10 Best Hostels in Kyoto, Japan

Where to Stay in Kyoto

Kyoto is spread across several distinct neighborhoods, and which one you base yourself in changes your day-to-day more than the specific hostel does. Here’s a breakdown by area.

Downtown Kyoto: Best for Shopping & Dining

Also known as Kawaramachi, this is Kyoto’s city center: restaurants, bars, and shopping arcades within walking distance of most hostels. Best base if you don’t want to plan transport around meals.

• Nishiki Market: A must-visit for local food, snacks, and souvenirs.
• Ponto-cho & Kiyamachi: Narrow streets filled with lantern-lit bars and traditional restaurants.
• Teramachi & Shinkyogoku: Covered shopping arcades full of everything from trendy shops to traditional goods.

Want to stay in the heart of Kyoto’s shopping and dining scene? Here are some hotels in Downtown Kyoto to consider.

Kyoto Station Area: Best for Transportation Access

Staying near Kyoto Station gives direct access to the bullet train, subway, and buses, useful for day trips to Nara, Osaka, or Arashiyama. It’s more modern than most of Kyoto and has more dining and shopping than the name suggests.

• Kyoto Tower: A local landmark with great views.
• Porta Mall & Isetan: Underground and department store shopping options right at the station.
• Easy access to Shinkansen: Perfect if you’re heading to Tokyo or Hiroshima next.

Need a convenient base for exploring Kyoto and beyond? Check out hotels near Kyoto Station.

Southern Higashiyama: Best for Classic Kyoto Vibes

This is the Kyoto most people picture: cobblestone lanes, wooden teahouses, and temples within walking distance of each other.

• Kiyomizu-dera Temple: An iconic spot with sweeping views over Kyoto.
• Sannenzaka & Ninenzaka: Historic streets lined with traditional shops and cafes.
• Maruyama Park: Especially beautiful during the cherry blossom season.

Looking for a stay that captures Kyoto’s old-world charm? Explore hotels in Southern Higashiyama.

Northern Higashiyama: Best for Art & Culture

Quieter than the southern half, with Zen temples, art museums, and walking paths that see fewer crowds.

• Philosopher’s Path: A tranquil canal-side trail lined with cherry trees.
• Ginkaku-ji (Silver Pavilion): A beautiful Zen temple with landscaped gardens.
• Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art: Great for design and architecture lovers.

Prefer a slower pace and a cultural escape? Browse hotels in Northern Higashiyama.

Kyoto Imperial Palace Area: Best for Peace & Green Spaces

Located north of the downtown core, this neighborhood is residential, calm, and close to large green spaces and historical buildings. A great pick if you’re seeking a quieter stay while still being centrally located.

• Kyoto Imperial Palace: Surrounded by peaceful gardens and walking paths.
• Nijo Castle: A World Heritage Site with night-time light displays in spring and autumn.
• Kamogawa River: Ideal for early morning walks or cycling.

Craving a relaxing stay near Kyoto’s royal history? Have a look at hotels near the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

Arashiyama: Best for Nature & Scenery

Set on the western edge of the city, surrounded by mountains and forest. Best base if you want nature and quiet over easy access to the main temple circuit.

• Bamboo Grove: One of Kyoto’s most iconic photo spots.
• Tenryu-ji Temple: A Zen temple with a landscaped garden.
• Iwatayama Monkey Park: A short hike with a big reward, sweeping city views, and wild monkeys.

Want to stay where nature meets tradition? Check out these hotels in Arashiyama.

Pick the neighborhood first if location matters more to you than any single hostel: the six areas above cover most of what Kyoto offers.

Price Comparison

Dorms and Private Rooms in EUR

The 10 Best Hostels in Kyoto (2026)

Piece Hostel Kyoto

Piece Hostel Kyoto is a 2-minute walk from Kyoto Station, with dorm bunks that include memory foam mattresses, personal lights, and privacy curtains rather than the bare-bones capsule setup most budget hostels default to. Private rooms are available too if you want more space without leaving the building.

