BoooO

Anyone know if i can use Club Access Award at this location?

Neric

There is no club at this hotel. So no use for a club award here.

SawBo

Might be a weird question, are there bike rentals on site? Seems like there isn't a station that nearby, which is fine since there's a bus stop nearby, but I would love to just ride a bike around to get to the station.

Curious also about having tattoos is allowed in their Onsen areas.

snorlax04

I'm a globalist on a current stay. Can confirm that Japanese, Western and room service breakfast options are available as a standard benefit. Lucky enough to use a TSU on my points stay. What a wonderful property! Easily my favorite Park Hyatt worldwide so far.

snorlax04

It's not really an onsen, just a hot and cold plunge pool and sauna/steam rooms. It's unattended so I don't see why tattoos would be an issue. Didn't notice any bike rentals but also didn't ask.

OsakaWino

Looking around the web for reviews and found 2 Japanese bloggers who stayed in Park Suites recently. One of them encountered some rather significant service issues:

1. They arrived after 3 pm but the suite was not ready and they were told the front desk would call them on their cell when it was ready. No offer of a beverage or anything else while they waited. It was the middle day of a 3-day weekend (Nov 3) and there were so many locals wanting to try out the High Tea, that it had overflowed from the Living Room to the lobby area and there was no were to sit while they waited.
2. They finally found the Tea Room on the 5th floor to wait in. A very nice space, but no tea to be found, just bottled water.
3. The staff showing them the suite told them that they could have the Japanese breakfast set delivered to the room, so they requested it at a specific time, but it did not show up. On calling the front desk no one knew anything about it, but they had it delivered as soon as possible.
4. They had made dinner reservations for Yasaka through the hotel concierge, but the restaurant did not have a reservation for them. Fortunately they were able to get in.

Overall the blogger thought the service was friendly and accommodating but overly casual and obviously sometimes very inept. They said it felt a bit like Andaz Tokyo and nothing like PH Tokyo. Still, they said they would be back and hopefully service would get settled.

The blogger was very impressed with the hard product, with the exception of the Bath House attached to the gym. The saunas and the baths are only large enough for one person at a time and there are only 2 shower stations.

So it seems that all those posters above who said that there would likely be some service issues immediately after opening were right. Of course not that everyone would experience such issues, but even one of the above missteps would not be too good. I find the way the handled the room not being ready especially worrying.

Aventine

Sounds like the afternoon tea curse strikes another new hotel. They want all the revenue they can get but staying guests should be taken care of.

turks33

I have full Japanese style tattoo sleeves and worked out in the gym and went to the shower stall, sauna, and cold plunge with no problems. Granted I didn’t see anyone in the bath area. There were a few patrons visiting the spa walking by the gym, but no one seemed too concerned with me.

Didn’t see any bike stations, but was surprised how biker friendly Kyoto was. I think it would be a great idea to bike around. I’m sure you can rent some for the day nearby. It’s very touristy there.

We took the bus from the train station and walked to the hotel. It wasn’t too bad if you’re traveling with light luggage.

SawBo

I have no tattoos due to wanting to go to onsens yearly (I try to go to Japan yearly).

I guess I thought it was a public bathing area but sounds like it's more solo style. My SO has a few tattoos so I just wanted to make sure she's okay.

When I go to Kyoto, my favorite highlight is just biking around because it's just so convenient/casual to get around. Just a different feeling than biking around in the US.

Thanks for letting me know. Got 3 nights lined up in Feb.

OsakaWino

Exactly. This has become extremely popular in Japan, with no signs yet of letting up. Especially on Sundays and holidays, not only does the specified venue fill up, but customers waiting for the next seating take up limited lobby space. This problem is not going to go away soon, but if the room is not ready at the designated check-in time, PH Kyoto should at least be inviting the guest to have coffee, tea, or whatever at the Bistro while waiting instead of expecting them to fend for themselves among the afternoon tea crowd.

Aventine

I think they should limit the tea sets since they made such a big deal about this PH being an intimate example of a hospitable, luxury Kyoto guesthouse. Did the Japanese guests complain or keep it to themselves and write about it on their blogs?

fishy21

Love the reviews.

Any restaurants close by the hotel, or is it a train ride away?

OsakaWino

They did not mention that they complained, and I assume they did not. The front desk staff just asked them to wait "somewhere", and when they tried to sit in the lobby were told that the space was being used for afternoon tea. Finally another staff told them about the Tea Longe on the 5th floor, which they said was very nice with an excellent view, but just bottles of mineral water and no other signs of tea or any other service; maybe that will change.

A brand new luxury hotel opens in Kyoto and offers Afternoon Tea (apparently 4 seatings!) and it is now wonder that it is crowded, and since it is in the Living Room adjacent to the lobby, on the 3-day weekend it must have been really packed. On a Sunday or holiday I'm sure it would be require an advance reservation, maybe even the day before, to get into one of those seatings.

With the location in an incredibly busy area and the fact that the Bistro is aiming to attract walk-in customers, I imagine that it will also be difficult to get a seat there for lunch or a break in the afternoon.

For hotel guests, it sounds like the 5th floor tea lounge would be an excellent space to relax in, so hopefully they will offer more service there.

blitzen

you are in the Gion and have a lot of options at your fingertips. Even the Nishiki market etc is just a 15(?)minute walk away.

gengar

The report of the afternoon tea situation is very concerning. It's a problem at many hotels in Japan, even luxury properties, but not at all excusable at a property like PH Kyoto.

The closest train station is more than 1km away. It's probably faster to walk to Kikunoi even. There are many options in the area around the hotel, but of greatly varying quality.

I'd guess Nishiki Market area is probably 20+ mins.