Banyan Tree Higashiyama

Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto opened in 2024 on the wooded slope above Kiyomizu-dera, with 52 rooms, a genuine natural hot spring and the only Noh stage in a Kyoto hotel. Kengo Kuma designed it; it holds one MICHELIN Key. There is no swimming pool, and Ryozen holds no MICHELIN star.

"Fifty two rooms by Kengo Kuma on the forest edge above Kiyomizu-dera, with a natural hot spring and the only hotel Noh stage in Kyoto."

Aggregate 9.2/10 on our editorial scale (Room & Design, Service, Location). Independently scored; see our methodology. This is our opinion, not an aggregate of user reviews.

Affiliate disclosure: we may earn a commission from bookings at no cost to you. We never accept payment for placement. Hotel status, room product and Michelin ratings were verified against official sources and the current Michelin Guide in July 2026.

What makes Banyan Tree Higashiyama special?

Two things set this hotel apart, and both are rare in Kyoto. First, it contains the only Noh stage in a Kyoto hotel, used for Noh, kabuki and other classical performances. Kengo Kuma & Associates designed the exterior as a sanctuary at the boundary between the forest and the city, drawing on the Noh concept of yugen, and the stage is the literal centre of that idea rather than a marketing line. Second, the hotel has its own natural hot spring source, available three ways: a public bath house with indoor and open-air pools, private onsen in the Onsen Retreat rooms, and onsen bathing in the spa's treatment suites. Very few city hotels anywhere can offer that. The property opened in 2024 as Banyan Tree's first in Japan, on the site of the former Hotel Ryozen, so older references to Hotel Ryozen at this address describe the predecessor. It holds one MICHELIN Key. There is also an on-site bamboo garden, a full Banyan Tree Spa and a fitness centre. The setting is forest, not street.

Which room should you book?

The hotel has 52 guest rooms and suites, which is small for a full-service resort and shapes the whole experience. The headline category is the Onsen Retreat, with a private natural hot spring bath in the room, and it is the clearest reason to choose this hotel over a city-centre address. Because the property is small, those rooms are limited in number and go early in cherry blossom season and the November foliage weeks. Kengo Kuma & Associates designed the building as a threshold between the forest and the city, so rooms sit on a wooded hillside above Kiyomizu-dera rather than on a street, and the setting is woodland rather than townscape. Understand what that means practically. You are on a slope, arriving and leaving on foot is uphill work, and most guests use taxis. If you want a private hot spring in your room in Kyoto, this and Suiran in Arashiyama are the strongest options; if you want a lap pool, look elsewhere.

Where should you eat and drink?

Ryozen is the signature restaurant: kappo and kaiseki cooking for 48 covers, including a private room for ten, set in a Japanese garden looking onto a bamboo pavilion. Chef Akizaki builds the menu on Kyo-yasai Kyoto vegetables, local miso and black shichimi, and on a signature dashi made from five-year-aged Rishiri kelp finished with bonito and tuna flakes. There is a second dining venue and a bar alongside it. Be precise about awards, because this one is widely misreported. Ryozen holds no MICHELIN star. In spring 2025 it ran a limited-time collaboration dinner with SEN, a one-MICHELIN-star Kyoto restaurant led by chef Ken Sugisawa, running to 6 May 2025 at JPY 28,000 per person, but that star belongs to SEN. The hotel's own MICHELIN honour is one Key, a hotel award. With only two venues on a hillside, plan a taxi for nights you want to eat in the centre.

What is the spa and pool like?

Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto has a genuine natural hot spring with its own source, which is unusual for a hotel this close to central Kyoto. You can use it three ways: the public bath house, with indoor and open-air bathing pools; a private onsen in the room if you book an Onsen Retreat; and onsen bathing built into treatments in the spa suites. There is a full Banyan Tree Spa and a fitness centre alongside. State the limit plainly: there is no swimming pool. The indoor and open-air pools in the bath house are hot spring baths for soaking, not for lengths, so lap swimmers need Six Senses Kyoto, Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto or The Ritz-Carlton, Kyoto instead. Reviewers have also flagged that onsen signage still needs polish, which matters when the bathing rules are unfamiliar.

Where is Banyan Tree Higashiyama, and how do you get there?

The hotel stands on the wooded Higashiyama slope above Kiyomizu-dera, at the boundary between the forest and the city, on the site of the former Hotel Ryozen. Kiyomizu-dera is roughly 10 minutes on foot, which puts one of Kyoto's most visited temples within reach before the coaches arrive. Gion is about 10 minutes by taxi or a 20-minute walk downhill, and Kyoto Station roughly 15 to 20 minutes by taxi, about 6 km. From Kansai International Airport, allow roughly 100 to 110 minutes by taxi over about 100 km, or take the JR Haruka to Kyoto Station in 75 minutes, or the airport limousine bus in about 90 minutes. The catch is the gradient. Walking down into Gion is pleasant; walking back up after dinner is not, and most guests take taxis in both directions. Factor the hill into how you plan each day, particularly in July heat or with luggage.

What do guests consistently say?

Guest scores at Banyan Tree Higashiyama Kyoto are very high, though the hotel is only two years old and the body of feedback is still limited. The features most likely to be driving those scores are the natural hot spring, the Kengo Kuma architecture and the calm of a hillside position that sits above the crowds at Kiyomizu-dera ten minutes below. The Noh stage is the single feature that separates this stay from every other hotel in Kyoto, and the garden setting around Ryozen is part of the same appeal. The reservations are practical rather than fundamental. Reviewers say some amenities still need polish, naming onsen signage and consistency in the food, both typical of a young property. The hillside itself is the other recurring theme: guests who assume they will walk everywhere find the climb harder than expected and end up in taxis. Read those two caveats and the rest of the feedback is strong.

Honest cons: who should skip it?

The honest caveats at a two-year-old hotel with very high guest scores are these. There is no swimming pool; the indoor and open-air pools are hot spring baths for soaking. Reviewers have flagged that some amenities still need polish, naming onsen signage and consistency in the food, which is what you would expect from a property that opened in 2024 and is still finding its rhythm. The hillside setting is a genuine climb: the hotel sits above Kiyomizu-dera on the Higashiyama slope, so arriving and leaving on foot is uphill work and most guests default to taxis. And with only 52 rooms and limited on-site dining, dinner outside the hotel means a taxi into the centre rather than a stroll. One more clarification: Ryozen holds no MICHELIN star, and the SEN collaboration in spring 2025 did not transfer SEN's star to this kitchen. None of these should stop a hot spring traveller booking.