Shilpene

I'm not sure about those specific circumstances, but I had booked two separate room types (King, Twin) due to availability, and was able to have the rooms upgraded to a king garden terrace at a cash rate for both nights.

edit: upgrade cost was 12,000 yen per night

bluez_center8

Does anyone know what is the cancellation policy for Park Hyatt Kyoto if booked with points? I heard different things: 30 days, 14 days, 2 days, etc

RoodyPooUS

It says 30 days in my reservation in the app.

bluez_center8

Thank you. I'm looking for June availability to book with points. We'll keep my eyes in May for cancellation

exmike

Just returned from a visit to the PH Kyoto. Kiyomizu anytime during the day is far from enjoyable. We got up early around 630/7 am and it was empty and magical. One of the great perks of this location.
BTW my take is that the upcharge for the japanese breakfast is worth it, but spouse and I love japanese cuisine. Compared to the PH Tokyo japanese breakfast which is free, this one is clearly a step up and value added.

rundisney

My email confirmation on my upcoming late-May points stay says the following:
CANCELLATION POLICY:
11:59PM HOTEL TIME 2 DAYS BFR ARRV OR PAY 1 NIGHT FEE /CCARD RQRD

OsakaWino

It varies by season.

Chemystery

The only thing that matters is the cancellation policy for the date(s) you are booking. They seem to vary seasonally, and day-to-day at holiday and high-demand times. All you can do is try to book and see what cancellation policy is stated during that process. If you're flexible, you might be able to move dates a few days one way or another and have an entirely different policy be in effect.

OsakaWino

Also, there is no difference in cancellation policy between points and cash bookings (for the same room category).

As Chemystery posted above, the cancellation policy can be dramatically different between even 2 days. For example it might be as long as 30 days on Nov 30 for foliage season and then drop to 48 hours from Dec 1.

Chemystery

This exact thing happened for me when I extended our holiday stay. The original stay, from January 2-6th, was 30 day cancellation. I found availability shortly before we checked in for the following night, the 6th, with 2 day cancellation. I have a feeling if I'd checked night-by-night when I originally booked, some dates were 30 days and others were far less.

The take-home message is that, if the cancellation window matters and your dates aren't fixed, you can probably play around with specific dates to see if you can gain some flexibility in making changes.

bluez_center8

I'm quite flexible for mid June date. However, i've been constantly checking it for the past month and haven't seen any opening with points. It's weird to me since June is typically a low season for tourism in Japan.
What are my chances to be able to book some nights with points in June? Would they open more availability near the dates?

OsakaWino

Award availability fluctuates considerably. It is unlikely that the hotel is holding back availability, butI think there are a lot of speculative award bookings. You should check frequently.

WaterBottle18

Stayed here for 3 nights in early April and was right in time for fantastic cherry blossoms (and crowds!) - truly the best hotel I've ever stayed at. They get everything right - beautiful grounds, flawless service and staff, impeccably clean hard product. We were in room 618 which is one of the farthest rooms you can get, which scared me at first, but I never got tired of walking through the entire property. It's stunningly beautiful each and every time. Walking through the hotel and seeing Yasaka Pagoda along with the Kyoto Tower and Kyoto mountains in the background...just unbelievably beautiful. Sunset is remarkable as expected. We stayed in a King Bed Garden View room as a Globalist - so basically the lowest possible upgrade, but expected as it was peak season. I actually really liked the privacy and seclusion of this room, as I know some people have concerns with the street-facing rooms. The garden was beautiful with a cute orange tree in it too! We got to see beautiful cherry blossoms falling from trees across the huge windows and it truly felt like a dream.

I also LOVED how they had water bottles (which were actually large wine-bottle-esque water bottles) throughout the hotel for guests to grab at their convenience - I never had to request extras. The blackout curtains in the room were also FANTASTIC, and since I had a room far from the street, it was dead quiet each night, which gave me some of the best sleep of my life. The beds were ridiculously comfortable, the towels were great, and the bathroom was super luxurious - I legitimately forgot how it feels to have to open a toilet seat lid by myself after my 3 days here!

I had a lot of apprehensions about spending 45k points/night (since I was staying during peak season) for 3 nights, but I can honestly say that it was worth it. There's a very good reason this hotel is so famous and popular. The location is also fantastic for wandering around, though as expected, it can get very crowded.

This hotel alone made my 3 days in Kyoto extremely special and probably my favorite area in my entire Japan trip.

bluez_center8

Just want to share with other for future references. it looks like park hyatt kyoto is holding back availability. Somehow earlier today at 5.30AM EST, there are 18 days availability out of 30 days in June while there's none previous day. And i was able to book 3 nights. Cant wait to visit and stay the property.

Clemson

Did you think 3 nights were enough in Kyoto? I'm debating between 3 nights in Kyoto and 3 in Osaka or 4 in Kyoto and 2 in Osaka for a future trip.