ElevatorEnthusiast

I stand by my previous claim - this is a fantastic and nearly-perfect property. In fact, it has probably been one of my favorites, if not my favorite, in Japan so far. Long gone are the previously reported days of a dated property, and instead, we have one of the nicest Westins I have seen in a long time. It's so refreshing that modern Westin design can still hold up to some of my favorite traditional iterations of my favorite hotel brand. Here are my pros, cons, and photos:

Pros:

• Arrived around 11:30 AM and asked if there were any upgrades (nothing was showing up on app, which seemed to be a bad integration as the mobile check-in also never went away as it can at some less-integrated properties) and was told that I had been upgraded to a Luxury Suite - nice! Even better, the suite was ready - though, I was asked to wait 15 minutes and was about to be escorted to the club lounge, the attendant got a call as we were walking to the elevator, and my room was ready (pretty sure they were putting the welcome amenity in)
• The Luxury Suite was a full two-room suite facing the gardens on the top floor (11) and was absolutely beautiful with modern design, lots of wood - please see the pictures below
• BED WAS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT - plush mattress, plush pillow, plush covers - this bed was as heavenly as heavenly can be
• Nice couch in the living room
• Internet TV OS (system consistent with several other Japanese Marriott properties) on both TVs
• Service was great
  • Several associates met me at the front door as I walked from Keage Station
  • Checked in by multiple agents - one was a trainee who was doing most of the work - language seemed to be a bit of a barrier, but she was very nice and well-assisted by more senior agents
  • Escorted to my room and shown around
  • Apologized to so many times for having to wait 2 minutes in line for check-out
  • Asked about departure time - I asked for 2 PM (property is a resort, per Mobile check-in options and lack of late checkout) and was given that with no problem
  • English newspaper waiting at my door in the morning
• Nice welcome gift of pastry bun, candies, tea (which I didn't try), and glass bottle of Kyoto spring water
• Bathroom was beautiful - fully automated toilet, dual vanity
• Shower pressure was good - worst I've had in Japan but still quite good relative to the globe - nice that controls are easy and through push buttons - I just used the wand head
• Lounge offering (afternoon and evening) was quite nice - lounge is pretty and well-sized on the 3rd floor - tasty small cakes, cheesecakes, and a really large selection of spirits (I mixed Bailey's and Kahlua - yum)
• Breakfast (served in the restaurant on the 2nd floor) was great
  • Full buffet, but they had servers going around with coffee
  • Large restaurant space - didn't feel chaotic or crowded despite being busy
  • Paul the omelet chef from Australia was very nice - asking me where I was from, what my plans were for the day
  • Tasty made-to-order omelet, yummy hashbrown sticks, tasty salmon, really nice pan-heated french toast and an ice cream bar (really really good rum raisin)
• Beautiful property - loved the Japanese gardens that take you from the 5th floor to the 7th floor
• Love the touch-sensitive elevator buttons

Cons:

• Lots of temperature checks - both at check-in and before breakfast

I look forward to my next stay at this wonderful property as I would like to stay longer in Kyoto the next time I'm in Japan (plus try some of the other properties in Kyoto, as well). I can't recommend the Westin Kyoto enough.

Photos:

mynameisdmoon

I thought you only liked old Westins . I stayed in the floor below your suite!

I feel very validated of my review of this spot now. This hotel nailed everything for me. Can't imagine it getting better.. Well maybe if brekkie service can have a la carte along with buffet like Conrad Tokyo. and during our stay, if we chose the Japanese set, we weren't allowed to go to the buffet (but how will they track everything?).

I hope you didn't forget to take the Sothy's amenity kit sitting in the washroom. It's complimentary for suite guests! I only realized this while packing for check out. I thought it was one of those where they charge you if you took them like EDITION does with their full sized bottles.

ElevatorEnthusiast

As long as new Westins have heavenly Heavenly Beds, I'm game!

I saw the amenity kit in the room and thought about translating the paper inside since I remembered your review - alas, I left it for the next one as I'm going to try to carry on my suitcase home and didn't want to deal with liquid rules (though, they might have been small enough).

Nagasaki Joe

Thanks for the report. This hotel is definitely worth considering for a future stay. I was quite surprised to see on the Marriott app that it has a 4.8 rating vs. 4.6 for the RC Kyoto and 4.7 for Hotel The Mitsui Kyoto.



