Kyoto Ryokan

[noone]

Kyoto Ryokan

Wondering if anyone has any recommendations?

Heading to japan may 5th to the 20th

driving for the first 8 days hopefully at ebisu and doing touristy stuff for the rest with girlfriend and sister in tow so sadly not entirely car related

had looked at doing at least a night around the 15th in a traditional Ryokan in Kyoto area anyone able to offer any advice warnings etc?

[noone]

And another quick question for those more in the know about Japan in general are tattoos an issue in onsens and just out and about ?

All three of us have tattoo's, some quite visble, I have one on my wrist which is easily visable in a t-shirt, both girls have tats as well

 

Edited April 6, 2017 by noone
spelling

[t_revz]

firstly, ive spent most of my time in the past 10 years visiting in Kyushu. ive never been stopped from using the Onsen due to tattoos. that problem i hear exist the further north you go, i dont think i have used an Onsen further north than Nagoya so im not sure how big of a problem it is. its Tats are not an issue with anything else that im aware of.

 

Ryokans- now this is from personal experience and im not an expert, but dont think of there as being hotels or ryokan as there is a lot that qualify somewhere in the middle. perhaps dont think of staying 1 night at a ryokan as you might find a nice comfortable one for a longer period. the difference from my understanding is they have Tatami mat rooms, and you pull out a futon from the cupboard to sleep on however i have stayed at Ryokan with beds. they also do traditional japanese set menus for dinner if you choose to eat there. they also usually have an onsen( ive stayed at ones with small onsen outside the room and ones with a large shared onsen for everyone) so i guess most of the difference is visual. in a japanese hotel you could imagine your in an Australian hotel but there is no mistaking the appearance of a ryokan as japanese. 

 

hope that helps somewhat. Im actually flying out of japan as you are flying in

[Leroy Peterson]

yeah best to figure out what you're after.

If you want traditional bedding, service, food etc. There is often curfews and strict breakfast times (in room by 10pm each night, breakfast at 8am, but some places will waltz into your room to start setting up at 7:30am).

Or if you just want the spa experience, there are hotels that offer public or private bathing (some open-air, some on top of buildings etc).

Tattoos seemed like a strict thing when I was there. Lot of bathing places said to talk to staff beforehand, usually to give out bandages and stuff to cover up (depending on size).

[noone]

Appreciate the input guys hoping the tattoo thing isn't an issue, fi gets crossed
Looking for a bit of traditional experience so not fussed if it's not super comfortable beds etc
Got tickets for sumo to after our ryoken stay so get some interesting traditional Japan, then a night or to of partying and luxury before leaving [emoji106]

[t_revz]

Appreciate the input guys hoping the tattoo thing isn't an issue, fi gets crossed

My wife n kids went to an onsen on the weekend without me and they didn't allow tattoos, luckily I'm not that big a fan anyway

[t_revz]

Also wasn't allowed in an onsen over the weekend at a hotel in Oita. They said I could book a small private onsen room between 9-10pm only. I'd say expect the worst on the tattoo issue

[noone]

Really didn't have to many issues, though didn't push it either and was respectful of the situation and booked private Baths.

Didn't notice any obvious issues caused by my very obvious tats though either 

Was an amazing trip cant wait to go back 

Edited June 14, 2017 by noone