HIGHLIGHTS The way this very contemporary hotel manages to feel both Japanese and traditional is an impressive, intangible asset.

LOWLIGHTS An often crowded breakfast area forces some guests to wait for their caffeine; more space is needed.

Our rating: 5 out of 5

Tripadvisor rating: 4.5 out of 5 (1500 reviews)

THE PLACE

Hyatt Regency Kyoto, Japan

THE LOCATION

You have to choose in Kyoto between downtown convenience (city centre) or best cultural sights (Eastern Hills). The Hyatt Regency has you poised on the edge of the temple-rich and walk-worthy Eastern Hills. For all its contemporary style, it sits right beside one of Kyoto's most illustrious temples, Sanjusangendo. The Kyoto National Museum is across the road, while a 20-minute stroll brings you to Gion, where you might spot apprentice geisha tottering along streets flanked by old wooden houses.

THE SPACE

The Japanese value understatement and refinement and are adept at combining the traditional with the contemporary. Kudos to this luxe American hotel chain for delivering on the same ethos. It has a low, unobtrusive exterior and intimate, boutique atmosphere that belies its 189 rooms. There are no vast public spaces, only intimate outlooks onto trees and compact courtyards. The lobby is aglow with a big white slab of a reception counter and a softly lit fretwork ceiling which, though it no doubt supplies some local cultural reference, has a decidedly Arab geometry. Service is seamless, and concierges seem to know every bus route and restaurant in Kyoto.

THE ROOM

By five-star standards elsewhere in Asia, rooms are compact – though Japanese travellers might well think them large. Still, they're lovely in an understated way, and with a very contemporary look cleverly offset by traditional elements such as headboards made from kimono fabric. En suites are divided into toilet, sink and shower areas; sliding panels and a deep Japanese-style soaking tub provide traditional echoes. Suites have tatami-style living rooms and cedar bathtubs. Nearly every room looks out on greenery, quite an achievement given the Hyatt Regency's limited landscaping.

THE FOOD

Trattoria Sette dishes up Italian antipasto, pasta dishes and wood-fired pizzas, and The Grill has a great selection of grilled meats (and some fish). But you'd surely be best off at Touzan, the rustic-style Japanese restaurant with rather lovely outlooks onto the hotel's petite Zen garden. Take the pressure out of menu choices with a tasting menu that takes you through various sushi, sashimi, grilled vegetable, fish, beef and noodle dishes, all best washed down with a mellow local sake.

STEPPING OUT

Keen walkers could easily step out of the hotel, walk to Nishi-Otani Mausoleum and cut up behind it to Kiyomizudera​ Temple. From here it's a brilliant amble along the temples and shrines of the Eastern Hills all the way to the Philosopher's Path, where you can finish the day at Silver Pagoda. Downtown sights such as Nijo Castle, Nishikikoji-dori traditional food street and the venerable Pontocho restaurant alley are a taxi ride away.

THE VERDICT

It's easy to whinge about hotels yet somehow almost impossible to find fault with this one. Good to know that sometimes, somewhere, there are hotels that simply get it right.

ESSENTIALS

644-2 Sanjusangendo-mawari, Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan. Rooms start from JPY32,300 ($366) a night. Phone +81 75 541 1234, see loewshotels.com/regency-san-francisco/.

Brian Johnston was a guest of Hyatt Regency Kyoto.