Ryokan in Kyoto
 

Can anyone help? My sister and I are travelling to Kyoto and are looking for a charming Inn (moderate priced). Web sites don't do much justice. We like Eastern Kyoto, Gion or any recommendations. Would much appreciate any input.
Thanks!!!!

We stayed at Ryokan Hiraiwa (http://www.jpinn.com/inn/11-4.html) to the East. It was clean & friendly & small with communal toilets/bathrooms. We walked everywhere from there. I'd stay there again if I ever get the opportunity to spend more time in that wonderful place.

thanks so much. I'll check it out!

We just returned from a 4 night stay at Ryokan Fukuzumi in Kyoto (find its website by searching on Yahoo or Google or checking out www.japaneseguesthouses.com). It is located in Gion and near a lot of the interesting sites in the city. Bus travel was convenient and cheap using the bus guides provided by the Kyoto travel bureau. The Ryokan Fukuzumi was good quality (private bath and toilet) and we paid $150 for three persons for a 10 tatami room with a view of the Kyoto mountains. However, our room also faced a busy street. I'd recommend requesting a quiet room off the busy street since the rooms did not have soundproofed windows. That being said, the Ryokan had a nice public bath, one is actually outside on the roof with grand views of the city and mountains. The staff spoke some English but were very, very helpful in our tour of the city. I'd recommend staying in Gion since it is convenient to every part of the city. It was neat being able to walk to the old parts of the city and get lost, finding the geishas and maikos going to their appointments. Be prepared for the high prices, though, of food and shopping. Of course you can eat cheaply eating ramen and other fast-type foods but other than that, it is expensive.

Look at the Hirota Guest House - mentioned in the Frommer's Guides. Stayed there for 9 days - the hostess helped us with get tickets for the Moss Garden, the Imperial Villas, saved us lots of time in organizing ourselves in a very complicated city. Location is great, very central.