The Jetsetters Journal

Pick a month

When to go: 17 places, month by monthThe whole year at a glance

At their best in November

Europe

Asia

Indian Ocean and Africa

Middle East and the Americas

Every hotel we shortlist170 hotels, one listFilter by place, by what each hotel is best for, and by the judges behind it.Browse all hotels

How the Shortlists work · How we choose

Journeys

When to go: 17 places, month by monthThe Shortlists

The dining car of the Orient Express

Rail · 5 trains

Luxury train journeys

Five great trains, from the Orient Express to the Andes.

Read the guide
The Colosseum lit up at night

Cities · 1 perfect day

One day in Rome

Sunrise to midnight: the walk, the tasting menus and a view of St Peter's.

Read the guide
Overwater villas on a Maldives lagoon

Islands · 12 months

The Maldives, month by month

When the sea is glass, when the mantas come, and when the price halves.

Read the guide
Wildebeest crossing the Mara River

Wild · Jul to Oct

The Great Migration

Where two million animals will be, and where you should be waiting.

Read the guide
The Grand Canal in Venice at the end of the line

Rail · London to Venice

The Orient Express

When it runs, what each cabin costs, and the best month to board.

Read the guide
An aircraft wing against a dusk sky

Flights · Door to door

Emirates business class

From the car at your door in London to the lights of Dubai, in ten moments.

Read the guide

Links marked * are affiliate links: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. Ryokan cannot pay to be on this list. How the shortlist works

A quiet Japanese street at dusk: the best Kyoto ryokan, shortlisted for 2026

The Shortlist

The best Kyoto ryokan 2026

Tatami, cedar baths and kaiseki dinners: the Kyoto inns independent judges rate highest, and who should book somewhere else.

  • Research-based
  • Checked 16 October 2026
  • No paid places
  • 11 ryokan, 5 areas
THE JETSETTERS JOURNAL · SHORTLIST 2026 ·KyotoSHORTLISTED

Photo: Unsplash

The short answer

The best Kyoto ryokan, in one paragraph

A Kyoto ryokan is a traditional Japanese inn: tatami rooms, futon beds laid out at night, a deep bath, and a long seasonal kaiseki dinner. Our 2026 shortlist has 11 ryokan and inn-style stays, each holding a Michelin Key in the 2026 Japan selection. The most decorated are The Shinmonzen, Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto and Fufu Kyoto. For a first stay, pick Gion or central Kyoto so you can walk the old streets after dinner.

Shortlisted means chosen on research: a Michelin Key or Forbes Travel Guide rating, or praise from two independent publications, each linked below. We have not stayed at these ryokan yet. Read how we choose.

Old streets and temples

Kyoto ryokan in Higashiyama and Gion

The old east side of the city, with wooden teahouse streets, the Shirakawa canal and temples climbing into the wooded hills. It is the most walkable base for evening strolls through Gion and early starts at Kiyomizu-dera before the crowds.

Stay here if
First-time visitors, couples and anyone who wants to walk out of the door into historic streets
Getting there
About 10 to 20 minutes by taxi from Kyoto Station

Shortlisted 2026

The Shinmonzen

A nine-suite Tadao Ando inn on Gion's antique street, ryokan in form with a Jean-Georges restaurant downstairs.

Nine suites with tatami, shoji screens, low wooden furniture and futon beds; marble bathrooms with cypress soaking tubs; some suites have river-view balconies. Private pools: cypress-wood soaking tub in every suite; no hot-spring water.

  • Honeymoons
  • Food
  • culture
Skip it ifFuton beds on tatami and only nine suites, so it books up early and there is no onsen.
Evidence
Check rates

Shortlisted 2026

Capella Kyoto

A Kengo Kuma design opened in March 2026, with rooms on a modern ryokan theme and onsen suites.

89 rooms and suites with shoji-style screens and hinoki scent; six Onsen Suites; Auriga Spa with three private onsen rooms; dining includes SoNoMa by SingleThread. Private pools: private hot-spring baths in the six Onsen Suites; other rooms have deep soaking tubs; three bookable private onsen rooms in the spa.

