I think that there could be 2 ways to experience this hotel: standard room and superior room. There are some 756 standard rooms in the original hotel and 228 superior rooms in the new block. We were booked into a standard room. Oh dear! If you have a booking, make sure it is for a superior room in the new block. The hotel is located within walking distance across the road from Kyoto railway station so the road outside is very busy. Whether the proximity to the station is an advantage is questionable. Taxis are cheap. There is also little in the way of restaurants etc in the area, other than in the mall in the station. Initial impressions from the outside are good, but quickly deteriorate. The lobby is moderate and the bell boys (and girls) are eager, but it is always crowded. However, you can see from the state of the lifts in the old block that the hotel needs renovating. The bedroom floors corridors are dirty and tired. The first bedroom had a window that would not close and overlooked the main street, so was very noisy. It also smelt and not only of cigarettes. The second was on a side and had a window that closed. It also smelt better. Although they say there are no-smoking rooms there are not many and the Japanese seem to smoke in them anyway. These 2 examples of bedrooms were poor and disappointing. The bathrooms are dark and worn. The decor and furniture seem to be 1970s, they need a major renovation. The beds were hard by western standards. The TV was an old style with limited channels in english. We tried to change to a superior room but none were available. It seems that the hotel is usually overbooked and caters for organised tours from all over the world, hence the crowded lobby, with visitors waiting for city tours etc.
We had a meal in the Ronde restaurant. What a mistake! The service was very poor and the meal, 'noveau' style, was miniscule portions and expensive.
