KABIN Kyoto

“It’s a shame that during cherry blossom season everything is overpriced, because the KABIN Kyoto is a fine hotel, but not worth 200€ a night”

After our stay in Osaka, we move to Kyoto for just under a week. Although there is also a Daiwa hotel here and we liked it, this time we chose to stay at KABIN. KABIN has several hotels in Kyoto and we chose KABIN Kyoto.

The KABIN Kyoto hotel seems from photos to have the best “lounge” where we can work and has relatively large rooms compared to the other (KABIN) hotels in Kyoto.

KABIN Kyoto

KABIN Kyoto also features a bar, KRFT, where you can have breakfast and order cocktails or other drinks in the evening. There is a spacious indoor garden and a washer and dryer can be found on each floor.

You can check in yourself in advance, after which you get a code to enter your room. Each room has a smart lock, so you don’t need passes.

Advantages and disadvantages KABIN Kyoto

Price KABIN Kyoto

We pay for the KABIN Kyoto €1,091 for five nights. That’s converted to €218 per night. A lot of money for one of the cheaper hotels and that has everything to do with Sakura.

We get the 29m² Studio Spacious Twin for that money.

Location KABIN Kyoto

The location of KABIN Kyoto is very nice. We are within walking distance of the city centre, some temples and gardens (for Sakura) and within 15 minutes we are at Kyoto Station to get on the train or Shinkansen to Tokyo.

Within walking distance, you have plenty of restaurants, shops, coffee shops and – not unimportantly – local bakeries.

The hotel itself is further accessible by train and metro, taxi and there is also a LUUP parking area where you can park electric scooters.

Room KABIN Kyoto

We picked the KABIN Kyoto based on the room, especially the size of the room. Whereas many rooms in Japan are very small, at the KABIN we get a 29m² room.

The room feels more spacious than the one at the Daiwa hotel where we stayed before and has twin beds, plenty of wardrobe space, a TV, washbasin and bathroom with a lovely shower and toilet.

It is nice that the hotel also offers the option to choose different and/or more pillows, although this is by request and not an active pillow programme.

The room

Bathroom

Whereas in the West we are used to having a bathroom with a washbasin, in Japan you hardly see this. There, the sink is located in the (bedroom) room.

The bathroom then consists of a toilet with a separate control panel and a fine rain shower. This is one of the finest showers I have come across in all the hotels I have visited since.

On each floor, near the lift, you will find a trolley with amenities such as toothpaste, razors, a hairbrush and towels. You can then throw your dirty laundry in a shared laundry basket and bring clean towels yourself.

It seems pretty mediocre beforehand, but actually works surprisingly well.

Breakfast KABIN Kyoto

The hotel itself does not serve breakfast. That is arranged through KRFT, the restaurant/bar located in the hotel.

Breakfast room & bar

The bar is both breakfast room and bar in one. In the morning, the space serves as a room where everyone can have breakfast. You order that à la carte and can choose from a limited number of options.

You can use the same space to work in the afternoon and in the evening the same space serves as a bar where you can have a drink or cocktail.

Facilities KABIN Kyoto

Lounge

Okay okay, it’s not really a lounge, but the space does serve well for working. The breakfast room has seven tables and a long bar where you can work well with fast and stable internet.

The only drawback of this room is that there is only one power outlet in the entire room.

Indoor garden

The hotel has a courtyard garden and it is quite large. When you consider that on each floor a space of about 7 by 7 metres was left unused, it is quite substantial.

In the middle of the garden is a tree with a number of benches and tables around it, nice for having breakfast, coffee or evening drinks on warmer days.

Washing machines

There is a washing machine with drying function on every floor of the hotel. You can easily pay by credit card and secure the machine with a personal PIN.

Smoking area

Very common in Japan and so the KABIN Kyoto also has a smoking area.

Umbrellas

This too seems common in Japan, as we see it at more hotels. You can use the hotel’s umbrellas for free. Handy, as it rains quite a bit during our trip.

Remote working Kyoto

In the hotel, we can work well. Internet is stable and reasonably fast during our stay. Although on rainy days the speed decreases slightly, we achieve speeds of up to 290 Mbps.

Conclusion KABIN Kyoto

It’s understandable, but it’s also a shame that hotels raise their prices SO hugely during cherry blossom season. The KABIN Kyoto is in fact a very nice hotel, but €218 a night is expensive.

The room is spacious, being able to choose pillows is nice, and the shower is also very nice. That you can change your own towels, there is a good space to work with high-speed internet is all positive, but it is not worth the price per night.