Hotel The Celestine Kyoto Gion

Hotel in Kyoto with quiet sophistication, great location

I was very impressed, and quietly wowed, by Hotel The Celestine Kyoto Gion. If you’re looking to splash-out on a nice hotel experience in Kyoto but not looking for conspicuous luxury, the Celestine is worth considering. The hotel itself looks unassuming from the outside, and is presumably designed in a style to cause as little offense as possible to the surrounding Kyoto streets. The main structure is focused on a small garden in the center. A discreet lobby and lounge with rich wood features, furnishings and fittings is on the basement floor, level with the garden. Rooms at the Celestine - I think we were in a deluxe or superior twin. Lots of clean lines and quiet sophistication here, I thought. All the usual amenities, furnishings and tech that you might expect at this kind of price range, but put together with an eye toward a simple, calm style. Great bathroom and shower (separate) with one of those huge - do they call them “waterfall”? - shower heads. Separate toilet also. Our room had a nice enough view toward the slopes of Higashiyama and it was nice to sit on the chairs by the window, sip on a Nespresso (machine in-room) and take in the quiet, if not spectacular, view. In terms of restaurants / bar at the Celestine, I can’t comment - they would have been out of our price range anyway, and given that we were here in a period between virus emergencies last year, paying out such money to sit behind plastic screens and so forth didn’t appeal. We were offered an in-room breakfast for around 3,000 yen per person. Not worth it judging from the pictures. Perhaps the best feature of the Celestine is its quiet, yet convenient location (although, perhaps much of the “quiet” could have been down to the pandemic). The hotel is just across the street from the beautiful grounds of Kenninji Temple. From the temple you can continue north through the streets of Gion to the busy Shijo-dori and other downtown areas of Kyoto. Hotel Guests also have easy-enough walking access to the attractions of Higashiyama. Nearest train stations might be Kiyomizu-Gojo Station to the South, Gion-Shijo to the North. The Celestine also has a shuttle bus to/from Kyoto Station. Overall - really enjoyed my stay here and would recommend it for this kind of budget.