The PIECE Lounge and a leafy terrace, designed by a Japanese plant hunter, are the social hub, along with a kitchen, a library of Kyoto guides, and a bathtub for two, unusual at this price tier.

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Guest House Ga-Jyun

Guest House Ga-Jyun is a 150-year-old townhouse in Higashiyama, a 5-minute walk from the subway and close to Yasaka-jinja and Nanzen-ji. Homemade breakfast (miso soup, rice, fresh fruit) is included, and the resident dog, Jiro, gets mentioned in reviews almost as often as the owner does.

Five rooms plus a few dorms, all non-smoking. The building isn’t well soundproofed, worth knowing if you’re a light sleeper, but the owner can arrange free entry to a nearby public bath.

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The Millenials Kyoto

The Millennials Kyoto replaces bunk beds with smart sleeping pods controlled by an iPod, each one converting from bed to couch, which is the main reason it stands out from every other hostel on this list.

The common space (coworking lounge, kitchen, bar) stays open 24/7 with a daily happy hour, and reviewers consistently note it’s quieter than the social setup would suggest.

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Gion Ryokan Q-beh

Gion Ryokan Q-beh is in Gion, Kyoto’s most traditional neighborhood, and leans further into that than most hostels: capsule dorms with extra privacy, or tatami rooms with yukata robes provided, plus a tatami lounge and a garden-view room upstairs.

Best fit if you want a ryokan-style stay at hostel prices, in the neighborhood most associated with old Kyoto.

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Backpackers Hostel K’s House Kyoto

K’s House Kyoto is a short walk from Kyoto Station, with tatami lounges, a full kitchen, and a rooftop terrace. It’s an award-winning hostel chain rather than a one-off, which shows in the consistency: 24-hour showers, air conditioning, and a leaning toward chill over party-hostel social.

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Kyoto Hana Hostel

Kyoto Hana Hostel is a 5-minute walk from Kyoto Station, with loft-style dorm beds that include built-in luggage storage overhead, and tatami-floored private rooms if you want more space. Useful for day trips to Osaka or Nara given the location.

Staff maintain connections to other hostels around Japan and can help plan onward travel, a step beyond the usual front-desk tips.

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Ryokan Hostel Gion

Ryokan Hostel Gion is a machiya-style building in Gion, with some rooms including kitchenettes, mini-fridges, and electric kettles, useful for a longer stay or self-catering on a budget. Heian Shrine and the Kyoto International Manga Museum are both walkable.

Quieter than most hostels on this list; staff are multilingual, which matters more here than at chain-style hostels since the neighborhood itself sees fewer English signs.

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Tsukimi Hotel

Tsukimi Hotel is a capsule hotel in Gion with pods larger than the typical Japanese standard, fitted with Serta mattresses rather than the thin capsule bedding most budget pods use. Minutes from Yasaka Shrine, Kiyomizu-dera, and Hanami Koji.

Shared kitchen, a rooftop with city views, and a quiet rather than social atmosphere: better fit for design and cleanliness over meeting other travelers.

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Hostel Niniroom

Hostel Niniroom is a converted printing company office, three stories, in a quiet neighborhood a few minutes from the train station. Free toiletries, hairdryers, and slippers are included, a step up from the bare minimum most budget hostels provide.

A café/lounge on the first floor and rental bikes are the main draws beyond the room itself, useful if you want to explore at your own pace rather than join group activities.

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Len Kyoto

Len Kyoto is the Kyoto sister property of Tokyo’s Toco. and Nui. Hostels, close to the Kamo River and a short walk to Gion. The first-floor café and bar was built by the same carpenters as the Tokyo locations, and it functions as the actual social hub, coffee in the morning, drinks in the evening, rather than a lobby you pass through.

Sleeping areas upstairs are separate from the social space, so the noise from downstairs doesn’t carry.

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The 10 Best Budget Hotels in Kyoto (Bonus)

Ryoso Chatani

Ryoso Chatani is in Ohara, in the countryside north of central Kyoto, which means it’s the only budget option on this list not walkable to any major sight. What it offers instead: a family-run guesthouse with its own hot spring bath and a shamo chicken sukiyaki dinner made from ingredients raised on the property, a genuine specialty rather than a generic ryokan meal.