  • Food
  • Wellness
  • Honeymoons
Skip it ifA full-service hotel of 89 rooms rather than a ryokan, and it only opened in 2026, so the service is still bedding in.
Evidence
Check rates

Shortlisted 2026

Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto

A ryokan-inspired hotel in a bamboo garden, with its own Noh stage and hot-spring baths.

52 rooms with tatami and large hiba-wood tubs; Onsen Retreat rooms overlook the bamboo garden or Noh stage; kaiseki at Ryozen. Private pools: private natural hot-spring baths in the Onsen Retreat rooms; shared indoor and outdoor onsen for all guests.

  • Wellness
  • culture
Skip it ifUp a hill away from the Gion streets, so most evenings out mean a taxi.
Evidence
Check rates

* Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It never decides what we recommend.

Historic inns, easy taxis

Kyoto ryokan in Central Kyoto

The grid of old merchant streets between the Imperial Palace and Shijo, home to Nishiki Market and the city's oldest family-run inns. It is flat, central and close to the best counter restaurants.

Stay here if
Food-led trips, short stays and travellers who want classic ryokan ritual in the middle of the city
Getting there
About 10 to 15 minutes by taxi from Kyoto Station

Shortlisted 2026

Kanamean Nishitomiya

An eight-room inn in a 19th-century townhouse with a Michelin-starred kaiseki dining room.

Eight tatami rooms, each laid out differently, with futon bedding, modern art and a library; small Japanese garden. Private pools: no private onsen recorded.

  • Food
  • culture
Skip it ifFutons on tatami, kaiseki dinner must be booked three days ahead and the restaurant closes on Mondays.
Evidence
Check rates

* Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It never decides what we recommend.

River and bamboo

Kyoto ryokan in Arashiyama

Kyoto's western edge, where the Hozu River leaves the mountains under Togetsukyo Bridge and the bamboo grove and Tenryuji draw crowds by day. After dark the riverbanks empty and feel far from the city.

Stay here if
Couples, nature lovers and second-time visitors who want quiet evenings
Getting there
About 15 minutes by JR train to Saga-Arashiyama, or 30 to 40 minutes by taxi from Kyoto Station

Shortlisted 2026

Hoshinoya Kyoto

A riverside ryokan reached only by boat, updated with modern colour and a seasonal tasting menu.

25 rooms across low buildings with river views, cypress soaking tubs and no televisions; ikebana and Zen meditation on offer. Private pools: cypress soaking tub in every room; no hot-spring water recorded.

  • Honeymoons
  • culture
  • Wellness
Skip it ifOutside central Kyoto and dependent on the boat, so sightseeing in the city takes planning.
Evidence
Check rates

Shortlisted 2026

Suiran, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Kyoto

A Japanese estate hotel on the river where many rooms have their own hot-spring bath.

39 rooms and suites in a three-storey Japanese building; restaurant in a 19th-century summer house plus teppanyaki. Private pools: 17 of 39 rooms have an in-room hot-spring bath; a private spa room with an open-air bath; shared open-air bath.

  • Wellness
  • Value luxury
Skip it ifA hotel with Western beds rather than a ryokan, and it sits in the busiest part of Arashiyama by day.
Evidence
Check ratesOfficial website

* Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It never decides what we recommend.

Forest and quiet

Kyoto ryokan in North Kyoto and the hills

Cedar-covered hills to the north, from the Takagamine foothills out to the river valley at Kibune and the mountain temple at Kurama. Summers are cooler here and evenings are very quiet.

Stay here if
Repeat visitors, walkers and anyone who wants forest and silence over sightseeing
Getting there
About 30 minutes by car from Kyoto Station to Takagamine; about an hour to Kibune by train and taxi

Shortlisted 2026

Kifune Ugenta

A two-room, 200-year-old ryokan in the woods with river-deck dining in summer.

Two units, one traditional Japanese room and one slightly Westernised; two tea houses, one in a cedar grove. Private pools: each unit has an indoor and an outdoor bath.

