Just came back from a 2 weeks trip in Japan and we stayed at the Watazen Ryokan for 4 nights in Jan 09.

Our room was huge by Japanese standard with green tatami mats, traditional Japanese decorations and fresh flowers! When we first checked in, a nice lady in Kimono served us green tea and offered us traditional Kyoto sweets. In fact, throughout our stay, we had fresh Japanese sweets (different kinds!) placed in our room together with traditional teacups, pot and hot water to brew green tea.

We chose a room with attached toilet w/o showering facilities, so we had to use the public bath located at the basement. It was a great experience to use the public bath and soak ourselves in soothing hot water after a long day of walking. Although do note that the attached toilet in our room was really, really tiny.

The staff was extremely helpful; the futon beds were really soft and comfortable, except for the flat pillows. I had to use a cushion to prop up my pillow.

The location of Watazen was fantastic, it was within walking distance to Gion and Ponto-cho, Takashiyama, Daimaru and many cool, little shops. There were also many fantastic restaurants within the area and not forgetting the Nikishi market was just a stone throw away!

I highly recommended this Ryokan, given it’s location and price. It was a great deal!

We were looking for a ryokan to stay in closer to the Gion area of Kyoto. The ryokan we had stayed in the night before had been disappointing, the room was okay, but the staff was rude.

We called the Watazen Ryokan directly. The desk clerk was extremely helpful with directions to the area, letting us know exactly how to find the property. The taxi from Gion cost only Y730. The staff was waiting for us at the front door to take our bags in, check-in went really quickly. The staff were all very, very friendly. We were taken up to our room where our maid prepared us fresh hot green tea. It was wonderfully welcoming and relaxing. Our room was quite beautiful with fresh green tatami mats (smelling so sweet), The room was clean and welcoming. A large flat screen TV (although we never watched it, we appreciated it).

There is wireless and wired Internet available in the lobby. It's a great chance to chat with the staff and other visitors. Also they have a small gift shop in the lobby. The staff was very helpful in assisting us with finding a great restaurant for dinner (okonomiyake) and for breakfast the next day (Ikuna coffeeshop, very good).

Our stay was very restful and pleasant. We highly recommend this ryokan. Next time I visit Kyoto I will definitely stay at this ryokan again.

I booked the Watazen based on the reviews on trip adviser and was not disappointed. The room was fantastic, the food was great and the staff were really helpful, even assisting my travel companion in securing soccer tickets to a game in Osaka.
The futons were incredibly comfortable and even though our room was on the second floor - or first floor for UK speakers - we were not woken up by street noise at all. We had a room without a bathroom and quickly developed an addiction to the onsen - bathing up to 3 times a day. Very relaxing after a hard day and night sightseeing.
Like the reviewer before me we had a few issues finding the place as the directions on their website are fairly confusing. People we stopped also had no idea and finally we stumbled across it by accident. The easiest way to find it is to take exit 13 from Shijo Station. Walk about 5 minutes until you see Daimaru department store. 2 alleys after this you will come to a Starbucks and need to take this left. You will see the signs for Nishi (??) food market (sorry cant remember the name) and need to pass through this. Around 3 blocks up from the food market you will see Watazen on your left. It has a small sign in English which is obscured by lighting so you won't see it until you are nearly outside. There are also no signs on the door so we had walked past it a few times - make sure you are looking up! Besides the difficulty in locating it, Watazen is a great place to stay and is within walking distance to many of Kyoto's sights. This is not a traditional ryokan, but the only one I could find that actually charged per room NOT per person, making it great value for money. If you are interested in experiencing a Japanese guesthouse without the hefty price tag, Watazen is a good option.

After staying at K's House, I decided to let my children experience a traditional Japanese inn. I am so glad I chose Watazen. My three young boys who are avid samurai fans, had a tremendous time at Watazen.

They loved the tatami room and their futon 'beds' spread out on the floor. They were thrilled to wear the 'yukata' robes (which came even in small sizes!) and proceeded to pretend they were 'little samurai' warriors. (What a treat that on one evening, we got to watch a very old movie about ninjas. The boys were ecstatic that they were watching a samurai movie in their 'samurai' robes in a traditional inn in old Kyoto!)

The tea ceremony hosted by a gracious and ever smiling old woman was a special treat as well. My boys were unusually quiet as she ceremoniously prepared tea and sweet treats for us.

The next morning, we had a traditional breakfast which was quite a picturesque and tasty spread. Loved the tofu in the 'hot pot,' supposedly a Kyoto specialty.

True, the room was a bit rundown and a bit musty-smelling, but for my boys, it was an unforgettable experience coming 'home' to our ryokan after an entire day spent exploring Kyoto's historical sites. It was as if we, too, were part of old Japan.

Positive: Very, very friendly staff. Some young men came to set up our futons (in a very speedy and efficient manner!), I offered the a tip, but they refused it.

At the front desk, when we first arrived, they even offered us a raffle-like game and we won some pens. Not a major prize, but the kids enjoyed this unexpected welcome.

Negative: It was a nightmare finding the place from the station. We were walking with our bags late at night and could not figure out the map from the inn's website. (We did not take a taxi because the map said it was a short walk to the inn from the station).

Even people we asked for directions could not figure out the map. They, too, were helpless in trying to decipher the directions. Finally, a Good Samaritan (perhaps taking pity on a clearly anxious mom and her bedraggled three boys) actually walked with us for several blocks and he, too, constantly stopped people along the way for directions. Finally, we arrived at the inn and this kind man told the front desk staff just how hard it is for 'gaijin' to find the inn.

***I did call the inn for further instructions on how to get there, but the person who was at the front desk at that time, even if he understood I was lost, was not able to explain to me how to find the inn ( By the way, I do speak basic Japanese : Level II).

Overall, however, Watazen was a memorable part of our trip to Kyoto.

Note: Do not expect fancy accommodations; certainly, there are far more luxurious ryokans in Kyoto. But if you want a child-friendly traditional inn at a reasonable price, this is the place to go! Enjoy!