Good choice if you want one or two nights disconnected from the city rather than a base for sightseeing; free bike rentals help cover the distance.

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Kyounoyado HANA Nishijin - Kimono no Yado

Kyounoyado HANA Nishijin is a small guesthouse near Kitano Tenmangu Shrine, walking distance from Kinkaku-ji, with tatami rooms, futon bedding, and some private balconies with garden views. Reviewers consistently mention the hosts by the same detail: being welcomed with matcha and local treats, and getting offered lifts into town, which is unusual hospitality at this price tier.

Shared kitchen and laundry facilities make it a reasonable pick for a longer stay rather than just a couple of nights.

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Family Inn Key

Family Inn Kei is a 13-minute walk from Kyoto Station and closer still to Tofukuji Temple, on a quiet street with a nearby convenience store. Each room has its own kitchen, washing machine, and balcony, which is more self-sufficient than most budget options at this price.

There’s an elevator too, worth noting since many budget guesthouses in older Kyoto buildings don’t have one.

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Sui Kyoto Dormitory

Sui Kyoto Dormitory is in Nishijin, run as an extension of a traditional culture salon, with capsule-style cabins that include a desk and their own lighting rather than a bare bunk. Minimalist private rooms are also available.

Kitano Tenmangu Shrine and Kinkaku-ji are both a short walk away. There’s a shared kitchen, secure women-only facilities, and on-site parking, worth noting since parking is rare at this price tier in Kyoto.

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Suzuki Guesthouse

Suzuki Guesthouse is north of Nijo Castle, with wooden bunk beds and tatami mats in a small, quiet building rather than a large hostel setup. A shared kitchen, lounge, and garden round it out.

The neighborhood itself is the draw here over the room: a local public bath, an izakaya, and a well-regarded obanzai restaurant are all around the corner, none of them aimed at tourists.

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Woman Only Guesthouse Nanohana

Woman Only Guesthouse Nanohana is female-only, in Kawaramachi within walking distance of Gion and Nishiki Market. Room types range from dorm bunks to private Japanese and Western-style rooms, most with shared bathrooms, and there’s a 24-hour front desk, worth knowing if solo safety is a priority.

Straightforward budget pick for a solo female traveler who wants central Kyoto without a mixed-dorm hostel.

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Guesthouse Itoya Kyoto

Guesthouse Itoya Kyoto is a preserved machiya townhouse in Kamigyo-ku, with a small tsuboniwa garden the common areas open onto. Room types range from Japanese-style private rooms to shared dorms, both in the original house rather than a modern addition.

Kitano Tenmangu Shrine is walking distance; Nijo Castle and Kinkaku-ji are a short trip. Good fit if the building itself matters to you as much as the location.

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Guest Inn Chita

Guest Inn Chita is a 10-minute walk from Kyoto Station, near Higashi Hongan-ji Temple, with tatami rooms, futons, and yukata robes provided. Bathrooms are shared and downstairs, the main tradeoff for the price.

Reviewers consistently name the host, Kahori-san, as the reason to book here over similar budget guesthouses nearby. Shared kitchen and a small terrace round it out.

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Bed & Breakfast Tsukiya

Bed & Breakfast Tsukiya is a restored 1920s machiya in Shimogyo, a short walk from Gojo Station, with a garden view from the engawa veranda. Futon beds and yukata robes are provided, and bathrooms are shared but rarely crowded given the small size of the property.

Japanese breakfast with seasonal ingredients is included each morning, which reviewers consistently rate above what’s typical at this price point.

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Hopetree Kyoto

Hopetree Kyoto is 4 minutes from Fushimi Station, 10 minutes by train from Kyoto Station, with every room including a kitchen, washing machine, dryer, and fridge, closer to a studio apartment than a hostel room. PIN-code entry means no fixed check-in or check-out window.

Better fit for a longer stay than a couple of nights, given the self-catering setup; the neighborhood has enough local eateries and izakayas that you don’t need to be in the tourist center.

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