Guest House Waraku-An

So happy to have a chance to meet the owner as she was extremely kind and helpful. The gourmet map was particularly handy. I will keep it as an official guide to local restaurants.

Waraku-an is a hidden jewell in Kyoto. An old machiya with inner garden transformed in a cute guest-house. The staff is super friendly and made us feel like at home. My stay here has been unforgettable. I truly recomend Waraku-an.

Well, as much as I enjoyed my stay here, I have to admit that the toilets were very small ( I hardly entered and I am a small person). Also, since there is this beautiful inner garden beware that moskitos in spring and summer will be there.

The location was great and the staff really friendly and helpful.

It was a bit noisy from neighbouring rooms but it is to be expected as it is an old traditional house with thin walls.

This guesthouse is the perfect place to stay if you want to have peace and quiet. It's like you're living an old japanese life yourself. They also have a zen garden at the middle and it made the whole stay worthwhile. They also have kotatsu that makes your legs warm while eating. Perfect.

I didn't like the shared bathrooms, that's all, but everything was perfect.

The hosts at Guest House Waraku-An were just so very friendly and lovely! They were more than happy to go out of their way to assist. Compared to the Air BnB we stayed at before Waraku-An, it was a much more pleasant experience with English speaking hosts who could help us work out which buses to take around Kyoto. The Guest House has so much charm. It's over 100 years old, so it is a bit creaky, however, it just adds to the character of the building. Initially, I was worried we would be too loud with our kids (9-year-old & 12-year-old), but it was fine, and the hosts were even happy to teach our 9-year-old daughter some origami. The common room is great. There is a traditional "Kotatsu" which is a heated table. There is a microwave, cutlery, and plates for guests to use, as well as hot water and tea & coffee. There are additional comforts, some of which can be purchased (Eg. Bicycle, earplugs) and some of which are free of charge. We did need to pay 100 Yen for the use of a towel, but considering the value of the rooms, we didn't mind. The hosts also washed a load of clothes for 200 yen, which we then hung up on clotheslines in our room. The shower and toilet rooms are smaller, but again, we didn't mind as the rooms are well priced. The rooms were also a fantastic size. Our family of 5 stayed in 2 rooms, one of which was the deluxe room with the garden view. I was worried it would be cold as the guest house is older, but it was actually quite cozy. There were reverse cycle air conditioners in the room, and gas heaters. The rooms were traditional tatami room, with a little table and makeup dresser. The location is fantastic. You can catch a bus west to the monkey park, or south to some of the famed shrines. There is a Family Mart "konbini" (convenience store) up the road, and what looks like a pharmacy but is a general store about 2 stores down. We would most defenitly recommend Guest House Waraku-An!