Provision of optimal triple and fourth rooms for family and group travel
New Annex Building with 69 Guestrooms at
Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo Opening July 1, 2020
Existing building also renovated to imbue the hotel
with the extravagance of Gion Matsuri

July 1, 2020
Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd.
Mitsui Fudosan Hotel Management Co., Ltd.

Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd., a leading global real estate company headquartered in Tokyo, and Mitsui Fudosan Hotel Management Co., Ltd. announced today that the new annex building of Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo (707-1 Myodenji-cho, Shijo-sagaru, Nishinotoin-dori, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto; 278 guestrooms in existing building, 69 guestrooms in new annex building (hereinafter, “new annex”) will be opening on July 1, 2020 (Wednesday). The new annex’s opening had been pushed back from initial plans to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The existing building (hereinafter, “main building”) has also reopened for business as of March 14, 2020 following renovations to the lobby, restaurant, and guestrooms.

Front lobby

The hotel is located in the central part of Kyoto, approximately 10 minutes by car from JR Kyoto Station and six minutes on foot from Shijo Station on Kyoto Municipal Subway’s Karasuma Line. The location is outstanding as a base for sightseeing and business with extremely convenient access to transportation. It is also centrally located for the lineup of floats during the Gion Matsuri festival.

When entering the hotel, the cityscape of office buildings changes completely and guests can fully enjoy “Kyoto for the first time” from the lobby to the restaurant, large public bath and guestrooms, which are sprinkled with the essence of Kyoto and give guests a feel for the excitement of Gion Matsuri. It seeks to be a memorable hotel that gives guests lasting memories of Kyoto as well.

The Mitsui Fudosan Group operates a total of 33 facilities and 8,520 guestrooms nationwide, including Mitsui Garden Hotels and THE CELESTINE HOTELS, and will also begin operating the new brand “sequence” in 2020. In Kyoto, the Group operates five facilities including Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo, as well as Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shinmachi Bettei, Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Sanjo, Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Station, and HOTEL THE CELESTINE KYOTO GION. Among these, Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo, since its opening in 1997, has long been used by many guests from Japan and other countries as a base for their stays in Kyoto. The new annex has 69 guestrooms, 55 of which are permanently triple occupancy and 5 of which are fourth rooms, so the focus of the new annex is guestrooms for use by parties of three or more, which are in high demand for family and group travel.

< Features of Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo >

• Highly convenient location for both sightseeing and leisure, within walking distance of central Kyoto and the Shijo-Karasuma and Shijo-Kawaramachi districts
• New annex guestrooms are primarily permanent triples and fourth rooms, which are in high demand for family and group travel
• Can accommodate school trips and groups with renovated lobby, restaurant and guestrooms in the main building
• Hotel concept centers on a symbol of Kyoto, Gion Matsuri, out of a desire for guests to fully experience “Kyoto for the first time”

■「Features of Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo

1. Location

Among our four garden hotels in Kyoto, Mitsui Garden Hotel Kyoto Shijo is located in the main area where the floats line up during Gion Matsuri, a place where one can experience the essence of Kyoto and the extravagance of the festival, a symbol of Kyoto.
The location is within walking distance of the Shijo-Karasuma and Shijo-Kawaramachi districts, called the commercial downtown of Kyoto, and offers highly convenient access to transportation, being a six-minute walk from both Shijo Station on the Kyoto Municipal Subway’s Karasuma Line, a starting point for sightseeing, and Karasuma Station on the Hankyu Kyoto Line.

2. Essence of Kyoto sprinkled throughout for the full enjoyment of “Kyoto for the first time”

Gion Matsuri is a citizen’s festival packed with all the appeals of Kyoto—bustling scenes of people decorating, lighting, playing instruments, dancing and more. These active scenes from the festival are highlighted and incorporated into the design for the lobby, large public bath area, guestrooms, and restaurant. This distinctively Kyoto hotel gives guests a feel for the excitement and extravagance of Gion Matsuri.

