Mr Yamamoto is an excellent host who was very helpful. His fluent English is helpful. The house has a good supermarket and other shops very near by. 10-12 min walk to Kitaoji subway station. Taxis come upon request within a few minutes. Out of town center but a very comfortable place to stay.

The pavilion in Kyoto was huge by Japanese standards. A dining room, lounge room, bathroom/laundry and separate toilet downstairs and two good sized bedrooms upstairs - a western style with two single beds and a Japanese-style tatami room with the most comfortable futon bedding (it was like sleeping on a cloud). The pavilion is beautifully decorated and well appointed with a much appreciated coffee machine, full sized fridge, full sized clothes washer/dryer. It was perfect for our family of four (including two teenage boys). The location was excellent with public transport, food shops and many many shrines and temples all within close proximity. The host Shempei was very responsive to emails and helpful with information about local attractions, directions etc. Our only problem was that we didn't stay longer.