Japan's Westin Miyako
Westin Miyako
This is the place to stay if you're looking for a hotel with history. One of the best-known hotels in Japan, the Miyako first opened back in 1890 and boasts a guest list that reads like a who's who of visitors to Japan: Douglas Fairbanks, Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Anwar el-Sadat, and Ted Kennedy. Even today, half of the guests staying here are foreigners.
You'd be hard-pressed to find evidence of that history today. Rather, the newly renovated Westin Miyako is like a butterfly finally emerging from a series of past renovating blunders which obliterated all vestiges of its historic past. It is now the most smartly appointed hotel in Kyoto, on par with the best of Tokyo's hotels. In addition, the setting is as good as it gets: The hotel sprawls over more than 6.4 hectares (16 acres) of hilltop at the northeastern end of the city, close to some of Kyoto's most famous temples (and a subway station) and commanding a good view of the surrounding hills.
Western-style rooms, which come with Westin's trademark Heavenly beds and one-touch express service for everything from room service to messages, come in a variety of styles and price ranges, with the least expensive rooms occupying the oldest wing and the most expensive featuring updated, modern furnishings.