3. Facility overview
(1) Front desk, lobby (Main building 1F)

The bustling of Gion Matsuri and extravagance of tradition enhance the excitement for guests in this space. The ceiling above the front desk is adorned with bold wooden slats in the image of a Japanese umbrella, and the walls are dressed with Jurakudai-style wallpaper inspired by the earthen walls of Jurakudai palace in Kyoto. For accent, the design features multicolored bands like those that decorate the gorgeous Gion Matsuri floats.

The lobby has an artistic, goldfish-themed wall panel and illuminated paper lantern art pieces to produce a vibrant and lively space.

Front desk

Lobby

(2) Guestrooms

The guestrooms are designed on the motif of luxurious kimono styles used for dancing, with the red of ukiyo-e woodblock prints as the basic tone.

The wall at the head of the bed is dressed in the color combinations of kimono worn for dancing. The headboard has ornamentation resembling a kimono sash and its decorative string bow on the rear upholstery. There is also a furniture unit that combines a full-length mirror, closet and TV panel inspired by the kimono racks used by maiko entertainers.

The guestrooms in the new annex are primarily permanent triple and fourth rooms for groups of three or more, on family or group trips, for example. They have a long bench along the window where guests can sit and talk or lay out their souvenirs after sightseeing, and below the bench is storage space for luggage. These spacious rooms are designed to be used comfortably by multiple people.

All the guestrooms in the main building have also been renovated based on the same concept, with green as the main tone of the design.

For more information on hygiene management in guestrooms, see “Mitsui Fudosan Hotel Management’s hygiene management initiative” at the end of this press release.

Guestroom
(New annex fourth)

Guestroom
(New annex triple)

(3) Large public bath (Main building 1F)　

Paper lanterns, stone lanterns, light overflowing from traditional townhouses—the large public bath area is lit with the various lights that shine during Gion Matsuri at night. Soak in the Kyoto elegance in the bath, and view the garden inspired by the Honbo Garden of Tofuku-ji, symbolized by the checkered patterns, a traditional weaving pattern of Japan, used as motif for the stones and sand, roofing tiles and stone lanterns that light up the fall foliage and other plantings.
In front of the changing rooms, there is also a sitting room that can be used to wait for others in your party, for example, to finish their bathing. Depart the main bustling avenue where the floats line up and step into a peaceful alleyway with rows of Kyoto townhouses—the public bath area is meant to recreate the elegance of these “festival alleyways.” Take in a

< Opening hours > 15：00 - 09：00　*For guests of the hotel only

*The large public bath had been closed to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, but it is reopening as of today, July 1. The number of people that may use the bath area at any one time has been partially limited as a COVID-19 prevention measure. Depending on future circumstances, there may be changes in the public bath’s operations. Please check the hotel’s website for the latest information.
https://www.gardenhotels.co.jp/kyoto-shijo/

Large public bath

Sitting area outside the changing rooms

(4) Restaurant KOZUE (Main building 2F)

The “kon-chiki-chin, kon-chiki-chin” rhythm of the sprightly music played as the festival floats take their tour is expressed in the wooden louvers on the restaurant’s ceiling and the louvers on the foyer’s walls. The pendant lighting in the sofa area is designed on the motif of bells used in this music. This memorable space expresses the tones of Gion Matsuri that is itself distinctively Kyoto.
The new breakfast menu provides a taste of Kyoto with all five senses. Dengaku tofu, grilled tofu with sweet miso paste, is an “obanzai” dish, the traditional home cooking of Kyoto, and is prepared right in front of restaurant patrons.

Restaurant

Western cuisine (example)

Japanese cuisine

(5) Group restaurant OTOWA (Main building 2F)

The hotel also has a restaurant exclusively for guests on group tours, including school trips. The spacious restaurant seats up to 120 people, and can also accommodate large groups split up into smaller groups eating at staggered times in order to ensure social distancing.

Group restaurant OTOWA (seats up to 120)