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Kodai-ji Temple gardens, Kyoto
Kyoto
For many centuries Kyoto was Japan’s capital and
to this day it retains the nation’s greatest and
most glorious concentration of cultural treasures.
Kyoto is the Japan of the imagination: a city of
grand palaces, ornate shrines and exquisite
gardens, mercifully spared from the World War II
bombing that razed other Japanese cities.
However, Kyoto has not stood still, and this is
undeniably a modern city where pockets of
ancient Japan nonetheless linger and kimono-clad
geisha still shuffle along narrow, lamp-lit streets.
We have sought out some of Japan’s finest
ryokan to allow you to experience their magical
atmosphere and to ensure that your visit to
Kyoto is one of the highlights of your time in
Japan. Such is the wealth of attractions in Kyoto
that we recommend at least a few days here
to soak it all in.
YOSHIKAWA RYOKAN, KYOTO
The Yoshikawa Ryokan in Kyoto is one of a
small group of much sought-after Japanese inns.
The service is refined and the rooms, furnished
in traditional style, look onto the exquisite
garden with its pond filled with koi carp. You will
sleep on a plump futon bed which is laid out and
then removed in the morning by your maid.
The Yoshikawa Ryokan is renowned for its
famous tempura restaurant, which is certainly
worth sampling.
Geisha district walk
The image of a geisha dressed in a fine silk
kimono and teetering on wooden geta
sandals is one of the most iconic, yet perhaps
most misunderstood, symbols of Japan.
Scores of books have been written about
the elusive world of the geisha, many
hundreds of photographers have tried to
capture the beauty and grace of the women,
and numerous films have been made
depicting the stories of refined tea house
entertainment, strict okiya training houses
and, of course, the love, lust and romance
that have long been associated with the
geisha community. In their 1920s heyday,
there were more than 80,000 geisha in Japan.
Today, based mostly in Kyoto’s hanamachi
districts (literally ‘flower towns’), there are
fewer than 2,000. Geisha attend private
functions, entertaining both male and female
guests and can be see scuttling between
appointments in the Gion district every
evening. They can also be seen performing
traditional dances at exclusive restaurants
around the city or at luxury ryokan, although
these private engagements come with a high
price tag. A far more accessible way to see
geisha is to take an evening walk around
Geisha, Gion
Gion with our guide Duncan and his wife
Izumi who have been working with Audley
since 2005 to help shed some light on the
exclusive and mysterious world of the geisha
and other aspects of Japanese culture.
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