Free o-sake, yummy! The free in-room sake at Conrad Osaka (a smaller bottle than this) is actually quite good, how was this sake?



These outdoor traditional Japanese villas are quite popular with overseas guests, did you have any interest in staying in one? A colleague of mine stayed in one back in the mid-90s, which I got a chance to see when I visited. They are quite nice and spacious, but probably lacking the convenience and comfort of the main hotel rooms.

ElevatorEnthusiast

Okay, so I'm either really drunk or that bottle was actually spring water and not sake? I drank the whole thing in one sitting, so that might be concerning! If I remember correctly, free sake was the amenity choice instead of 1000 points for the official welcome gift.

As for the Japanese villas, I would love to stay in one at some point - I looked at the photos online - it appears that they have real beds rather than futons (the Westin Osaka definitely showed futons in the pictures of their Japanese suites). Of course, I doubt elite upgrades to these rooms are possible unless you asked really nicely.

And, yes, I think this property should be high on the consideration list. It seems to be a great deal - my rate was only 41K JPY.

mynameisdmoon

I tried asking nicely but was firmly told they aren't available for elite upgrades .

The current going cash rate is rather monstrous so we got lucky locking in those rates! It's not too far off from Mitsui pricing. The points rate is still at a pretty palatable price point though, and I'd gladly pay those points (~60k/night) to stay there again.

italdesign

Thinking about 4 nights here in late November (main purpose = fall color), using FNCs (+ top off points for each night). Would be our first time in Japan (not counting 1 night in Narita town years ago). I am Platinum but the FNCs are from another Silver account, so we may not have free breakfast or lounge. I will ask if they will honor the Platinum status of the additional guest; obviously they are under no obligation to do so.

Given the likely lack of benefits, and it's our first time in Japan/Kyoto:

• Is this a good location for 4 days in Kyoto during foliage season, or would you opt for something more central?
• Is it convenient to go to the main tourist attractions? I heard there are multiple transportation agencies. How much does it cost to go to the main attractions by train/subway/whatever?

Aventine

It's not the RC or Mitsui but still a nice property. All the attractions are scattered over Kyoto so you'll probably end up using taxis. It is walkable to Yasaka shrine, Nanzenji temple (from the hotel) and the weather will be gorgeous.

italdesign

Interesting. I usually find no need for taxis in developed historical Asian cities since 1) they tend to have excellent public transportation, 2) the history is clustered around one area. Maybe Kyoto is an exception. Do they have an equivalent of Uber? Is taxi reliable and haggle-free like Singapore?

WillTravel4Food

Taxis in Japan can be expensive. Not sure the current fares in Kyoto, but high prices seem to be a prevailing belief. I found the existing public transit to be sufficient. Bus, subway and train services were more than sufficient. If you're willing to walk a bit, you'll rarely if ever need a taxi. On my walk up to the golden pagoda, I came across a ramen shop with a long line. After visiting the pagoda, I went back and got in line. I was the one westerner amongst a horde of high school students on lunch break. It was such a memorable experience.

My advise, use public transport to get to the desired district, then walk the rest of the way.

mynameisdmoon

Don't need taxis. public transportation is sufficient to get anywhere. I stayed here for 4 nights and went everywhere via public transit without an issue, thought a bit of walking will be done. The only PITA to get to was maybe Arashiyama and Kinkaku-ji.

whitecastle

Did you use their free shuttle to Kyoto station and back? Im heading over to the property in the month and was intrigued by it but seems like the nearby subway stop will be the same if not faster as the shuttle.

mynameisdmoon

I saw it but the subway was sufficient for all my needs, being flexible with time being a big plus.

nexusCFX

Prevailing belief? Taxis in Kyoto are cheap, especially if fare is split between 2-3 people. Even if you're deep into a bunch of side streets you can just call one to you with Uber Taxi.

The Westin has good connectivity via the Subway but I would never write off Kyoto taxis. You'll spend twice as long getting between areas by transit if the only service between them is buses and they're not close.

Uber Taxi also great if you want to get taken directly to/from some random restaurant since you can just put the pin.

GallyChef

After booking and being unable to request a SNA, I see this property does not participate in SNAs; as a Titanium member is there anything I could/ought to do proactively to help secure some sort of upgrade?