Kyoto Kokusai Hotel

The customer service here is simply amazing. I had to email the hotel's reservations department several times regarding various issues, and each time they were extremely helpful, bending over backward to accommodate guests. I also enjoyed the great value for your money (

The Kyoto Kokusai is a bit of a dowager. She was probably really hot about 20 years ago, but age is taking its toll. We opted for the tatami room, which was fine, save the futon was a bit old so it did not have much support left in it. The room was reasonably clean, though nicks scratches and a bit of mold on the bathroom silicone was noticeable. The rooms smelled a bit funky, but that was the tatami mat... I got used to it. More importantly it was billed as a non smoking room and that rung true. No internet connection in the tatami rooms, that moved my review from a 4 to a 3. I knew this going in and there is free wifi in the lobby and that worked for us. Got to roll wit the punches when travelling. The staff is more friendly than helpful, mostly due to a mutual language barrier but they did their best to make sure our stay was good. It is across fro Nijo Castle which was nice, we did that shortly after checking in. (again food being an issue, we ate a quick bite at the 7-11). It is a long but doable walk to the Imperial Place. Give yourself a half hour, or more. Many eating options once you are near the palace... If you want to do any shopping, there gift shop in the lobby is reasonable for a quick souvenir. There is also a convenience just down the street. The laundromat is about a 15 minute walk, but be warned the place has three machines and a line. Otherwise for anything else it is a 10+ dollar cab ride. As for food... You are better served going somewhere at the end of your day and cabbing back (FYI Kyoto is only tolerable via cab, too spread out to walk and public transit did not seem appealing). Kyoto Kokusai does have a breakfast offering, but I thought it was a bit spendy even for a hotel. But Japan is not a big breakfast kind of country, so prices probably have to be even more elevated to justify a breakfast service. The prices were good (I booked months ahead for a 30% discount), but given the extra cab fare to get to and fro... I think it would have been cheaper to stay at a slightly better hotel near the train station. Who is this hotel for? There were a number of other gaijin staying here, but from the looks of it language was a bit of a barrier for them too. Hopefully they were as good at winging it. I would say the hotel caters best to the Japanese tourist or business traveler. Overall there is nothing wrong with the Kyoto Kokusai, but as a tourist in Kyoto I might recommend something a little closer into the train station as there are many more food/shopping options nearby, likely you'll have to take a can to see anything of note. If the hotel gets a renovation, I would bump it up a star. Would I stay here again, maybe the price was right and the staff was nice.

Just OK