HOLIDAY INN KYOTO GOJO - Chic & Bright Urban Staycation

Kyoto is a huge tourist drawcard at the moment and as there are so many sights to see and hotel accommodation is in high demand, there is not just one location that is the best, so planning where to stay can be a key to ease of connectivity and the Holiday Inn Kyoto Gojo has what it takes to offer you a comfortable urban lodging in terms of location and style. mylifestylenews writes.

While hotel availability is quite demanding and facing a big challenge in Kyoto, higher room rates are to be expected especially when the perfect location is to be considered. Situated within the city centre vicinity on Gojo - the fifth major avenue in Kyoto which is the hotels home and everything in between, it is kind of a peaceful yet busy enough neighbouring community environment with easy access to major attractions among interesting shops, local dining, entertainment, temples and historic areas along the way.

We arrived in Kyoto by Shinkansen and connected with the local metro for just one quick stop from Kyoto main station and then a quick two minute walk to the Holiday Inn Kyoto Gojo and you can’t get much better than that!

A striking jinrikisha - a traditional human-powered two-wheeled rickshaw on display (which is rather ubiquitous in many tourist areas in Kyoto) upon entering the hotel lobby. First historical object encounter that is affiliated with this urban chic hotel. Before walking in further, there is BONDO Cafe & Bar serving homemade light meals with a grab and go concept or to enjoy with a glass of wine or light beverage.

After which you pass a large communal dining table and other lounge seating on the right to gather and meet friends, or sit and relax. With the lobby design so friendly for gathering, socializing or just enjoying your “me time”, at the far end is the check-in desk, so the team behind the desk have a birds-eye view of everyone that enters the hotel and while one person is checking in, the others may sit on a large ottoman placed strategically in this part of the lobby and have a breather.

The whole lobby is rather compact, but extremely well designed with lots of floor to ceiling windows to flood the lobby with natural light.

The design quickly references Kyoto with multiple made-to-order floor rugs showing images of old and new Kyoto and similarly two ceiling mural panels with Japanese heritage features if you look up.

Second historical design element discovered.

Ceiling Mural panels.

Ceiling Mural panels.

Kyoto Map.

Striking art work.

Other touches include a series of art works and objet d’art – one in particular consists of five colourful panels, individually referencing the Geisha, Kabuki and Daruma – all elements of Japanese cultural life - as well as illustrated graphic Kyoto city maps that are totally inspirational.

There is so much delightful detail to take in before you complete the formalities and we found this arrival experience to be very inspiring and considered, not expecting much more than that for a Holiday Inn’s brand standard of image.

They have surely outdone themselves to tell you a good story. To top it all off the Front Desk team were quite charming, informative and efficient, well conversed in English communication and our room was ready earlier than expected.

A quick elevator ride up to the 8th floor found us opening the door to our 20sqm King Room. We instantly found this welcoming and efficient in design with a proper king bed, small but effective bedside tables, a large window colourful sofa, a small coffee table and chair, not forgetting the mounted flat screen satellite plasma TV.

The room accommodated all our needs and was spacious enough by Japanese standards. Tea and coffee making facilities are also available, a safe, an empty minibar fridge to store your favourite local food or drinks and the cozy yet compact bathroom with a combination shower in the bath with quality bathroom amenities that we enjoyed, which was an efficient use of space indeed but some may find it a little claustrophobic when two people want to use it at the same time but for a city hotel perfectly serviceable and Housekeeping kept our room very neat.

Apart from the lobby BONDO Cafe & Bar, there is BONDO on level 2 which is where they serve an international buffet breakfast. The name of this outlet has been carefully thought about in three parts: ONDO – temperature, BOND – together and DON – food bowl. 

The breakfast is well done with a sensibly laid out floor plan to cater for big crowds to avoid long queues for food, although there was a bit of a bottleneck for the tea and coffee due to a tour group presence during our stay.

Food is replenished sensibly and quickly to maintain the right temperature and quality. They have all your favourites – eggs, bacon, grilled fish, baked beans, chicken and mushroom, smoked duck breast, okra, garden salad, congee, rice, miso soup, pastries, juices, cereals and nuts, yoghurts and then some, which was more than enough and covered a variety of international favourites and selective local specialties.

We tried so many different items over the course of our stay and found the quality and flavour to be on par with some luxury brand hotels and the ambience was bustling with a spacious long room, great lighting and thoughtful art design wall paper together with some ornamental object placements to create warmth and a welcoming atmosphere to start your day. Well done!

The only other amenities to be found within the hotel are a compact but perfectly serviceable gym , laundry facilities and the public onsen on the top floor of the hotel, which was the perfect antidote after spending a long day walking everywhere.

The windows of the hot bath afford some panoramic views of the cityscape and you can completely chill in this luxurious space while soaking in the warm waters for a blissful moment of relaxation. A tatami floor changing area was spotlessly clean and always neatly presented and we absolutely loved this experience.

The Holiday Inn brand has come a long way and the standards are not to be under-estimated and we really enjoyed our stay. Takashi san on the Front Desk was a gem – polite, informative and excellent at his job – and our daily interactions were so consistent. The service and kitchen team at breakfast were on point and you could see that they went that extra mile to ensure menu items were replenished timely and any guest that looked like they didn’t know where to find something were quickly approached for assistance, so a very switched-on team and excellent communication, given the variety of nationalities they assist.

The chic, bright look and feel of the Holiday Inn Kyoto Gojo was warm and friendly along with open spaces for relaxation and the design was very thoughtful. We never felt like there was something that could have been done better for a Holiday Inn brand that make it a preferred accommodation of choice in an admirable location in Kyoto. Holiday Inn Kyoto Gojo is an ideal base and a well-positioned choice for leisure tourists and business travellers while seeking a modern comfort accommodation, with a sense of style and inspiration.

Tried & Tested:
Location: 4.5/5
Design & Decor: 4.5/5

Housekeeping: 4/5
Food & Beverage: 4/5

Service: 4/5
Value For Money: 4/5
Experience: 4/5

 

Holiday Inn Kyoto Gojo  

179 Higashikazariyacho,

Shimogyo Ward,

Kyoto, Japan

Tel: +81 7 5365 5111

Reviews are based on actual day of visit and experience. mylifestylenews reserves the right of final decision in case of any disputes. All images are photographed by mylifestylenews team without any photoshop enhancement and are the property owned by mylifestylenews unless otherwise stated.