A circular driveway leads off a quiet side street to this atrium-style hotel, which welcomes both business travelers and vacationers to a sky-lit lobby area. Named for the popular tourist city of Brighton, England, the Kyoto Brighton creates its own relaxing, gardenlike atmosphere with fresh plants overhanging the atrium walls from the stories above, and a small, river-like fountain flowing past a café-style restaurant that overlooks a sunken lobby lounge. Here, guests can people-watch while sipping beverages and nibbling a snack or two.

As a member of one of the country’s most respected hotel chains, the ANA Hotel Kyoto is a perennial draw for Japanese travellers. The hotel’s downtown location and spacious lobby lounge make it popular with business travellers, while its reputation for attentive service and its peaceful location near Nijo Castle also attracts a number of families and couples on leisure travel.

Hotel Granvia Kyoto is a favorite of visitors and business travelers alike for its proximity to Kyoto Station. The exterior design blends nicely with the station’s modern glass structure, and the glossy tiles and lighted columns of the lobby area set a sophisticated theme that is carried by the 1,000 museum-quality works of art located throughout the hotel. Selected to maintain a theme of modernity and tradition, many of the works were done by local artists.

Located in Higashiyama, the Hyatt Regency Kyoto attracts guests wishing to stay in close proximity to the neighbourhood’s temples while also enjoying a respite from the crowds to be found staying in the city centre. The hotel’s design, both in the lobby, restaurants, and guestrooms, strikes a balance between modern elements and traditional accents such as kimono fabric, pottery, and brass fixtures.