  • Honeymoons
  • Food
Skip it ifThe Michelin listing says it opens on Saturdays only from January 2025, children under 13 are not accepted and vegetarian meals are very limited.
Evidence
Check rates

Shortlisted 2026

Aman Kyoto

A forest garden resort with tatami-room options, hinoki baths and spring-fed onsen; not a ryokan in the strict sense.

26 rooms, suites and pavilions by Kerry Hill, with Western or tatami layouts; Aman Spa uses local spring water. Private pools: hinoki baths in every room; private onsen in some suites and pavilions.

  • Wellness
  • Honeymoons
Skip it ifAn Aman resort rather than a ryokan, the restaurant is Italian-style, and the pavilions carry strict prepayment and cancellation terms.
Evidence
Check ratesOfficial website

* Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It never decides what we recommend.

Kinosaki hot springs

Kyoto ryokan in An onsen night out of town

Kinosaki Onsen on the Japan Sea side of Hyogo, a canal town of willows and seven public bathhouses where guests walk between baths in yukata. It works as a one or two night add-on to Kyoto.

Stay here if
Onsen lovers and travellers adding a slower countryside night to a Kyoto trip
Getting there
Just over two and a half hours by limited express train from Kyoto

Shortlisted 2026

Nishimuraya Honkan

A traditional country inn with kaiseki dinners and passes to the town's public baths.

29 tatami rooms; the inn's own baths plus passes to Kinosaki's public bathhouses. Private pools: some rooms have private open-air baths.

  • Wellness
  • culture
  • Food
Skip it ifTatami only, so you sleep on futons at floor level, last check-in is 18:00 and the minimum guest age is 10.
Evidence
Check rates

* Affiliate link: we earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. It never decides what we recommend.

THE JETSETTERS JOURNAL · STAYED AND VERIFIED ·KYOTO 2027

Coming in 2027

Stayed and verified

None of the inns above carries our second stamp yet. Places we stay at earn the Stayed and verified stamp, with what we found written down and any hosted stay disclosed. Run a ryokan on this list? See how verification works.

How the Kyoto shortlist works

  • Published criteriaSetting, service, value for the rate and who it suits: the same five tests for every ryokan.
  • Evidence, statedA Michelin Key, a Forbes Travel Guide rating, or two independent publications. Each pick links to its sources.
  • No paid placesNo ryokan can buy its way on. A hosted stay is disclosed on the page, every time.
  • RecheckedFacts carry the date we checked them, and the shortlist is revisited every year.

Who should skip a Kyoto ryokan

If you want a big bed, a late breakfast and dinner wherever you like, a ryokan's set meal times and floor-level living can feel like rules. A hotel with Japanese design may suit you better. Plan the season first with our guide to the best time to visit Japan.

Questions people ask

Kyoto ryokan, answered

What is the best ryokan in Kyoto?

There is no single best, but the most decorated on our 2026 list hold two Michelin Keys: The Shinmonzen and Kanamean Nishitomiya in the city, and Nishimuraya Honkan in the onsen town of Kinosaki. Every pick links to the judges behind it.

What is a ryokan?

A traditional Japanese inn. Expect tatami floors, sliding paper screens, futon beds laid out by staff in the evening, a yukata robe to wear around the inn, a bath, and usually a multi-course kaiseki dinner and Japanese breakfast included in the rate.

Where is the best area to stay in Kyoto?

Higashiyama and Gion for old wooden streets and temples within walking distance; central Kyoto for restaurants and easy taxis; Arashiyama for river and bamboo-grove scenery, quieter once the day visitors leave.

How many nights should you stay in a ryokan?

One or two nights is common. Dinner and breakfast are part of the stay, so a single night already gives you the full experience; many people pair it with a few nights in a hotel.

Are some of these hotels rather than ryokans?

Yes, and we say so on each one. Aman Kyoto, Capella Kyoto and Suiran are hotels with Japanese-inn design, listed for travellers who want the feel of a ryokan with hotel comforts.

Have you stayed at these ryokans?

Not yet. Every property on the 2026 list is Shortlisted on research. Places we stay at will carry the Stayed and verified stamp, and any hosted stay will be disclosed on the page.

Keep exploring