Set to open in Spring 2026, Capella Kyoto introduces a rare new chapter in Kyoto’s hospitality landscape. Located in the historic Miyagawa-cho district, the 89-room luxury hotel occupies the former Shinmichi Elementary School site, sensitively reimagined as a place of learning, cultural exchange and quiet discovery.
Positioned moments from Kenninji, Kyoto’s oldest Zen temple, and the Miyagawa-cho Kaburenjo Theatre, where geiko and maiko continue seasonal dance traditions, Capella Kyoto invites guests into Gion’s most closely guarded cultural layers.
Reservations are now open for Gion Whisper and Capella Sojourn, two curated packages designed to immerse travellers in the city’s 1,200-year legacy through contemporary design and rare artisanal encounters.
Capella Kyoto Living RoomArchitecture Rooted in Kyoto’s Cultural Memory
Designed by Kengo Kuma and Associates in collaboration with Brewin Design Office, Capella Kyoto unfolds as a sequence of layered thresholds, echoing the spatial rhythm of traditional machiya townhouses. Narrow street-facing facades open into deeper, quieter interiors, punctuated by courtyards that dissolve boundaries between public and private realms.
The hotel features six exclusive suites with private onsen, reinforcing a philosophy of retreat, ritual and contemplation. Every architectural gesture is intentional, revealing space gradually rather than all at once.
The Arrival Experience in Miyagawa-cho
Guests enter via a Gion-style alleyway lined with shoji screens, leading to a modern antechamber marked by shimenawa rope motifs, traditionally used to signify sacred thresholds. Beyond, a vestibule reveals tokonoma alcoves framing byōbu screens alongside contemporary artworks by local makers.
From here, guests choose their path. One leads to the signature restaurant, evoking the intimacy of a traditional ochaya teahouse. The other guides guests into the Japanese restaurant, where reclaimed timber from the former school is illuminated beneath repurposed lamps, preserving the site’s material memory.
A water-lined corridor draws guests towards the central courtyard, crowned by a dramatic karahafu roof, an undulating gable historically reserved for temples, castles and Kabuki theatres. This architectural centrepiece rises above an open-air performance space where tradition and modernity quietly intersect.
Capella Kyoto Spa Onsen RoomGardens, Dining and Kyoto’s Seasonal Rhythm
The hotel’s French brasserie opens onto a serene tsuboniwa moss garden, carefully designed around a preserved sakura tree from the original school grounds. This contemplative courtyard offers a pause point between Kyoto’s urban energy and the hotel’s inward-looking calm.
Capella Curates – Rare Access to Living Traditions
Capella Kyoto introduces Capella Curates, three immersive cultural experiences available exclusively to guests.
Whispers of Miyagawa-cho
An invitation into a private ochaya, where guests encounter the refined world of geiko and maiko. A maiko performs traditional dance accompanied by shamisen, offering rare insight into Gion’s living heritage.
Step by Step – The Soul of Geta
At a 150-year-old atelier, master craftspeople reveal the philosophy behind traditional geta sandals. Guests observe the making process, try bespoke styles, and may commission a personalised pair shaped by conversation and movement.
Gloss Boss
A journey into urushi lacquerware, a craft spanning over 9,000 years. Guests visit a multi-generational atelier, explore lacquer’s sacred role in nearby temples, and participate in a hands-on workshop creating urushi tableware or repairing pottery through kintsugi.
Capella Kyoto WalkwayAuriga Spa and Contemporary Wellness
Auriga Spa features private onsen rooms, wet and dry saunas, four treatment rooms and a modern fitness centre. Treatments draw from Japanese healing traditions and contemporary wellness science, offering pathways to restoration grounded in place.
Curated Packages of Cultural Discovery – Available from 23 March 2026
Gion Whisper – An elegant introduction to Capella Kyoto’s design and culinary vision, minimum two nights’ stay:
Daily breakfast for twoHotel credit: JPY 10,000 Deluxe, Premier) or JPY 20,000 (Junior Suite, Onsen Suite, Gion Suite, Capella Suite)Limited edition hotel gift featuring handcrafted mementos from Kyoto’s artisan community
Capella Sojourn – Cultural immersion through Capella Curates experiences, minimum two nights’ stay:
Choice of one Capella Curates experience: Whispers of Miyagawa-cho (Private ochaya with maiko dance and shamisen performance), Gloss Boss (Urushi lacquerware journey with master craftsperson and kintsugi workshop) or Step by Step: The Soul of Geta (Workshop at a 150-year-old wooden sandal atelier)Omakase dinner for two at Capella Kyoto’s Japanese restaurantDaily breakfast for two at the hotel’s French brasserie60-minute Auriga Spa treatment for twoLimited edition hotel gift featuring handcrafted mementos from Kyoto’s artisan community
For more information on Capella Kyoto, and to book your stay, visit: capellahotels.com/capella-kyoto
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