Our top three picks: Hiiragiya Ryokan in Kyoto, with private onsen baths and 2 private baths to book. Tawaraya Ryokan in Kyoto: The inn opened its own website and online booking only in January 2026. Sumiya Ryokan in Kyoto, with a private bath to book.
In summer Kyoto eats outdoors over water. Along the west bank of the Kamo river, from Nijo down to Gojo, about 90 restaurants build wooden decks, noryo-yuka, out over the narrow Misogi channel; in 2026 the season ran from 1 May to 15 October, though some decks close at the end of September and only some serve lunch. Up in the hills north of the city, the inns of Kibune set kawadoko platforms just above the stream from 1 May to 30 September, and in Hita, in Oita, the onsen inns serve dinner on roofed boats on the Mikuma river, with cormorant fishing, from 20 May to 31 October. We have no inn in Kibune or Takao and none of Hita's boat inns, and none of our Kyoto inns has a yuka of its own, so this list is short: three old inns in central Kyoto, each about five minutes on foot from Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae, the station for the yuka. Book the deck with the restaurant itself.
By Meg Faibisch Kühn · Updated · How we choose inns
Photo: 663highland / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.5, cropped and resized
| # | Ryokan | Location | Price | Private onsen |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hiiragiya Ryokan | Kyoto | Luxury | Yes |
| 2 | Tawaraya Ryokan | Kyoto | Luxury | Yes |
| 3 | Sumiya Ryokan | Kyoto | Luxury | – |
#1Kyoto, Kansai
Founded in 1818, its old wing a registered cultural property. About five minutes on foot from Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae on the Tozai line, or one minute from exit 8 of the Zest Oike underground mall. In 2026 the inn offered wild ayu, grilled with salt, as a summer extra until 7 August.
#2Kyoto, Kansai
On Fuyacho, across the lane from Hiiragiya: five minutes on foot from Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae and 15 from Keihan Sanjo. The inn opened its own website and online booking only in January 2026.
#3Kyoto, Kansai
On Fuyacho south of Sanjo, five minutes from Kyoto Shiyakusho-mae and eight from Keihan Sanjo or Hankyu Kyoto-Kawaramachi, so the yuka on either side of Sanjo are close. An inn known for the tea ceremony: on the 7th and 17th of each month guests are invited to tea after dinner.
The inns were picked by hand. Each is listed because its own website, or the local tourism association, railway or event organiser, publishes the plan, event or season dates this page describes, and we checked that source before listing it. If the top inn cannot be booked through one of our partners, the highest-placed one that can moves to first place. We do not show review scores, which come without a review count, and inns cannot pay to be listed or placed.
For the kashikiri (private, taken-in-turns) bath, you book a time slot at Hiiragiya Ryokan and Sumiya Ryokan. We have not confirmed this for the other inn on the page.
Check-in is from 15:00 at Hiiragiya Ryokan. Check-out is by 11:00 at Hiiragiya Ryokan. These are the times each inn states on its own website. We have not confirmed this for the other 2 inns on the page.
All 3 are in Kyoto.
All are in our luxury price tier. Our tiers run Budget, Mid-range, Premium, Luxury.
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