice business hotel called Kyoto Central Inn right in the middle of town. But they were booked for October.

melen- I've been recommending Kyoto Central Inn for a long time, but you are the only other person I've seen who has stayed there. Did you have a western or japanese style room? Do you remember what you paid?

I love the location, and always stay there when I don't want to spring for a Ryokan.