Kyoto travel guide
The editors’ selection
Kyoto is best known for its history: it was once the capital of Japan and is saturated with relics of its past. But there’s also plenty in this city that is very much of the moment. Let the Monocle editorial team guide you through some of our favourite picks.
Malda, Nakagyo
Set in the heart of Kyoto, Malda has been attracting holiday-makers since opening in 2018. There are three rooms across three floors (each designed with a different colour in mind) and a smartly appointed café on the ground floor. Feel the warmth of the heated, polished-concrete floors as you kick back in the organic cotton roomwear provided and enjoy Malda’s signature breakfast, freshly cooked in the kitchen and brought to your room.
684 Maruki Zaimokucho, Nakagyo, 604-8106+81 (0)75 606 5385
maldakyoto.com
So Kawahigashi, Shimogyo
This snug nine-seat counter restaurant serves modern, pared-back Japanese cuisine. The local owner and chef Atsushi Nakahigashi honed his skills from the age of 12 under his father, who runs celebrated Kyoto restaurant Soujiki Nakahigashi. Later, he worked at a shojin Buddhist restaurant in New York. The menu here is seasonal and everything that goes into it – from the cooking ingredients to the wine – is from Japan.
18-5 Higashimarutacho, Kawabata-dori, Marutamachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto-shi culinaryhub-so.comKinkaku-ji, Kita
Also known as the Temple of the Golden Pavilion, Kinkaku-ji is one of the most beautiful sites in town. To refurbish its kokerabuki (a roof made with a layer of thin wooden shingles), about 100,000 aged wooden boards were replaced as well as 10,000 gold leaves on the phoenix statue on top of the roof. The renewal has certainly brought some sparkle to the temple – make sure to take a look while the makeover is still fresh.
1 Kinkakujicho, Kita, 603-8361shokoku-ji.jp
Images: Fuminari Yoshitsugu. Cover Image: Kohei Take