Matsui Honkan

We had an absolutely incredible experience at Matsui Honkan. The staff were so incredibly kind and the service was amazing. Thank you all so so much for making us feel welcome and at home! This is something we will always remember, and we hold the experience close to our hearts.
Love from the Bulk family.
ありがとうございます！！！

Absolutely delightful stay at this authentic, traditional Ryokan. Beautiful reception area, rooms just perfect. Staff so friendly and helpful. It was a treat to come back here every night! Less than 5 min walk to Food Market — plenty of restaurants near by. 10 min walk into main shopping street — so ideal for us.
Onsen stunning. So enjoyed our stay here and would highly recommend.

We stayed for 3 nights in a traditional tatami room and absolutely loved the experience we shared. The staff are extremely respectful, the amenities offered were above and beyond. The spacious room, cleanliness, multi course breakfast served… and the bath was all outstanding. 10/10. Location was within 15 minutes walk of the main Kyoto Station and the Nishiki Market was even closer. We underestimated the heat and humidity of Japan and were relieved that air conditioning was present and worked, making this space our safe haven after of day of 30K+ steps from getting lost in trains and food adventures in the heat.
The banner send off was so cute, and made us sad to leave to our next prefecture. I wish I captured a picture. Sad to leave Kyoto, but already looking forward to a return trip. This ryokan is deserving of all the praise.

The best accommodation of my life so far! Extremely cozy place, clean, cultured. The staff is kind, direct and helpful. The rooms are perfect. The spa is also wonderful and tattoos are no problem either.

Matsui honkan had comfortable and cozy rooms and a great kaiseki!
Rooms:
Hotel room 🚪: 9/10⭐
The room was spacious and comfortable. The one thing that didn't suit me was the bathrooms. I found the shower hard to operate and the bathroom a bit tight. Other than that, I really enjoyed my stay here!
Cleanliness 😷: 10/10⭐
Every part of this room felt clean. Unlike other hotels, the room floors are clean, so you can walk barefoot here. I couldn't find a single spec of dust anywhere. The cleaners also polish your shoes for free!
Kaiseki (a traditional multi-course meal that you can eat in a room on your floor) :
Food 🍣: 9/10⭐
Most of the food was already perfected. However, a small fraction of the dishes tasted a bit fishy.
Service ♥️: 9.5/10⭐
The waitresses were super kind and polite.
Atmosphere🪑: 8.5/10⭐
Nothing was uncomfortable except for some of the chairs.
This hotel is great if you want to stay a night or two!

Like lots of tourists, we wanted to experience a ryokan but just went for one night, with the rest of the stay in a Western style hotel. This was perfect for that, traditional but comfortable!
We stayed in a Japanese style standard room, it was SO spacious, spotlessly clean and well located. The futons were very comfortable. We easily could've spent the whole trip there.
The staff & customer service were lovely. When we arrived, they brought us iced matcha & sweets. When we checked out, they gave us each a pair of chopsticks and brought out a banner as a send-off. It was a really nice touch!
I went to the onsen around 5pm and had the whole place to myself.
We got the Japanese style breakfast, which they altered for me to be vegetarian.
Overall it was a great experience! I would stay here again!

We had a wonderfully authentic stay in this high service Japanese Ryokan.
The staff were fantastic, our room was exactly as we imagined a room in a ryokan would be, the level of cleanliness and servicing of the room was exceptional and soaking in the onsen every night was a wonderful way to finish our day in fabulous Kyoto.
Absolutely, definitely recommended.

We had a fantastic stay at this ryokan! From the moment we arrived, the staff was incredibly welcoming and helpful, making sure we had everything we needed for a comfortable experience. The futons were surprisingly cozy, providing a great night’s sleep.
The highlight of our stay was the onsen—absolutely amazing and so relaxing after a long day of exploring. The traditional breakfast was another standout, with beautifully prepared dishes that gave us a true taste of Japanese cuisine.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience, blending comfort, hospitality, and cultural immersion. We highly recommend this ryokan to anyone looking for an authentic and relaxing stay!

Amazing Hotel. Great service. Traditional Style with amazing amenities and staff. Rooms are extremely spacious. This hotel deserves 6 stars. I have stayed at many 5 star hotels around the world and this hotel is one of my favorites now. Will be back, thank you.

Superb traditional Japanese inn experience in the heart of Kyoto. Very convenient location to walk, near a great market for food and lots of tourist attractions. The service is excellent. The beds are comfortable and the breakfast is fantastic. Served in your room once you wake up. The onsen/bath is really nice as well.

Excellent service, amenities and breakfast was amazing and different each day and place was well located! Staff were super attentive, kid friendly. Rooms were very warm and place was super clean. Family room was very spacious and futon on tatami was so comfortable, we highly recommend you stay here. We used the onsen on site each day. Loved it!

Staff are incredibly friendly and helpful. We needed help calling our next onsen for late check-in and staff here were very willing to help with that. We stayed in the suite which was very large and spacious. The public bath was very atmospheric and clean, and they provided many free supplies. Would happily stay here again as it is only 2 minutes walk from the Nishiki market yet very quiet nonetheless.

This Ryokan deserves no less than 5 stars! It was the best stay in Japan—everything was perfect! The room, the staff, the location—absolutely flawless. The Japanese people are incredibly kind and helpful!

I didn't realise how incredible this hotel was when I booked from Australia. This place gets 5x5 stars on every front.
Even if it's just for the traditional breakfast alone.
Perfectly situated & so comfortable. Very traditional.
An authentic experience in all the best ways.

Our stay at Matsui Honkan was nothing short of incredible. Our stay there has been the highlight of our trip.
Matsui Honkan is a short walk away from the Nishiki market which has much to offer.
We had a beautiful room that felt extremely homely. There was a comfortable amount of space for a family of four.
There is an incredible attention to detail regarding hospitality. We truly felt appreciated and welcomed while there. From being greeted with a refreshing matcha drink at check in to being sent off by the staff waving as we walked away, the warmth we felt will be something we forever cherish.
The traditional Japanese breakfast service is a must try. Workers come to your room and arrange a beautiful assortment of many traditional dishes. It is a colourful display of foods that will leave you marvelling at the feast before you.
The public bath is very calming. As a foreigner, I was nervous to try but we were given instructions to follow which made the process simple. The public bath itself is beautiful with a nice outdoor view. You will leave the bath feeling refreshed and energized.
Thank you for making our stay so memorable :)

Beautiful Ryokan. Amazing staff and wonderful service. Breakfast was amazing and the bath was great! The rooms were really spacious and it felt like renting our own apartment!
Mostly foreigners at this place when I was there and enjoyed the whole bath to myself whenever I went down to take a bath!

Very nice experience in a traditional ryokan. However, the price is too high. Furthermore, we were disappointed when we realised that our traditional Japanese room with a garden was just next to a construction site, which caused noise and of course it was almost impossible to use the garden. I understand that they could not do anything with the construction, but at least not advertise the room as such and charging so much money. Also, very few members of the staff were not as polite as in every other hotel we stayed in in Japan.