We were so pleased with this vacation rental. It is a remodeled updated machiya which has kept much of the character of a machiya but with modern conveniences. The neighborhood is within a few blocks from Nijo castle. There is easy public transportation nearby. There are many restaurants and coffee houses and grocery stores within walking distance.
The house has a spacious entryway with ample room to sit and take your shoes off prior to entering the house. The first floor has a living room , dining area, galley kitchen. We cooked a full breakfast everyday and had all the pans, appliances, utensils needed. Both bathrooms are on the first floor. The tatami mat tea room we used as a bedroom on the first floor. It had sliding doors to close it off. Both other bedrooms are on the second floor and are traditional tatami mat rooms. We were a group of 5 adults and had plenty of space. The futon mattresses were comfortable. The a/c and WiFi worked well. The traditional furo bathtubs were a treat and one of them opened up into a private courtyard for an open air soak. There was an odd setup of the two shower/bathtub rooms in that to access one, you had to walk through the other shower room. This didn’t work well when two people wanted showers at the same time. There was a translucent door separating the two shower rooms. Water pressure was excellent and hot water plentiful. We also used the washer/dryer almost daily.
In the end, we had a taste of true Japanese living and I highly recommend this house to anyone who wants the same experience. This is a five star property for sure!